OPINION: Sanford should heed latest call for resignation

Gov. Mark Sanford should have resigned in June after public support plummeted when he admitted having an extramarital affair with his Argentine “soul mate.”
If that was not enough to convince him, the Republican should have resigned after it was revealed he misused state aircraft for personal reasons and did not report using private planes in violation of state law.
Now comes Lt. Gov. André Bauer’s offer to step in as governor if Stanford wants to avoid further embarrassing South Carolina.
Bauer, detecting growing GOP sentiment to impeach Sanford, said he would put his political ambitions aside and abandon a 2010 run for governor if Sanford resigned.
GOP legislators and party officials have been reluctant to call for Sanford’s resignation or impeachment because it would elevate Bauer to the chief executive’s office and give him an unfair advantage in the gubernatorial campaign.
“It is my opinion the best interest of the people of South Carolina can no longer be served by the current administration,” Bauer said Wednesday. “The serious misconduct that has been revealed along with lingering questions and continuing distractions make it virtually impossible for our state to solve the critical problems we’re facing without a change in leadership.”
In our opinion, the governor and state party leaders should take up Bauer on his offer. We repeat our call for Sanford to resign.
“If taking me out of the governor’s race makes this happen, and we move forward quickly, then yes, I’m willing to forgo the opportunities that I may have to be the next governor for four or eight years in the best interests of the people of South Carolina,” Bauer said.
Sanford scoffed at Bauer’s offer later Wednesday and repeated his pledge to heal the wounds his mistakes have caused. He said the public wants to move past scandal and onto the state’s pressing business.
“I will not be railroaded out,” Sanford said.
Bauer’s offer strikes many as opportunistic. Bauer is painting himself as a public servant who puts the public’s interests over his own.
Sanford, on the other hand, repeatedly has shown he does not have the public’s interest at heart.
By sneaking to Argentina to visit his mistress, without notifying his wife, staff or Bauer’s office, Sanford created a crisis. He literally left the state unattended, with a cover story about hiking the Appalachian Trail.
Later, reports questioned Sanford’s decisions to fly on pricey commercial flights in violation of state law and his trips across the state on aircraft for personal reasons.
Sanford’s push to reconcile his marriage and apologize to South Carolinians was compounded by first lady Jenny Sanford’s decision to move out of the governor’s mansion in Columbia and return to their home near Charleston with their four sons.
With Republicans planning next year’s legislative session, many have come to the conclusion they’ll be paralyzed by calls for Sanford’s impeachment. How can they focus on the economy and jobs when everyone’s buzzing about Sanford?
Attorney General Henry McMaster, who announced Tuesday he will seek the GOP nomination, has called for a State Ethics Committee investigation of the governor. McMaster said the state needs “mature leadership” and blasted the climate of “bickering, political posturing and gridlock.”
McMaster added: “It’s up to Gov. Sanford. I trust that he will do the right thing.”
The right thing would be to stop the anguish. By resigning now, the governor avoids the painful impeachment process and shows he’s putting the state’s interests ahead of his own.

— Unsigned editorials represent the views of this newspaper. Editorial Board members are Mark Laskowski (regional publisher), James Bennett (regional editor), Sam Bundy (sports editor), Kimberly Ginfrida (news editor), David Johnson (regional circulation director), Charles Tomlinson (Lake City News & Post editor) and Jackie Torok (metro editor).