For lying to his constituency and for losing all credibility over his affair with a woman in South America, the Editorial Board would like to call for the resignation of Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina.
After Sanford lied to the press and said that he would be hiking the Appalachian Trail, a series of leaked e-mails led a reporter to sniff him out at the airport upon his return from Argentina.
When questioned about his whereabouts, Sanford said he had been in Argentina because he wanted to travel somewhere exotic.
But, later that day, Sanford found out his e-mails had been leaked and immediately held a press conference detailing the nature of his yearlong affair with a woman from Buenos Aires.
Although the press conference appeared candid, the Editorial Board is still left wondering how Sanford could appear so forthcoming and yet refrain from telling the press anything at all.
For instance: Is Sanford going to resign? Is he going to continue his affair? But most importantly: Can the people of South Carolina have any trust in him at all, after he lied only until he couldn't get away with it anymore?
We think that any politician who makes a point of creating political advertisements espousing their piety and commitment to family values should stick to those values or resign.
A hint for politicians: If you're going to have extramarital affairs, whether it be with a guy in a bathroom, a woman from "someplace exotic," or a $60,000 "escort," don't do it right after airing a holier-than-thou TV spot. It's not the affair that ruins a career, it's the raging hypocrisy and misrepresentation.
