JUDICIARY SUBCOMMITTEE TO MEET TUESDAY AT 1 P.M. IN COLUMBIA

South Carolina lawmakers are wasting no time taking up an impeachment resolution that seeks to remove Gov. Mark Sanford from office.

A five-member Judiciary subcommittee will meet Tuesday afternoon to discuss the bill, which was filed last week by Rep. Greg Delleney (R-Chester).

The subcommittee, which will be chaired by Rep. Jim Harrison (R-Richland), includes Delleney and Reps. Jenny Horne (R-Dorchester), Walt McLeod (D-Newberry), Garry Smith (R-Greenville), James Smith (D-Richland), and David Weeks (D-Sumter).

The meeting will be held at 1 p.m. at room 101 on the first floor of the Blatt Building at the Statehouse complex in Columbia.

Delleney’s bill cites Sanford’s dereliction of duty, absence without leave, deceit and cover up, and disgrace of office.

“If character matters, I’ll have the votes. If character doesn’t matter, I won’t have the votes,” Delleney told The Palmetto Scoop last month, when he had planned to use a special legislative session to introduce the bill. “If he is not impeached, we will be making an unfortunate exception for elected officials in South Carolina.”

The State Ethics Commission has found “probable cause” in their investigation of allegations that Sanford used state aircraft for personal travel, violated state requirements by using high-priced airfare, and did not report the use of private aircraft; all stemming from the governor’s five day disappearance in June and his admission of an affair with a woman in Argentina.