SC Gov. Mark Sanford: Another GOP contender bites the dust

June 25, 5:26 AMInternational LGBT Issues ExaminerKelvin Lynch

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                           SC Gov. Mark Sanford

In what has to be the most bizarre news story of the year so far, anti-gay marriage, traditional family values Republican Governor Mark Sanford of South Carolina, star of the GOP and a 2012 presidential contender, vanished for seven days, then reemerged yesterday, saying he had been in Argentina visiting his mistress.

For the first four days, nobody knew where the Governor was - not his wife and four children, his staffers, or his security detail.  Then he was traced to an Atlanta airport.  When contact was finally made with him, he said he had been hiking the Appalachian Trail.  Then The State newspaper found out he was in Argentina, and he said he had decided on a whim to take a drive along the coast of Buenos Aires, a city with no real driveable coastline. 

When Sanford came back to South Carolina yesterday, he appeared at a press conference looking as if he was having an out-of-body experience. After rambling on for several minutes about his Appalachian Trail adventures and muttering something about Jurassic Park, he announced he had carried on an affair with a woman in Arentina for the past year, and he had flown down to see her and end the relationship (did he lose her phone number?).  Sanford said his wife and family found out about the affair 5 months ago (so why pull the disappearing act now?).

Realizing he is an embarrassment to the GOP, Sanford hastily resigned as chairman of the Republican Governor's Association.  According to The Washington Independent, "conservative activists expressed shock, surprise, and a sense of betrayal at Sanford’s admission. They laughed off Sanford’s chances of a political comeback or a 2012 presidential bid."

That doesn't bode well for the GOP, which has no national leader and a dwindling supply of choices.  Over just the past few months, several of the party's most promising presidential prospects have bitten the dust or lost their luster.  The LA Times ran down a list of Republicans who can't realistically withstand an Obama challenge:

• Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindall ended his chances after delivering a widely panned response to President Obama's State of the Union address.
• Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Rep. John A. Boehner of Ohio, the party's leaders in Congress, have had some success fighting Obama on Capitol Hill, but neither appears to be presidential material, nor have they expressed interest in running.
• Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. has emerged as one of the party's most intriguing figures: a relatively centrist Mormon from deeply conservative Utah, but he appears to have taken himself out of the 2012 race by accepting Obama's offer to become ambassador to China.
• Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is considered a possible presidential contender, though she's done little to enhance her standing in the party since her rocky run for VP last year.
• Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is also mentioned as a prospect, but he has own history of marital infidelity.
• Sen. John Ensign of Nevada was a rising star, but just last week he admitted to an extramarital affair and resigned as chairman of the Republican Policy Commitee

"That leaves former Govs. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts and Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, who both ran (unsuccessfully) in 2008 ... and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who is perhaps the most promising newcomer," said the LA Times.  Pawlenty, an Evangelical Christian who is vehemently opposed to gay rights, lost out to Sarah Palin as John McCain's choice for running mate. That doesn't sound very promising.

As for Sanford, his presidential ambitions may be over, but he may keep his job as Governer.  CBS political analyst Jeff Greenfield told Katie Couric, "I think at the end of his tour we're going to find out whether people regard him as Bill Clinton or Eliot Spitzer."

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