The City of Beaufort voted for Donald Trump to be President in November 2024 with approximately 55% percent of the vote. A strong showing of support for the now President. It is clear, however, that the man running the city, Scott Marshall, was not one of them.
Marshall, the Beaufort city manager, took to Facebook to express his opinions about some of President Trump‘s recent decisions and he did not hold back:
On page 24 of the City of Beaufort Employee Handbook there is a policy specific to employees’ social media use :
“Employees are cautioned that they are responsible for the contents of social media posts they make. Posts that contain obscene or harassing material, that are unlawful, that contain personal attacks on coworkers, that reasonably call into question the employee’s judgment, or that reasonably cause concern among the public may result in discipline, up to and including termination from employment. Similarly, conduct that would violate City policies if done in person also violates City policy if done through social media.”
On page 15 the employee Code of Conduct states:
“Employees must make an effort to avoid any actions creating the appearance that they are violating the law or the ethical standards promulgated pursuant to policy”
Beaufort Insider was tagged in a post by Michael E. Covert expressing concern about Scott Marshall’s posts: “I am having a difficult time understanding why the City Manager of Beaufort SC would post things like this. We can all have our own political “lanes”, but to come out and say “you hope the ghosts of Lincoln and Reagan choke him in his sleep”….well, thats just a tad insane. I tend to agree with Scott Robinson in his comment where he says “I hope you don’t take to ostracizing me (as a citizen) the way you are to your President”.” According to the comments on Covert’s post, there are a lot of other people having a difficult time with Marshall’s comments as well. Here are a few examples:
The Beaufort City Council supervises the City Manager. It seems they have some decisions to make about how to deal with Marshall’s social media posts. One Beaufort Insider reader said they believe Marshall has the City Council “wrapped around his little finger”, but Marshall may have pushed the limits too far this time. The people commenting on Facebook are certainly going to be watching to see how the City Council reacts.
Hear more about this story and more on our podcast Beaufort Voice. This story and other recent news will be discussed on the “Beaufort Under Fire: What’s Going on With Local Leadership?” episode.
Thug! What did the city manager think his post made him sound like. Mr. Marshall instead of spending your time on FB perhaps you should walk the streets of our city and see how it’s deteriorating. We have homeless sleeping in the parks right next to the children’s play ground. They sleep and urinate in the pavilion. Perhaps make this a priority instead of posting on FB. $175,000 plus auto expenses earn your money.