Today, the South Carolina Club for Growth State Action PAC endorsed five more reform-minded candidates who are seeking election in the upcoming June 10th primary.

Lee Bright, Joe Bustos, Tom Davis, Roger Nutt and Trey Whitehurst believe in limited government and lower taxes because they know that’s the perfect recipe for prosperity. Each has shown a commitment to improving our state government that has failed to address wasteful spending through our inefficient government structure, neglected to reform our burdensome tax code, and made our job-killing legal climate worse. Their success in this historic, watershed election will positively impact our state for decades.

SC Club for Growth PAC continues to work as a vital ally to those candidates who believe in better government. Today’s endorsements follow the March endorsements of Stu Rodman in HD123, Tim Scott in HD117 and Katrina Shealy in SD23 as well as our February endorsement of seventeen incumbent legislators.

Today, I am proud to announce our second challenger/open-seat endorsements of the 2008 primaries:

LEE BRIGHT (SENATE DISTRICT 12 – SPARTANBURG COUNTY)

Lee Bright is a principled conservative whose background as a small businessman gives him a clear-eyed view of the need for good government. From his experience in running a nationwide trucking company, Bright understands the importance of controlling spending and the dangers of runaway debt. He will advocate vital changes in areas like worker’s compensation reform, tort reform and education.

Bright’s chances for success are very good in this open-seat primary. Four years ago he came within 21 votes of beating a well-funded, trial lawyer incumbent who wisely decided to retire rather than face Bright again. Now Bright faces another trial lawyer opponent in current House member Scott Talley.

Talley earned a “D-” on the 2007 SC Club for Growth scorecard. While he did not vote poorly on budget issues, he has consistently stood in the way of tort and worker’s compensation reform and even voted to put a liberal Democrat (and former House member) on the state Supreme Court over a qualified conservative. The trial lawyers apparently really want to keep one of their own in this seat. Last quarter, Talley raised over $22,000 from other personal injury lawyers – over one-third of the money he raised.

A small business owner with a great track record of saving taxpayer money versus a personal injury lawyer who is backed heavily by his trial lawyer friends. It’s an easy decision for us. In the South Carolina Senate, Lee Bright will fight for conservative principles and put South Carolina back on track.

Visit him online at http://www.brightforsenate.com

JOE BUSTOS (HOUSE DISTRICT 112 – CHARLESTON COUNTY)

Mount Pleasant councilman Joe Bustos is running for the open seat vacated by retiring, perennial SC Club for Growth ally Ben Hagood. Bustos was raised in Mount Pleasant and returned to his hometown after retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army. As a small business owner, Bustos’ understanding of fiscal responsibility is one reason that Mount Pleasant has refused to raise taxes during his seven years on town council. Bustos also took a leadership role in blowing the whistle on the possible illegal activity of a lobbyist who may have improperly threatened council members and tried to extort money from developers.

Bustos strongly supports government restructuring. As a veteran, he objects to our state’s Adjutant General being the only popularly elected position in the entire military. He also saw first-hand the economic benefits enjoyed by states with no income tax during his Army service in Washington state.

His opponent, Isle of Palms Mayor Mike Sottile, seems to be running in large part to bring more state resources back to his home community. An article about his announcement quoted him saying that his coastal district needed “more state assistance.” Additionally, he has supported several property tax increases during his tenure in office, including a reported 21% increase last year.

Bustos said he is not “going to Columbia to be a face in the crowd, I’m going to make a difference.” We think that he will make the right kind of difference and is our endorsed choice to continue Rep. Hagood’s strong legacy of reform-minded service in House District 112.

TOM DAVIS (SENATE DISTRICT 46 – BEAUFORT COUNTY)

As Governor Sanford’s former Chief of Staff, there were few in government who could match Tom Davis’ commitment to improving our state and willingness to focus on the greater good. Davis, a Beaufort real estate attorney, has never run for public office but has sacrificed most of his last six years working to improve South Carolina.

Davis’ opponent, Catherine Ceips, moved from the House to the Senate via a special election last year. Her 2007 SC Club for Growth scorecard grade of “F” was earned in part by her record of voting to overturn 506 out of 513 of Governor Sanford’s recent budget vetoes that would have saved the state over $300 million. Ceips also voted with Representative Scott Talley to put a Democrat on the state Supreme Court and has continually voted to increase state spending, which is up over 40% in the last three years.

Davis believes in competitive state tax policies, restructuring government to provide more accountability and restraining state spending. With his diverse experience and commitment to reforming our state, we believe Tom Davis is the right choice for Senate District 46.

Visit him online at http://www.tomforsenate.com

ROGER NUTT (HOUSE DISTRICT 35 – SPARTANBURG COUNTY)

Spartanburg engineer Roger Nutt is running a pro-growth campaign of cutting spending, lowering taxes and easing government regulation. As a small businessman, he recognizes the importance of fiscal responsibility and how government needs to work with our business community in order to make our state stronger.

Nutt is challenging first-term incumbent Keith Kelly, yet another Republican making his living as a personal injury lawyer. Kelly also voted to put a liberal Democrat on the state Supreme Court and has consistently attempted to block much-needed reforms. The “F” that Kelly earned on the 2007 SC Club for Growth scorecard shows just how out of touch he is in a district that is overwhelmingly conservative.

Another trial lawyer versus a small businessman equals another easy choice. Roger Nutt’s experience and conservative principles will be invaluable once he is elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives.

Visit him online at http://www.rogernutt.com

TREY WHITEHURST (HOUSE DISTRICT 3 – PICKENS COUNTY)

Trey Whitehurst is an impressive small business owner and longtime resident of House District 3. From his experiences in the Navy, in the corporate world and as an entrepreneur, Whitehurst understands the problems of government inefficiency and out-of-control spending. He supports reducing the size of government, putting education money in classrooms instead of administration and growing our economy with tax cuts.

Whitehurst is taking on incumbent House member B.R. Skelton. Skelton was recently described as being part of a “clique of liberal, big government Republicans who consistently vote against market-based reforms and in favor of an ever-escalating government bureaucracy.” He received an “F” on our 2007 scorecard mainly because he voted to override almost all of Governor Sanford’s vetoes to control pork barrel spending. Skelton was also one of the Republicans joining dozens of Democrats in unsuccessfully voting for a backdoor pay raise that Governor Sanford called an “unbelievable show of disdain for the taxpayers of South Carolina.”

Trey Whitehurst will be an effective voice for limited government and conservative principles in the South Carolina House of Representatives. He has a strong foundation and believes in the power of limited government. As he recently said, “it seems we taxpayers are always asked to tighten our belts, but they never tighten their belts in Columbia.”

Visit him online at http://www.treywhitehurst.com