Wes Climer

Today I filed legislation, along with Senators Peeler, Johnson and Stubbs, that will grant the Governor the authority to designate foreign-affiliated groups that promote violence or radicalism as terrorist organizations under state law. This empowers law enforcement to act, alerts the public to the threat, and sends a clear signal that South Carolina does not negotiate with extremism.

York County Senator @WesClimer, who authored the Senate version of the bill added, “This pro-family legislation simply acknowledges the very truth we’ve understood throughout all of human history: there are only two sexes – male and female.”

What happened in Minnesota is what failure looks like. It's failure of oversight, failure of accountability, and failure to respect the taxpayer. We are not going to let that happen here. See the press statement and letter we just put out: Wes Climer and Fellow Senators Call for Fraud Audit to Protect South Carolina Taxpayers COLUMBIA, S.C. — State Senator Wes Climer, joined by Senators Michael Johnson, Danny Verdin, Billy Garrett, and Everett Stubbs, has formally requested a comprehensive fraud risk assessment of South Carolina’s public assistance programs, warning that the state must act now to prevent the kind of large-scale abuse seen elsewhere. In a letter to the Legislative Audit Council, the senators called for a top-to-bottom review of programs distributing federal and state funds, with a focus on identifying vulnerabilities, strengthening oversight, and ensuring taxpayer dollars are protected. The request comes as national attention has focused on massive fraud schemes in Minnesota, where investigators and lawmakers have pointed to systemic failures in oversight. Federal prosecutors uncovered hundreds of millions in fraudulent activity tied to public programs, and broader estimates suggest total exposure across multiple programs could reach as high as $9 billion. Climer said South Carolina has an opportunity to act before similar problems take hold. “We don’t wait for a scandal to clean up government. We prevent it,” Climer said. “What happened in Minnesota is what failure looks like. It's failure of oversight, failure of accountability, and failure to respect the taxpayer. We are not going to let that happen here.” The letter outlines specific steps for the audit, including identifying high-risk programs, reviewing verification processes, evaluating internal controls, and recommending reforms to ensure funds reach their intended recipients. Climer emphasized that the effort is not about targeting any one group or program, but about restoring confidence in government. “This is about protecting the people of South Carolina,” Climer said. “Every dollar lost to fraud is a dollar taken from a family, a taxpayer, or a critical service. Government has a responsibility to be a good steward, and right now, we’re making sure it is.” The senators noted that many public assistance programs rely on self-reporting and fragmented oversight, creating openings for abuse if not properly monitored. “Government works best when it is disciplined, transparent, and accountable,” Climer added. “We are putting those principles into action. South Carolinians deserve to know their money is being handled the right way.” The Legislative Audit Council is expected to review the request and determine next steps.

Today I filed to represent the people of South Carolina's 5th congressional district. Thank you for all the support. Here's the statement we just put out: WES CLIMER FILES TO RUN FOR CONGRESS IN SOUTH CAROLINA’S 5TH DISTRICT Rock Hill, SC — State Senator Wes Climer officially filed today to run for Congress in the Republican primary for South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District, pledging a campaign grounded in constitutional leadership, integrity in public service, and accountability to the people. Climer, who has represented York County in the South Carolina Senate, enters the race with a record of challenging government overreach and standing on principle, even when it comes at a personal or political cost. “I’m running for Congress because I believe government is supposed to serve the people it represents,” said Climer. “Too often, it ends up serving the people inside it. That’s not what public office is meant to be, and it’s something we need to correct.” Climer pointed to his successful legal challenge against the unconstitutional legislative pay raise as an example of his willingness to act on principle. “When lawmakers voted to increase their own pay during their current terms, it violated the Constitution. I challenged it because the Constitution isn’t optional,” Climer said. “The South Carolina Supreme Court unanimously agreed. That decision wasn’t about politics. It was about doing what is right.” Throughout his time in the State Senate, Climer has also emphasized personal accountability, including his decision to decline participation in the legislative retirement system. “Public office should not be a path to personal financial gain,” Climer said. “It should be a period of service. I rejected the legislative retirement benefit in Columbia, and I will hold myself to that same standard in Washington.” As part of his campaign, Climer is calling for reforms aimed at restoring public trust in government, including a ban on stock trading by members of Congress. “Members of Congress should not be using information gained through their office to make money in the stock market,” Climer said. “If we expect the public to trust our institutions, we have to remove conflicts of interest and hold ourselves to a higher standard.” Climer said his campaign will focus on restoring a sense of duty in public service and ensuring that elected officials are accountable to the people they represent. “We have a responsibility not only to follow the Constitution, but to do what is morally right,” Climer said. “That’s the standard I’ve tried to live by in the State Senate, and it’s the standard I will bring to Congress.” He continued "I'm hopeful the voters of South Carolina's fifth district see that I've been fighting for them while in the State Senate and I'll continue to do so in Washington as I work to push President Trump's America First agenda, cut the debt and defend our conservative values. " The Republican primary for South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District will take place on June 9th. For more information, visit wesclimer.com

America’s founders believed deeply in the separation of powers. The legislature writes the laws. The executive enforces them. The judiciary interprets them. Each branch has its role, and each branch serves as a check on the others. South Carolina’s current system for selecting judges blurs those lines in ways that should concern anyone who cares about the integrity of the courts or their own freedoms. South Carolina remains one of only two states where the legislature effectively controls the judicial selection process from beginning to end. The General Assembly appoints the members of the Judicial Merit Selection Commission. That commission screens judicial candidates. The legislature then elects the judges. When one branch of government controls each step of that process, the result is an extraordinary concentration of authority in one place. Many legislators serve with integrity and take their responsibilities seriously. But structure matters. Systems should be designed to avoid conflicts of interest and preserve public confidence. In South Carolina, lawyer-legislators routinely appear in court before judges who were screened and elected through a process the legislature controls. Even if everyone involved acts honorably, that arrangement raises understandable questions for the public. Justice must not only be fair. It must also be seen to be fair. That is why judicial reform has become an important conversation in our state. The legislation currently under consideration would move South Carolina toward a system that more closely resembles the constitutional balance of power envisioned by our founders. Under the proposal, the governor would appoint the members of the Judicial Merit Selection Commission. The commission would continue to vet candidates and evaluate their qualifications. The General Assembly would still elect judges. But the legislature would no longer control the entire process. Authority would be distributed rather than concentrated. That is not a radical idea. In fact, it would bring South Carolina closer to the model used by most states in the country. Some have argued that we should pause and see how recently enacted changes to the judicial screening process perform before pursuing additional reforms. But we were given a real-world reminder of the system’s weaknesses in just the last couple weeks. The former Speaker of the South Carolina House nearly secured a seat on the South Carolina Supreme Court despite having very little experience as a judge. Regardless of anyone’s view of the individuals involved, that episode highlighted a broader structural problem. When legislative relationships and internal politics become central to judicial selection, the system begins to look less like a search for the best legal minds and more like an extension of the political process. That is not healthy for the judiciary and it is not healthy for public trust. The goal of reform is not to malign those who serve under the current system. It is to strengthen the system itself. Institutions endure when they are willing to improve. At its core, judicial reform is about humility. It is about recognizing that no branch of government should accumulate too much authority over time. It is about remembering that the purpose of constitutional design is to prevent power from becoming too comfortable in any one place and threatening the freedoms of citizens. The Senate now has an opportunity to continue the work the House has already begun. Many Senators understand the importance of this issue and support moving the bill forward. Yet, like many conservative reforms over the years, the legislation is currently stuck in committee. Committees are meant to study and refine legislation, not quietly bury it, especially when taxpayers are crying out for action. Judicial reform deserves to be debated openly on the Senate floor. South Carolina has an opportunity to strengthen one of its most important institutions. The courts function best when they are independent of political influence and when the public can trust that independence. Reforming the judicial selection process will not solve every problem overnight. But it will move us toward a system that better reflects the principles of separation of powers, judicial independence, and public accountability. That goal is worthy of bipartisan support and serious consideration.

One of the biggest frustrations people have with government today is not just the size of it, but the distance between the people and the decisions that affect their lives. Too often those decisions are not being made by elected representatives. They are being made by unelected bureaucracies that operate with very little accountability to the public. That is not how our system was designed to work. In a constitutional republic, the people elect lawmakers to write the laws, and those lawmakers are accountable at the ballot box. When agencies begin writing thousands of rules and regulations that carry the force of law, that balance starts to break down. The result is a system that is harder to navigate, more expensive to comply with, and increasingly disconnected from the people it is supposed to serve. Businesses face layers of red tape. Families face delays and confusion. And taxpayers are left wondering who is actually responsible. If we want to restore confidence in government, we have to start by restoring accountability. That means cutting unnecessary regulations, streamlining agencies, and making sure that the people making the rules are the people who must answer to the voters. Government should serve the people. It should not bury them under paperwork.

🌙🌴🏛️⚖️ While campaign season in South Carolina is heating up, let's not forget it's also CRUNCH TIME in the S.C. General Assembly for several key bills. Here's a great guest column from S.C. senator @WesClimer on one of the most important ones... fitsnews.com/2026/03/16/wes…

I’ve never been afraid to stand for what’s right, even when the pressure is intense. I fought for medical freedom when it mattered most, and I worked side by side with the NRA and grassroots conservatives to pass constitutional carry in South Carolina. These victories didn’t happen by accident. They happened because people were willing to stand firm for their rights.

One thing I hear over and over is that folks feel like government is working for the people inside it rather than the taxpayers it is supposed to serve. Government exists to serve you – not bureaucrats, not politicians, not lobbyists. Too many elected officials have lost sight of that. They treat public office as an ornament to benefit them, rather than a sacred obligation to serve others. Those entrusted with public office have a strict duty to follow the Constitution and put the interests of their constituents above their own. That conviction led me to challenge the legislative pay raise in court. Lawmakers voted to increase their own compensation by eighty percent during their current terms despite the Constitution clearly stating that legislative compensation cannot be increased during the term for which a member is elected. Many people told me the lawsuit would cost me politically, that it would impair my ability accomplish policy objectives in the legislature. They may have been right. But the principle mattered more than the politics. The South Carolina Supreme Court ultimately agreed and struck the pay raise down unanimously. The Constitution means what it says. I have tried to apply that same principle to my own service. While serving in the State Senate, I refused the legislative retirement benefit available to members. Public office should be a temporary act of service to your community and temporary public service should not confer retirement benefits. In fact, the mere existence of retirement benefits corrupts the incentives of elected officials. The same principle applies in Washington. Members of Congress should not be able to get rich from their service. They should not be able to use privileged information gained through their office for personal profit. That is why I support banning stock trading by members of Congress. Not only will I aggressively support legislation to end Congressional profiteering, I will hold myself to that standard, regardless of what the law says. I will not own individual stocks. I will not vote to raise Congressional compensation. I will not accept a Congressional pension. These issues go to the heart of whether government is serving the public or serving itself. If we want people to trust our institutions again, the people who hold office must hold themselves to a standard that earns that trust. If you believe government should work for the people it represents and not the politicians who occupy it, I would be grateful for your support.

The swamp fights hard, and President Trump needs conservative allies who fight harder.

I’m proud to endorse @WesClimer for SC’s 5th Congressional District. Wes has built a strong record of principled conservative leadership in the South Carolina Senate. He understands the challenges facing our country and has the character and discipline to help Republicans deliver real results in Washington. #SC05

@GOPMajorityWhip Emmer has one of the toughest assignments in Congress and consistently delivers big wins for the American people. I’m honored to have earned his support, and look forward to working with him to enact the America First Agenda

Always great to be out at High Cotton!  Huge thanks to Reed & Julia Rogers and Matt & Mimi Goodner for hosting our campaign.  Couldn't have had a better night for great barbecue, fellowship, and a good talk about slashing spending and preserving our core conservative values.

Silfab is ordered to cease operations immediately and the Department of Environmental Services is poised to pursue any legal remedy required to enforce its order.

In response to the chemical spill at Silfab Solar in Fort Mill, Sen. Michael Johnson and I have been in contact with senior leadership at the Department of Environmental Services to assess the impact on our community and request the Department stop work at the site.  Our full statement is attached.

The immortal visual of the entire Democrat party—upon explicit repeated invitation—refusing to stand for the core moral principle that US government owes its allegiance to US citizens and not foreign criminal invaders, is the most shocking image in the history of the US Congress.

.@POTUS: "If you agree with this statement then stand up and show your support: the first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens not illegal aliens." *DEMOCRATS REMAIN SEATED* SICK!

.@POTUS: Surely we can all agree that no state can be allowed to rip children from their parents’ arms and transition them to a new gender against the parents’ will. WE MUST BAN IT — AND BAN IT NOW!

.@POTUS: "In the past 9 months, ZERO illegal aliens have been admitted to the United States... The flow of deadly fentanyl across our border is down by a record 56%...And last year, the murder rate saw its single largest decline in recorded history...the lowest number in over 125 years."