You won't believe what this S.C. lawmaker said today

Who: Stephen Goldfinch, a freshman Republican lawmaker from Murrells Inlet in Georgetown County, S.C.

What: He’s facing federal charges for allegedly mislabeling stem cells during harvesting. And he’s being sued in a separate incident by a treasure hunter who claims Goldfinch said he was a powerful lawmaker and lawyer who knew where shipwrecks and sunken treasure might be — and could grease the wheels to make some deals and some money.

When: A couple of months ago with the stem cells, this week with the sunken treasure suit.

Where: Texas, actually, both of them. The allegedly mislabeled stem cells ended up in a Texas clinic, and the treasure hunter is coincidentally based in Texas.

Why: Because Goldfinch, the South Carolina lawmaker, said some pretty quotable things in the Coastal Observer we just read that made us go “Wow.”

Like how he described the treasure lawsuit and the guy who is suing him:

“It’s baseless, completely frivolous,” Goldfinch said. “This guy has lost his mind. It’s pretty sad to see it happen. He’s getting dementia or something. I don’t know what’s going on with him.”

And why he says he would never brag about being a powerful lawmaker in South Carolina.

“I never tell clients I’m a legislator because politicians are hated,” Goldfinch said.

Straight talker.

What else?

Goldfinch said [his former treasure hunting buddy] called him two weeks ago, hoping to force him out of the business by making his life “a living hell” by rehashing the details of a federal case involving mislabeled stem cells. “He said, ‘You’ve got a lot to lose. You’ve got trouble going on with the media right now.’ He’s trying to put pressure on me because he thinks I’m weak right now.

How did the South Carolina lawmaker react to that?