The Atlantic - Latest Comments in Mark Sanford

Re: Mark Sanford

dragnet — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 09:34:50 -0000

Unless the Appalachian Trail runs all the way down to Buenos Aires, we got the stench of scandal all over this baby.

Re: Mark Sanford

klg19 — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 08:48:19 -0000

Curiouser and curiouser:

http://www.thestate.com/local/story/838823.html

Re: Mark Sanford

CParis — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 01:21:06 -0000

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Re: Mark Sanford

CParis — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:59:51 -0000

Priceless!

Re: Mark Sanford

CParis — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:55:55 -0000

I thought he was honoring that long tradition of many Southern White gentlemen and spending Father's Day with his "other" family.

Re: Mark Sanford

CParis — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:52:27 -0000

LOL!!! I think he's gone Hollywood, I hear they've already started filming "Transformers III: Revenge of the Roombas" and he's got a role as a Cylon.

Re: Mark Sanford

eric k — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 17:23:18 -0000

This is reminding me of a hilarious story Richard Harris told on Letterman once, given that Harris was telling the story I imagine it was a fair amount of embellishment and little fact but still:

One Saturday he goes out to buy milk or something and stops at a pub for a beer on the way, he gets to talking to some buddies and they decide to go up to Scotland to watch a soccer match. They go have a great time, party all night and late Sunday as he's heading home he realizes, Doh forgot to call the wife, gets to the house and realizes he doesn't have a key so can't sneak in, when his wife answers the door with a nasty look on her face he looks at her and says "Why the fuck didn't you pay the ransom?"

Re: Mark Sanford

VTFenris — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:49:29 -0000

Maybe he was participating in Naked Hiking Day:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31447805/ns/us_news-weird_news/

Re: Mark Sanford

anna perez — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:23:07 -0000

One last thing. Sanford's apparently tender sensibilities required his dropping off the grid for almost a week to get it together after a "tough" fight on the stimulus. Good thing he didn't have to deal with a tanking national economy, Iran, Iraq, No. Korea, Afganistan, health care reform, energy policy, middle east peace process, financial sector oversight reform and whatever else may land on Obama's desk on a daily basis. This man may want to be president, but after this little performance, who would trust him not to turn tale and run away after only one "tough" fight?

Re: Mark Sanford

klg19 — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:13:54 -0000

Anna's right; this is seriously off for someone in his position:

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/06/sc_lawmaker_sanford_not_a_person_that_would_be_hap.php?ref=fpblg

A guy who wants to run for President is known for not liking to have a security detail? A guy who wants to run for President walks out for a hike and doesn't bother to sign over control to the LG, but leaves it in the hands of unelected staffers?

I also really like the question about weapons in his vehicle.

There's a lot that's still to come out in the open on this one, it's clear!

Re: Mark Sanford

Deborah — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:42:05 -0000

Er, no. It's outside of many people's grasp that a married executive--let's not even have governor, just someone who has a spouse, kids under the age of 18, a M-F+ job with a lot of responsibility, and a staff--who wants to get away would not tell his family, or his staff, or his second in command that he's going, where he's going, or when to expect to see him again.

And it's outside of most hikers' grasp that he would not leave an "I'll get on the trail here, get off here, check in at this date by phone" plan with someone, his wife and staff being the obvious starting points. Add in his security--they might like to know "when do we start worrying?" I doubt the reports that they'd pinged his cell to a tower near Atlanta were occasioned by his security not starting to hunt for him.

If the answer to the Republican State Senator's "Where the hell is the governor?" had been "He's gone hiking for the weekend and will be back Wednesday; the LG is handling things" this would be a nonstory. (Well, except for wanting to avoid his kids on Father's Day, but that's well short of a sex scandal.)

Re: Mark Sanford

vaildog — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:24:00 -0000

Stuff White People Like: Hiking. Maybe it's just that simple. It's also outside the scope of Eastern urban elites in the media to grasp that some people like to spend time in the wilderness outside of the reach of cell phones. Chill.

Re: Mark Sanford

Rillion — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:22:43 -0000

"But given that he's apparently been making a habit of vanishing and being unreachable for hours or a day at a time over the past couple of months,"

I tell you, sounds like a drug/booze problem.

Re: Mark Sanford

Rillion — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:19:57 -0000

Well having sex with an employee who is also the wife of another of your employees is just cold.

Re: Mark Sanford

Deborah — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:35:39 -0000

Doug at TPM had that thought, at least that he's gone missing and something is wrong. But the wife and staff's "he's vanished but we're TOTALLY not worried" is the most hamfisted cover-up--shouldn't they be declaring that they're worried and calling in searchers?

Re: Mark Sanford

Pesto — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:33:25 -0000

Piecing together people's theories upthread with the official press releases, I'm prepared to support the following speculations...

1) The Governor's Mansion had run out of moonshine, and Gov. Sanford decided to go 'round to his stills to stock up. He always checks his product before lugging it home, and fell victim to a particularly powerful batch. Once he wakes up, he'll be back on the job.

2) The Governor was hiking the Appalachian Trail in pursuit of his new hobby, turtle pr0n. It's a personal matter for the Governor, and the public should respect his privacy.

Re: Mark Sanford

DC Fem — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:32:10 -0000

Could be murder. There have been a few along the Appalachian Trail and this is his wife's way of covering her tracks.

Re: Mark Sanford

Anna S. — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:30:44 -0000

Wait, wait, wait. He went hiking. On the Appalachian Trail. Over Father's Day weekend. While the rest of his family was on vacation in Sullivan's Island (which is a lovely little beach resort town, for those of you not from the state). And while he was hiking the Trail all day, he was supposed to be writing?

I'm sorry, for most people to write, we require electricity. A computer, a laptop, something. I rather doubt the governor is the type to lug a typewriter up the Trail, and one generally leaves the kids behind when you want to get serious wordcount covered, not merely for handwritten-draft type stuff. And for a 'family-values' governor not to take the photo-op of him and the kids hanging out on the beach?

Something doesn't smell right. And it's not Sanford's hiking boots.

It makes me sad that this sort of thing is why my state makes the news.

Re: Mark Sanford

dragnet — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 09:55:21 -0000

Hiking the Appalachian Trail? Really?? Is that what the kids are calling it these days?

Re: Mark Sanford

Deborah — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 09:07:41 -0000

If the most generous possible interpretation is true (by which I mean "really hiking the Appalachian Trail with no phone and whoever he told forgot to tell anyone else" not "on an undercover drop into Iran for the CIA") then that's seriously screwed up in terms of not handing power to the LG. If something involving calling out the National Guard were to happen the AT is one place you'd never hear about it. Wildly irresponsible. I hope the LG is preparing to toss him under a bus.

But given that he's apparently been making a habit of vanishing and being unreachable for hours or a day at a time over the past couple of months, and it takes a long time to get to the AT from the state capitol, I'm going with the following conversation between aides:

"What can we say to suggest that we found him, and he's just fine, but he absolutely can't talk to reporters?"

"Ummm.....the Appalachian Trail!"

Re: Mark Sanford

Deborah — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 09:00:38 -0000

Drink! Okay, I'm going to make myself another tea, which is doubtless less exciting than whatever Mr. Sanford is doing. But it's 9 a.m. and that's what I've got.

I loved the Difference Engine. ::waves next to Persia::

Re: Mark Sanford

Persia — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 08:43:02 -0000

Perfect timing, I'm halfway through Mona Lisa Overdrive.

::waves to Mr. Gibson::

Re: Mark Sanford

klg19 — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 05:58:58 -0000

No, he has not been found. Read that story carefully. What has happened is that his office has announced he is on the Appalachian Trail. But he has still not been in touch with them for over 4 days. No one is saying they've been in touch with him. It is merely an announcement that means nothing until contact has been established.

Re: Mark Sanford

CS Stieber — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:46:39 -0000

Totally OT, but News From The Twitter Front reports that author William Gibson just said (about 45 minutes ago) that you were one of his favorite bloggers, AND gave a shout-out to the commenters. So 1000 cocktails to all of you from the Neuromancer/Difference Engine fanclub.

Okay, enough techno-nerding from me. Back to politics...

Re: Mark Sanford

sv — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 01:02:40 -0000

yeah.... weird. (sullivan linked) Weird and a bit irresponsible if true, but I do hope that's all he was doing, and it IS kind of cool if he simply needed to clear his head and managed to get away....

very weird and irresponsible actually, since he's THE GOV.. I'd be pissed if i was a S. Carolinian. but i am also glad he's okay.