Sanford Confidential: Coming Soon

The S.C. Supreme Court is likely to rule this week on whether a preliminary report by the State Ethics Commission into the administration of embattled Gov. Mark Sanford will become available to the public – and more importantly to the lawmakers who could act as his prosecutors and judges in impeachment proceedings.

The Commission says that its long-awaited preliminary report – which would outline the charges against the governor (but not his responses) – could be finished this week, hence the urgency of the Court’s ruling.

Sanford has sued to block the release of that report, arguing essentially that it violates due process.

For those of you waking up from a five-month nap, Sanford’s administration came under intense scrutiny earlier this year when the governor took a secretive trip to Argentina to see his Latin lover, Maria Belen Chapur.  After being caught lying about his whereabouts, Sanford later confessed to the affair.

Shortly thereafter, the governor refunded several thousand taxpayer dollars that went to pay for a prior “economic development” mission to Argentina, a trip that appears to have been set up solely for the purpose of facilitating a liaison between Sanford and Chapur.

Following these revelations, investigations into Sanford’s travel practices quickly mushroomed – revealing a host of abuses.  Specifically, Sanford is accused of receiving first-class plane ticket upgrades in violation of state policy, misusing the state plane for personal and political reasons and failing to report numerous airplane flights that were provided to him by friends and political allies.

An impeachment resolution has already been drawn up against Sanford by S.C. Rep. Greg Delleney, although it was ruled out of order during a special legislative session last week by House Speaker Bobby Harrell.  Delleney’s resolution focuses on Sanford leaving the state without notifying officials and lying about his whereabouts, not the various allegations being investigated by the Ethics Commission.

The governor has denied any wrongdoing, but multiple sources tell FITS that the Ethics Commission’s preliminary report will conclude otherwise, despite the fact that the governor appoints every member of the Commission and has, in fact, received political donations from several of them.

Speculation regarding the content of the report has become something of a parlor game in the state capital of Columbia, S.C., with seemingly everyone having a theory on what it will or won’t contain.

Based on what’s already been published, it seems highly unlikely that Sanford will escape being found guilty of violating state ethics law – perhaps on multiple counts.

At that point, expect impeachment talk to ratchet up again.

In the meantime, what’s your opinion?

Comments