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60 OF 73 REPUBLICANS SIGN LETTER REQUESTING GOVERNOR’S RESIGNATION
The South Carolina House of Representatives Republican Caucus is asking disgraced Gov. Mark Sanford to resign from office “for the good of our state.”
In a letter signed by Majority Leader Kenny Bingham Wednesday and hand delivered to the governor’s office, 60 of the 73 members of the caucus requested that Sanford step down as governor — an indication that impeachment would be nearly unanimous.
“Given the disturbing actions you revealed to the public in late June and the ensuing facts portraying legal and ethical violations that have continuously emerged these past few weeks, we have collectively come to the conclusion that South Carolina will not be able to move forward under your leadership,” the letter read.
The 13 members not signing the letter included Reps. Nikki Haley, Kris Crawford, Shannon Erickson, Jim Merrill, Joey Millwood, Wendy Nanney, Ted Pitts, Murrell Smith, Garry Smith, Jim Stewart, David Umphlett, Thad Viers.
The caucus letter came a day after House Speaker Bobby Harrell issued a similar plea.
The letter was drafted following last month’s Republican Caucus meeting where Republican frustration with the governor was evident.
“The direction of the Caucus leaving that meeting was unmistakable,” Rep. Bruce Bannister said. “Governor, you have lost the support of legislators who have supported you through thick and thin. The time has come to step down. The best way you can help our state right now is to step aside and let us get back on our feet.”
The letter cited an Ethics Commission investigation into allegations that Sanford used state aircraft for personal travel, violated state law by using high-priced airfare, and didn’t report the use of private aircraft will be released soon.
House Republicans were also upset with Sanford’s disappearance in June to pursue an affair with a woman from Argentina.
“Your decision to abandon our state for five days, with no defined order of succession and with no known way to contact you, is inexcusable,” read the letter. “But perhaps even more disturbing than the abandonment of your post and the multiple ethics allegations against you is the extreme amount of stress, uncertainty, an negative scrutiny that the citizens of South Carolina, our government and our party have had to endure due to your behavior.
“The time, and need, has come for South Carolina to step forward, and we ask that you voluntarily step aside so that our state and its people may heal.”
In a statement, Bingham referenced the State’s 11.8 percent jobless rate and difficulty securing economic development.
“Our unemployment is high and the people of our state are concerned about the future – it is a shame that our state government continues to be mired in distraction,” Bingham said. “The time has come for the governor to step aside and let South Carolinians begin the process of healing our state.”
Sanford’s office did not immediately issue a response.
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UPDATE: Haley has just issued a response as to why she didn’t sign the letter.
“We can put the names of all 170 Members of the General Assembly on a list requesting the governor resign, but at the end of the day there is only one person who will make that decision, and Sanford has made it clear that he will not step down,” Haley said. “So any further pressure in that direction is nothing more than political posturing, and that’s not what we as elected officials ought to be doing.
“If and when the Governor, the Speaker, and the Majority Leader put together a letter that clearly lays out a positive agenda for the next year and a half, I’ll be the first to sign it. But that’s the only list I intend to attach my name to – a list that is for and about the people of South Carolina and not just another example of the long tradition of political gamesmanship that has held our state and its citizens down for far too long.”
I think she actually copied and pasted that last line directly from Sanford’s list of cliches.
This is transparent attempt by the legislature to place a damaged (he has been outed as a gay man by a national blog) Bauer into office.
With Bauer in office, the insiders in Cola will run wild.
This is a blatant power grab by the tax and spend wing of the general assembly. It is disgusting.
Sanford may be flawed, but he has attempted to bring spending down…his proposed cuts to budget were in the hundreds of millions. Bauer will sign any budget that the his new master place in front of him.
The behavior exhibited by those in the State House is every bit as despicable as the Governor’s actions that started all of this. No one–and I mean no one–can claim all of the grandstanding by the likes of Bauer, Knotts, Harrell, etc., is anything more than political maneuvering. South Carolina has the weakest governor’s office in the entire country, so why would it make any difference at all if he resigns or gets impeached? The State House does what it wants to do regardless of who’s on the Governor’s Mansion. R. L. Schreadley’s editorial in yesterday’s Post & Courier is the most common sense response to all of this I’ve seen.
We need a major overhaul of government in South Carolina, and it should start with the impeachment of nearly every state Representative and Senator for dereliction of duty, not with the Governor’s ouster for daring to fly business class.
So these 60 want waste time on Sanford because he got caught, told a lie, and maybe used a little money he shouldn’t have. Maybe a good talking to at best.
They should focus on Barney Frank and Charlie Reingold. These guys should be executed in public.
Man, these dudes are so cynical. They think we can’t see this for what it really is?
The “good ole boys” in Columbia are having an election for their convenience…not ours. The problem is we are not being asked how we feel about it…they are just plugging away, building their own kingdoms, pretending they care about what we think..
I say out with Harrell and his cronies…a new broom sweeps clean, and that state house need a cleaning in the worst way!
Goodbye, Mr. Sanford. No this is much more about derelection of duty, leaving the state without anyone, ANYONE knowing, then following all that up with disjointed, incoherent and unexplainable interviews to personal and professional adversaries.
It is easy to understand why a group of big spenders like the leaders of the GOP Caucus would want Bauer in office. With gay rumors flying all over the place, and maybe someone has the actual proof, I don’t think he is likely to say no to anyone or anything.
Mark Sanford has done wrong. But damn, do we really want someone with as many personal and ethical clouds as Bauer to become governor?
And by the way, if he does become governor, does anyone wanna guess how long he will last before some boyfriend or other scandal pops up? Then what, a third governor in one year?
That tax and spend legislature never listened to Sanford anyway, so why is that a big deal now?
If my choice is Sanford and a track record of fighting for lower taxes and smaller government vs. Bauer and the rino’s in the high tax, bis government legislature, I will choose Sanford everytime.
Some people conveniently forget that Bauer has his own ethical problems, and the are possible repercussions from this gay stuff too.
I have been looking at Bobby Harrell’s financial disclosure reports at the Ethics Commission web site.
Strangely enough I can find no record of his flights from his aborted campaign for Governor…when a friend flew him around the state on MANY occasions.
Would someone please look into that. I don’t see why he can fly and not disclose, and then condemn Sanford for the same thing.
In response to Sam – “This is transparent attempt by the legislature to place a damaged (he has been outed as a gay man by a national blog) Bauer into office. With Bauer in office, the insiders in Cola will run wild.”
That comment deserves no other remark than “ignorance”.
The ousting of Sanford from office is a long, painful, winding staircase. THe closer we get to the top, it’s getting harder to breathe and everyone wants to scream. But we will get there. The man left for five days with no one to back him up. That’s enough.
Brettinc,
Why is it that you Anti-Sanford Pro_Bauer people do not believe in evidence. You guys seem to only make charges, yell them loudly, then expect everyone to believe you.
Show me the evidence that links the outing to Sanford or be honorable, and retract what you do not know
I agree with Sam completely. No one has proven Sanford broke any laws whatsoever.
He flew business class? What governor doesn’t? No one to “back him up?” You can’t be serious. That’s what the Lt. Governor is for.
The House Republicans’ letter stated that Sanford left with “no defined order of succession.” They should all be tossed out for sheer stupidity! Of course there’s a defined order of succession. That’s specifically why we elect a Lt. Governor.
[...] following day, the State House Republican Caucus sent Sanford a letter signed by 61 or 73 members asking that he resign. Posted in SC Politics | Tagged [...]
[...] following day, the State House Republican Caucus sent Sanford a letter signed by 61 or 73 members asking that he resign. Posted in 1, SC Politics | Tagged [...]