Inaugural Poetry: The Palmetto, Sunshine, and Sunflower States

A collection of thoughts from gubernatorial inaugural addresses:

South Carolina: Nikki Haley
Our state has an incredibly powerful and rich history.
It is one that has not always been pleasant,
but one that can teach us
many great lessons.

Let's see: tax protests, tea parties,
the grassroots beating the professionals –
it does have a certain
familiar ring to it.

Growing up in rural...South Carolina,
my family experienced this state... at its best.
No, not every day was perfect.
No, we were not always free from the burdens.

For us, happiness existed in not knowing what we didn't have.

When we embark on this new journey
toward growth and prosperity,
we must do so together,
with one vision.

A vision that is focused on
the success of our families and businesses
is a vision that is not impaired
by bipartisanship, personalities, or distractions.

We don't have time for that, and I won't stand for it.


Florida: Rick Scott
Clear goals and hard work can achieve amazing things.
The giant oak trees that surround us here
ARE what they ARE Because acorns had a plan.

Unemployed parents struggle
to put on a brave face for their children,
but it’s hard to hide the fact…
that the wolf is at the door.
I’ve been a child in a home like that.

Three forces markedly reduce that chance for success—
taxation…regulation…and litigation.
We’ll also re-examine every regulation to make sure
its benefits outweigh its costs.
Unless they are pruned.
Regulations grow like weeds.

After all, we have always been the destination
for dreamers. Railroads into the wilderness…
A magic kingdom…A trip to the moon…
Freedom from a foreign tyrant…
Better health...Life without winter.

Large and small,
Dreams are the stuff that Florida is made of.


Kansas: Sam Brownback
We were born on Hope…in sacrifice and bloodshed. 
A Hope built on the Truth that all men and women
were created to be free.

If you had enough courage and self-sacrifice
to come claim 160 acres of challenge, then it was yours.
Some succeeded, some failed, and a state was born!

Believing in the future of Kansas, speaking it,
making it happen. As you believe, so you will be.
Character is the fruit produced out of the Kansas environment.

Yesterday is gone, tomorrow never does come.
Today is our masterpiece.
We have been placed here for a reason
and a short season.

Let us make the most of it.