The latest on a story we hope to stop talking about soon, that is the bizarre disappearance, reappearance, and apparently deliberate misinformation surrouding the whereabouts of South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford.
As it turns out, it’s not nearly as interesting a story as it first appeared. Unless catching “family values” Republicans with their pants down is your particular thing. Just a week after the John Ensign affair/payroll scandal broke, The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza reports:
Gov. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.) admitted that he had conducted an extramarital affair with a woman in Argentina who he had gone to visit over the last five days — during which time a massive media story developed over where he was and why.
“I have been unfaithful to my wife . . . I developed a relationship with what started as a dear dear friend,” said Sanford.
He said that he had met the woman, who he did not name, roughly eight years ago and that it had become romantic within the last year. He visited her three times during the past year, Sanford said, and noted that his wife, Jenny, had been aware of the affair for the past five months.
“First and foremost, I apologize to my wife and my four boys. I have made decisions that have hurt and will continue to hurt them, and for that I’m sincerely sorry,” Sanford said in a statement released after his at-times rambling announcement in the South Carolina statehouse. “Jenny has stood by me through campaign after campaign, through hard time after hard time, and neither she nor the boys deserve this. Please offer them your prayers.”
Sanford announced his resignation as chairman of the Republican Governors Association but did not offer any hint of whether he was considering resigning as governor of the Palmetto State…
Sanford’s public announcement punctuates a strange and winding series events that caused confusion within the state government and considerable chagrin among the Republican Party, which saw its second potential 2012 candidate in as many weeks brought low by infidelity.
As we try to make clear in all such situations, this problem really is the hypocrisy–maybe a little worse after the abandoning your office and lying to the press and legislature part, but first and foremost it’s the hypocrisy. From the Huffington Post:
…The standard Sanford has set for other politicians over the years has been fairly high. A member of the House of Representatives during the heyday of the Clinton-Lewinsky affair, he was often a harsh critic of the president for his marital misconduct.
This is “very damaging stuff,” Sanford declared at one point, when details of Clinton’s conduct became known. “I think it would be much better for the country and for him personally (to resign)… I come from the business side,” he said. “If you had a chairman or president in the business world facing these allegations, he’d be gone.”
We have a prediction on what’s going to leave the bigger mark, and it’s what should.
UDPATE: Mea culpa video here. Why do they always ramble so?
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I love it when Republican “Family Values” conservatives are caught in situations like this. I feel badly for his family (which is more compassion than he has ever shown toward myself and my family, I might add), but as far as I’m concerned, this couldn’t happen to a more deserving person…
But I don’t think it’s cool when anyone allows themselves to get into a situation like this.
Jenny and their four boys didn’t ask for it, yet they’re the ones hurt.
It’s not cool at all.
“I feel badly for his family”. Right there at the end of the first line and beginning of the second line. Plain as day.
I’m glad that another hypocrite has been exposed. That, in my opinion, is very, very cool.
I didn’t invent that, you wrote it.
You think it’s cool or not? That’s a simple “yes or no” question.
….that a hypocrite was exposed. “Very, very cool,” even. Did I misread?
It is, in my opinion, very, very cool. Way cool, even. Delightful.
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But hard to look away.
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is make Ritter look better.
He might be uninspiring and pedestrian but he doesn’t have any freak side shows going. Sometimes plodding along isn’t all that bad a way forward.
I’d prefer to offer her my attorney. I hear he’s a barracuda when it comes to divorce settlements.
“Better to burn out than fade away”
(accidentally also posted in the grocery store thread, blush)
As reported by The State
Do you think, instead of listening to “country music playing in the cab”, he might want to consider listening to Robert Cray’s Playing In The Dirt.
he should have rejected more than one stimulus package.
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Look for reports next week of T Paw and Dave Letterman’s fave Guv meeting up in Bermuda.
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..
http://wonkette.com/409435/fox…
Guess I made a slipup by putting a D in front of his name. Not a coincidence it happened to Foley either. My god, Fox just can’t help themselves. Juvenile hour.
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… as of last Wednesday, I believe his favorite Guv is from Wasilla.
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The title of your first post alleged that the news about that naughty Sanford was the work of a left wing conspiracy. I expressed my doubts as to your theory given the news that Sanford is a liberal Democrat. bueno bye
I think cheating on your spouse is one of the most awful things you can do because it is a fundamental betrayal of a core promise you make to someone who is your partner.
Ah, humans. Such a fascinating species.
http://draftsanford2012.com/
Well, I suppose if the alternative is Nude Hiking Day on the Appalachian Trail, it’s not quite as… “unique”.
But, still, it still has potential misuse of government funds, dereliction of duty, stupid misdirection tricks including use of a State Law Enforcement vehicle with “I’m going camping” equipment parked at the local airport… Nevermind the actual hypocrisy.
What should leave the most lasting mark are the first two points, not the last.
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If Mrs. Governor sent the lurid emails between the lovebirds to The State newspaper in December,
why is this story just breaking now ?
Was the newspaper using them to extort favors ?
Or were they waiting to catch him in flagrante delecto ?
Apparently the Mrs. also had to tip them to his return flight, or we still wouldn’t know about this.
Just a guess, but maybe the spurned wife even had to draft the article.
The Wonkette article about how intrepid this reporter had to be is really just more evidence of the disappearance of investigative journalism. The wife has been trying to break this story for 6 months, and the paper, out of deference to a person in power, kept putting her off.
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The paper’s claim is that they had a single anonymous source, and they were waiting to catch the Governor in a compromising situation.
He disappears, office claims he’ll be back on a certain date, so the reporter goes to the airport to meet a plane coming in from Argentina on a guess.
It makes sense, I guess. Better than just printing unsourced allegations, IMHO.
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reporter did not go to the airport merely on a hunch, she got a tip.
http://www.thestate.com/sanfor…
Dollars to donuts this “reporter” never did any research or interviews.
I don’t know why I’m so disappointed that this story petered out so fast.
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… to ask if she was the anonymous source.
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Guess it’s possible Sanford’s wife tipped them off. But she’s saying she didn’t even know about his most recent trip to Argentina:
http://www.thestate.com/sanfor…