State Investigation Clears Sanford of Wrongdoing

by wok3

Thursday, July 02, 2009 at 04:58 PM EDT

Well this is a bit odd. South Carolina’s Governor Sanford, the man who seemingly cannot find the off switch to his interview button, has been cleared of wrongdoing, the state saying that he was in Argentina on business for the state, and whatever he did on his private time while there had no bearing on his trips.

The odd part is that Sanford has repaid the state for those trips, though perhaps this was to avoid any appearance of impropriety. Well, I suppose the “avoiding impropriety” ship has long since sailed, so perhaps he just didn’t want criminal charges to even be filed.

Why oh why can’t the governor of South Carolina just keep his beak shut about all of this? Why does he keep talking to the press about his “soulmate?” I am starting to feel sorry for the GOP, and that almost never happens. Not to mention his wife and his friends, who must feel like they are being pulled through the mud by both the press and the Governor, I really do feel bad for them, and hope that Sanford can just shut up and/or move to Argentina.

But regardless of Sanford’s inability to learn when to be quiet (or at the very least stop having press interviews), if the state’s investigation is correct, then I was wrong to ever write that Sanford used taxpayer money to fly to Argentina to see his mistress. Of course, he did disappear to Argentina, and even if he paid for his own trip, it is difficult to understand how someone who is paid by the taxpayers was not cheated by his disappearance. Not to mention that when Sanford flew to Brazil for a Commerce Department meeting, it was Sanford who requested extra meetings in Argentina last year.

It is also sad that so many seem to be saying that the fact that he has been cleared of using taxpayer funds somehow means what he did was no big deal. I could have sworn a different set of standard were in place when Clinton’s affair was all the rage. In fact, Sanford himself said Clinton should resign due to his affair, but this is different. Why? It just is.

Mrs. Sanford is now saying that while her husband’s actions are inexcusable, that they may be able to work through this (especially if they can pawn the attention and sympathy being given to them to political ends). Maybe there really isn’t such a thing as bad press if they can turn this to their advantage, which shockingly seems to be the case now.