Mark Sanford, the increasingly embattled Governor of South Carolina, must think that the Associated Press is some sort of licensed therapist. How else can one explain this statement? "I will be able to die knowing that I had met my soul mate," he told the Associated Press. He was referring to his mistress, Maria Belen Chapur of Buenos Aires. That's all fine and good. I'm happy for the Governor but does the world need to know the intimacies of Mark Sanford?
It gets better. Despite his Argentine soul mate, the good Governor insists he can fall back in love with his wife, Jenny Sanford. The Governor should realize that a soul mate is worth more than a mere governorship. Edward VIII, after all, gave up his throne for the American divorcée Wallis Simpson. More from the Associated Press:
The once-promising presidential prospect said he is committed to reconciling with his wife, but professed to The Associated Press his continued love for the Argentine woman at the center of the firestorm that gutted his political future.In emotional interviews with the AP over two days, he said he would die "knowing that I had met my soul mate."
Sanford also said that he "crossed the lines" with a handful of other women during 20 years of marriage, but not as far as he did with his mistress.
"There were a handful of instances wherein I crossed the lines I shouldn't have crossed as a married man, but never crossed the ultimate line," he said.
Sanford insisted his relationship with Maria Belen Chapur, whom he met at an open air dance spot in Uruguay eight years ago, was more than just sex.
"This was a whole lot more than a simple affair, this was a love story," Sanford said. "A forbidden one, a tragic one, but a love story at the end of the day."
Even with the latest revelations, Sanford maintains he is fit to govern and has no plans to resign.
"I've been able to do my job and in fact excel at it," Sanford said, while acknowledging he is a spectator at his "own political funeral."
At this point, the wounds are self-inflicted. I'll repeat what I said last week when this story broke. Governor Sanford should resign not because he is having an affair but because he misled his staff as to his whereabouts and breached his duties.
Furthermore the good Governor would do well have these bouts of confession with an actual licensed therapist and with not the reporters of the Associated Press. This melodrama has become a soap opera. This serves no one, least of all Governor Sanford's wife and four boys.
Meanwhile the calls for Governor Sanford's resignation grow louder. This side of the story from The State:
On Wednesday afternoon, Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell became the latest -- and one of the most significant -- members of the S.C. legislature to say the governor should consider stepping down after admitting to an affair.In a statement, McConnell encouraged Sanford to do the right thing:
"Neither I nor my colleagues in the General Assembly can require that the Governor resign," McConnell said in his statement.
"That decision is his alone. I do believe, however, that the Governor has lost the support of the people that is needed to govern. Therefore, I would ask the Governor to look in his heart and decide whether with his family situation and the public uproar over what he has done and said locally and nationally whether he can lead our state for the remainder of his term."
Ten Republican state senators have asked the governor to step down, while others say they are leaning in that direction. The Associated Press is reporting that 14 Republican state senators are supporting a resignation, which is a majority of the 27 GOP members.
The tide turned after Sanford revealed he had seen his Argentine lover more times than he'd originally stated and that he had what he considered to be inappropriate encounters with other women short of sex.
On Wednesday morning, U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint of Greenville urged Sanford to make the "right decision."
"He's dropped the flag. The rest of us have to get up and go on," DeMint said during an interview on Fox News' "Fox & Friends." "A lot of us are talking to him behind the scenes in hopes that he'll make the right decision about what needs to be done."
Asked what the "right decision" would be for Sanford, DeMint said: "I don't want to say."
I am sure if the Governor chooses to dig in his heels, he will manage to serve out the remainder of his term. But what good can come of that? It is hard to foresee Mark Sanford having a political future in South Carolina. I pray he finds happiness.
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