Sanford accused of pork barreling
COLUMBIA — About a year after the nation's governors descended on Charleston for their annual meeting, more than $100,000 earmarked for the event found its way to the account of an organization with ties to Gov. Mark Sanford.
"The governor let that money sit there for 11 months basically hoping everyone would forget about it," Sen. Jake Knotts, R-West Columbia, said Tuesday after circulating material he gathered on the money over the last several months.
"Instead of standing up and returning this money to the taxpayers, you look up and see him, the head hog at the trough."
Sanford Press Secretary Joel Sawyer said the governor decided Tuesday to deposit the money — left over from a $150,000 state grant and private funds used to put on the governors meeting — into the state's coffers.
"In the world of politics, we recognize that we'll always have our fair share of critics, and in fairness to those critics, we in the office had some conversations with the governor today," Sawyer said. "The governor decided that he should absolutely hold himself to a higher standard, and saw this as an opportunity to make an important point about the competitive grants program."
Knotts, a retired law enforcement officer, said he began digging around after Sanford, also a Republican, accused state lawmakers of pork-barrel spending for continuing to fund the controversial grants program.
The program has awarded 460 grants worth more than $30 million to charities, churches, municipalities and organizations since its creation in 2005. Another $18 million remains available for allocation.
Sawyer said no other event funded by the grants program returned money to the state and Sanford hoped his action Tuesday would set a precedent.
The grant for the National Governors Association meeting was the first awarded through the program. Sanford also raised about $1.2 million in private funds for the event, Sawyer said. He noted that the meeting had an estimated economic impact of $4.3 million in the Charleston area.
The balance of money raised for the meeting — $101,524 — remained in the account of a nonprofit organization that helped organize and put on the governors meeting.
Sawyer said in August the Governor's Office directed the money to be transferred to Carolinians for Reform Inc., a newly formed Charleston nonprofit.
Little information was available late Tuesday on Carolinians for Reform, but Sawyer acknowledged it is a nonprofit started by "friends of the governor who believe in the same things he believes in."
Sawyer declined to elaborate on the organization, and messages left for three of its board members Tuesday night were not returned, although its director, Charleston attorney Jim Kuyk, contributed at least $1,500 to Sanford's re-election campaign.
Knotts pointed to a column written by Irmo-based political consultant Rod Shealy Sr., who also owns a string of weekly newspapers, including The Hanahan-North Charleston News, that accuses Sanford of funneling money to political organizations as a way to target his political enemies.
"Sanford's feud with the Legislature has led his office to develop a 'hit list' of legislators marked for defeat at the hands of his allies," Shealy wrote. "The governor announced a special political fund- raising organization — called ReformSC — which is soliciting contributions to use in campaigns to defeat those targeted members."
Knotts considers himself targeted by Sanford. He alleged that the governor was connected to a widely circulated claim posted on a well-read Internet blog aimed at harming Knotts' reputation.
Sawyer called Shealy and Knotts' accusations "absolutely false." Sawyer said Shealy's claim was nothing more than "a fabricated accusation by someone with a history of questionable ethics." Shealy was fined in the 1990s for violating campaign law when he was found guilty of failing to declare a $5,000 campaign contribution he used to finance the Republican campaign of an unemployed black fisherman to run for Congress in Charleston as a ploy to get white voters to the polls.
Reach Yvonne M. Wenger at 803-799-9051 or ywenger@postandcourier.com.
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Comments
Beachbumwannabe (anonymous) says...
Let's see:millionaire Mark Sanford takes $150,000 in taxpayer funds to entertain his millionaire Governor buddies and a boat load of millionaire lobbyist:then takes the leftover and gives it to his millionaire friends to support his personal political causes.
Then the Charleston paper allows Joel Sawyer to remove Sanford completely from the chain of command (haha) and then allows Sawyer to spin this into a personal quest by the governor to "set a higher standard".
Well, only if you believe Bonnie and Clyde were artists, and Jack the Ripper was in pursuit of excellence, can you believe this spin. Mark Sanford has exploited the system of secret charity groups and unregulated charitable expenses to further his causes and himself. Sanford is awash is out of state and lobbyist cash.
Once upon a time newspapers loved stories of politicians involved in financial wrongdoing. Now, these same stories are seen as opportunities to assist a guilty politician in spinning wrongdoing into a virtue.
Shame, shame, shame.
November 14, 2007 at 7:31 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
bkeelin (anonymous) says...
The guy returns over $100,000 to the state coffers and he's a crook? Yet every year the legislature doles out MILLIONS in special interest money for political favor and their the good guys. Knotts and these other so called republicans are as much like democrats as I've ever seen. Constantly pulling out money for special projects and spending one time monies on continuing projects. What about the deficit? What about the debt? People want to blame the guy that returns the money instead of the ones who keep it. It said the governor raised over 1.2 MILLION from other sources and returned most of the $150,000 grant he received from the state. Oh the hipocricy of it all. Many of our republican legislators have done a good job in providing property tax relief and taxes on basic food items reduced but the fat has got to be cut. All but one of the governor's vetoes were overridden because of good ol' boy polotics. We need a reformation or perhaps a revolution.
November 14, 2007 at 7:59 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
oldglory (anonymous) says...
Beachbumwannabe - Kudos on a well-written, enlightening, humorous post. It's such a treat to read a post that is not filled with the usual prejudicial rantings and ravings of most. Thank you.
November 14, 2007 at 8:09 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
desspec (anonymous) says...
Knotts ought to change his name to Nuts and switch parties.
November 14, 2007 at 8:35 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
doiseeu2 (anonymous) says...
Once again Sanford lives up to his reputation, as one of the worst governors in the U.S., as ranked by Time Magazine. He's got a lot to live up to.
November 14, 2007 at 9:10 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
eyfigueroa (anonymous) says...
HERE HERE oldglory!
truer words haven't been 'spoken'
November 14, 2007 at 9:34 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
JRob (anonymous) says...
Yeah, Time Magazine is quite a source doiseeu2.
November 14, 2007 at 9:46 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
astrofan (anonymous) says...
There is a reason South Carolina is ranked at the bottom of the food chain in just about every important catagory.People have a double standard. You vote out Hodges as soon as he gets you the lottery, yet you vote in self-serving good ole boy types like Sanford and Beasley. You're getting what you deserve. Deal with it.
November 14, 2007 at 10:40 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
bkeelin (anonymous) says...
Can someone explain how Sanford is the bad guy for RETURNING over $100,000 to the state coffers. He put it back, he didn't take it.
November 14, 2007 at 11:11 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
ballachulish (anonymous) says...
He's the bad guy 'cause he sat on the money and gave some to his cronys. Sanford didn't return the cash until Knotts started roasting his chestnuts on an open fire.
November 14, 2007 at 12:09 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
dorchester101 (anonymous) says...
I can think of some low country elected officials that I hope Sandford targets.
November 14, 2007 at 12:25 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
gencon1 (anonymous) says...
All of the Sanford haters don't want him to cut them off from the teet. They will smear him to protect the milk.
November 14, 2007 at 12:41 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
BillytheKid (anonymous) says...
"Sawyer said in August the Governor's Office directed the money to be transferred to Carolinians for Reform Inc., a newly formed Charleston nonprofit."
That is a crime. The name makes it a PAC. I don't listen to the "water haualers" that will post here and say what a great man the governer is. He is not.
November 14, 2007 at 1:28 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Beachbumwannabe (anonymous) says...
At the heart of Mark Sanford's administration is the claim of accountability and transparency. Now, he is caught secretly sending $100,000 of taxpayer money to his wealthy friends so that they can support his agenda.
If Mark Sanford wants to be anything other than a hypocrite he will:
1. Call for the immediate disclosure of all donations and expenses for ReformSC, and South Carolinians for Change, Inc.
2. Call for the immediate disclosure of all donations and expenses for the private host committee of the Republican Governors association meeting in Charleston.
It is time for Mark Sanford to come out of the darkness and disclose the MILLIONS in out of state and lobbyist contributions that have been made to Sanford and his friends. Honesty will sweep away this murky business:and restore honor back to the Mark Sanford.
November 14, 2007 at 7:25 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
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