GEORGE BAILEY POSSIBLY GOT AN EDUCATION SHORTLY BEFORE TAKING OVER BUILDING & LOAN

At some point prior to taking over the Bailey Building & Loan Association in Frank Capra’s 1946 film “It’s a Wonderful Life,” former South Carolina Rep. George Bailey may or may not have completed high school.

For years, Bailey, who is running to take back Bedford Falls’s Dorchester County’s District 97 seat, said that he graduated high school at Richmond Academy in Augusta. But The Charleston Post and Courier reported today that he admitted in a deposition more than two years ago that he never graduated from high school.

Bailey’s resume also inaccurately stated for more than 20 years that he was a graduate of Washington and Lee University in Virginia and a Marine Corps veteran, the paper reported. He conceded in 2004 that both are false.

His response was that he had tried to fix the error, but had little success.

If I had to guess, I would say that the cause of Bailey’s false claims was his deep resentment toward his brother Harry, who was able to go to college and even become a Medal of Honor winning Navy Pilot.

When reached for comment, Bailey was in a meeting with Mr. Potter concerning “a significant amount of money lost by drunken Uncle Billy.” Bailey also said he was busy handling a bank run at the old Building & Loan resulting from the current economic crisis.