I's a good people of South Caroline, and I don't really care. :p

This is pretty funny to me. At least it wasn't NY's governor (who most people would be happy to see disappear) or Florida's (an odd duck, really).

Why are governors so...weird?

He is in the public lime light and is responsible to the citizens of his fine state. He needs to make an accounting or it will haunt him in the future.

I see what you're saying. Like I've said, I think the issue is not the trip itself but the inability for contact during the trip. Many responsibilities or none, he is the Chief Executive, and there are decisions that only he can make. Who knows if any of those will come up while he's gone. (For example one example that has been given: What if a prison riot had broken out on Friday?)

I can get him wanting a real break. The responsible way to do that is to say to your immediate staff: "I'm going away/out of the country for X number of days. I need a real break. I will not have my cell phone on, but I will call in at noon every day to make sure that nothing has blown up. If a real emergency arises, my wife will know how to reach me (and she won't pass a message along unless it is a real emergency.)* If the press or anyone else asks, tell them that I am out of the state for a short vacation but am in regular contact with my staff."

You also let the lt. governor know that you are away but are in contact with your staff.

* I realize that this is a whole 'nother kettle of fish in this thing. But frankly, I simply can't imagine leaving town, much less the country, without a way for my wife to alert me if one of our kids was, say, in the hospital.

Aside from the novelty of the story, I think it's because he was seen as a potential rising star on the national GOP scene.

Now, how about that New York Senate? :D

I'm watching the press conference now, and it sure does look like he's going to admit to an affair.

Yep, he did it right while I was typing.

ETA: I'll give him this -- he didn't pull an Elliot Spitzer and make his wife stand next to him during the press conference.

I for one, am really shocked.

Isn't there a deal where the governor has to pass power down to his lieutenant governor or Senate President before he leaves the state? I guess it depends on the state, but

The New York Senate is a joke. The Dems have locked themselves in the senate chamber with the gavel! Why can't the Reps just buy another gavel? Or call a locksmith?

Well, it was kind of him to abandon his job for a while so that no one has to address whether the affair alone would mean he was unfit to serve as governor. Thanks for the immoral clarity, Governor.

Wow. :eek: It just keeps getting weirder.

To be honest, a friend and I at lunch were talking about it and we speculated that the only question was whether it was a woman or a guy.

It's apparently a woman that he met 8 years ago, but their affair started last year.

Sidenote: it's really weird to see all of this news coverage of this in Columbia.

As I read the story, I was sort of hoping it was going to be a guy, just because it kind of complicates simplistic judgments a little bit. Perverse of me, I know.

And I also want to note that now I wish that his wife has said, "I don't really know where he is, but I think he's in Argentina with his girlfriend. I heard they might hit the strip clubs with Bill."

ETA: not that I really believe the BC stories.

Maybe you didn't READ.

He told his office (which they touted) that he was walking the Appalacian Trail which somehow...BAM...he ends up far south of the border.

I don't care what you call it but it's wrong on any account to just up and leave the state and NOBODY knows where the hell you are going or how to reach you.

ETA: I just read the rest of the thread...well there ya have it...he traveled a few thousand miles to eff around on his wife...good lie, bad execution

Now...let's proceed to the next question...on whose dime?

** Hears the sound of a rising star crashing**

LOL. Both of these ideas are just awesome.

I got the impression that perhaps he went to break it off. Maybe that's just what I inferred from what he said.

But I seriously wonder if on some level he wanted to get caught.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Gov. Mark Sanford admitted Wednesday he's been having an affair with a woman he visited on a secret trip to Argentina and said he'll resign as head of the Republican Governors Association. Sanford, a rumored 2012 presidential candidate, refused to say whether he'll leave office.

"I've let down a lot of people, that's the bottom line," Sanford said at a news conference. He said he's known the woman about eight years, but their relationship turned into something more a year ago while he was on an economic development trip to Argentina.

Sanford, a 49-year-old father of four, choked up during remarks to reporters. He said his wife has known about the affair for the last five months.

Sanford revealed Wednesday morning that he'd gone to Argentina for a seven-day trip. For two days after reporters starting asking questions, his office had said he had gone hiking on the Appalachian Trail.

link


Oh he broke it off alright!!! LOL

But if he had told SOMEONE...he probably would not have gotten caught.