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Audacity of Truth
"Diplomacy":
"People are saying what in the world is going on with North Carolina, we look like Mississippi." - NC Gov. Bev Perdue (D) on the passage of Amendment One, 5-11-12
Sanford appears to escape impeachment, likely faces censure instead
The philandering, derelict governor of South Carolina is breathing a sigh of relief today as an SC House panel voted against impeachment proceedings. The State reports (via Memeorandum):
A House panel has voted against a resolution impeaching Gov. Mark Sanford for abandoning his duties and abuse of power, all but closing the door on lawmakers removing Sanford from office.
The seven-member panel, instead, voted unanimously to censure Sanford, which means the General Assembly would admonish Sanford for his behavior. But, Sanford would get to serve the rest of his term, which has roughly one year remaining.
Lawmakers said that while Sanford may have used a 2008 Argentina trade trip as a cover to initiate an extramarital affair and that his use of state aircraft deserved an S.C. Ethics Commission review, the charges did not meet the high standard they felt was necessary to remove Sanford from office.
Huh? Not only is Sanford the governor of SC, but he’s also the de facto CIC for their National Guard. If abandoning your post for days without anyone knowing where you were, and then coming back and lying shamelessly about your whereabouts is not grounds for impeachment/firing, I don’t know what is.
The only one to vote in favor of impeachment was Rep. Greg Delleney, R-Chester, who hasn’t given up hope:
Delleney said he will try to convince Judiciary committee members to vote in favor next week, but was not optimistic.
“It will be difficult, but I’m not giving up,” Delleney said. “This is a political process. The political will is just not there. I’m prepared to accept the consequences.”
Palmetto Scoop adds:
All 25 judiciary committee members will meet on Dec. 16 at 10 a.m. to take up the impeachment bill.
The state House Judiciary Cmte will still vote on articles of impeachment, though it is unlikely to pass without the support of the subcommittee.
In response to the panel’s vote not to impeach, Sanford issued a statement:
“In light of the Ad Hoc Committee wrapping up its work today, I would like to make several points. One, I’d like to thank the Committee for its work, and for their deliberate and measured approach throughout the process.
“Two, we agree with the Committee’s dismissal of 32 of the 37 ethics allegations. From the beginning I acknowledged my moral failing, and I apologized repeatedly. But in the same breath I said, as real as that was, what has been suggested with regard to supposedly not watching out for the taxpayer was just not correct; and that if there had been any oversight, it was minor and technical in nature. We are confident that the remaining five allegations will be dismissed just as the 32 were, because we have consistently tried to be true to the taxpayer. This has not changed, and it will not change.
“Three, I want to thank the people of this state for their kindness and grace. I was encouraged repeatedly in traveling across the state over the last several months by countless people telling me to ‘hang in there,‘ and ‘finish strong.‘ The people of South Carolina have given me great strength in this adversity I’ve created for myself, and I want to again thank them for it.
“It’s my intention to finish strong focusing on the economic challenges facing our state * just as we’ve seen with Boeing’s record-setting announcement a month ago, with Crane Company announcing 1,000 new jobs in Barnwell County a couple of weeks ago, or with Red Ventures, where I was earlier today, announcing 1,000 jobs in Lancaster County. I’ll also be focused on real opportunities for reform on the legislative front in making South Carolina more competitive in the global competition for jobs, investment and way of life. We’d ask that people from all corners of the state make their voices heard on this front.“
Can you say “deflection”?
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Impeachment is and always has been a political trial rather than a criminal. Didn’t expect much different. You’re right. He should be gone, but should and are will be 2 very different things.
I don’t blog here so I want to be extra polite. This whole Sanford thing is a big yawn. To somehow imply that S.C. was somehow in danger because the C.I.C. of the National Guard was gone for five days is a bit of a stretch.
No one was ever in danger or imperiled because of Sanford’s jaunt. The state of his marriage is nobody’s business but his family’s.
The state legislature is certainly within it’s power to admonish the Governor but if they don’t then that’s the end of it.
Is censure of one branch of the government by another in the SC Constitution? If all they are talking about is a toothless resolution saying, “We don’t like you, you big ol’ boogarhead! Nyah nyah nyah!” then why bother? Such a resolution belongs with National Homemade Dill Pickle Week and all of the other useless gesture resolutions legislatures love to churn out by the gross every day.
During the impeachment of William Jefferson Clinton, Democrats and some Republicans talked hopefully of “censure” and even “censure plus” (the latter being an effort to end-run the judicial system and impose some kind of legal penalty without going through the courts). Neither of these can be found in the US Constitution, and in truth they were nothing more than an effort to save Slick Willie’s pants-down Presidency from the ash heap of history.
Again, I don’t know what is in the SC Constitution. But if it has no legal procedure for censure – a real, legal censure and not an “implied” one – then the SC legislators have no business trying to invent one out of thin air. Nor do they have any business passing gesture resolutions decrying this, that, or the other thing if they lack the stones to do what is right.
William Jefferson Clinton should have been impeached, removed from office, and sent to jail for his crimes. The Congress – a Republican-controlled Congress! – failed to do the right thing and brought shame upon itself. Likewise, Sanford should have been impeached, dumped and charged. Politicians who chicken out should not be allowed to hide behind worthless gesture resolutions.
Yeah he’s “consistently tried to be true to the taxpayers” just like Duh-1 has. A promise here, a bitch slap there, it all works out to the conclusion that his mindset is that “I’m right no matter what I do because I’m Guvner, just like 99% of all elected officials.