Sanford in Argentina Incognito
A lot of respectable media outlets seem averse to saying this explicitly, but I’ll break the taboo and say the obvious—the thing about South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford’s mystery trip to Argentina is that it raises suspicions he was conducting an affair of some kind.
Meanwhile, this is clever reporting from ABC:
ABC’s Joe Goldman reports that a US embassy official in Buenos Aires tells him that the embassy had “absolutely no idea” that Sanford was in Argentina. The embassy official added that this comes “from out of left field — it would be extremely odd that a US governor would not check in with the embassy.
Obviously, a lot of this hinges on how odd it really is for a governor to travel abroad without alerting the embassy. That’s not something I have any independent information about, but it tends to support the idea that Sanford was up to something unsavory that he wanted kept secret.
65 Responses to “Sanford in Argentina Incognito”
Register
RSSLogin
Topic Cloud
ArchivesBlog RollAbout Matt YglesiasContact Me
Donate
June 24th, 2009 at 11:15 am
Now seems like a good time to harmlessly point out the completely irrelevant fact that Buenos Aires is the gay mecca of South America.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:15 am
it tends to support the idea that Sanford was up to something unsavory that he wanted kept secret.
Not at all. To keep it secret, he would have made up some kind of reason to go to Argentina one week without telling anybody.
I think he’s just a bit weird; not because he went to Argentina alone, but because he did it as a governor. Anyway this story is hilarious and I look forward to new revelations.
Also. I guess it’s Palin 2012 then.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:17 am
I really don’t think that’s the “thing.”
The “thing” is that an official with command responsibilities, whose sign-off might be necessary in an emergency situation, was unavailable and unreachable for a week.
Making this about sex, even if true, trivializes the story, which is about the irresponsibility with which this man is treating his duties.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:22 am
Good point, Joe from Lowell. But, back on the sex angle, Mrs. Sanford appears to have gone to some pains to let reporters understand that she had no idea where her husband was.
But yeah, whatever the reason, governors aren’t supposed to flake out that way.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:24 am
It might be odd in that most governors would probably classify a trip abroad as a working trip (in part or whole) and charge some or all of it as official expenses. Contacting the US Embassy would be necessary in arranging many business or government meetings. Even those on a purely personal trip might notify the Embassy in order to get possible perks. The US Embassy probably wants them to because it can be embarrassing for a US governor on vacation to wander into a dangerous situation (”we really suggest you reconsider that yacht trip off of Somalia”).
June 24th, 2009 at 11:27 am
I haven’t seen any reporting that Argentina is the correct answer–how do we know he actually went there? Wouldn’t it be just the thing to say “Argentina,” thinking that it would be a hard alibi to check up on?
June 24th, 2009 at 11:38 am
What joe from Lowell said. The reason for his irresponsibility may or may not be titilating, but the irresponsibility should be the real story.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:41 am
I used to live in SC. Mark Sanford is bizarre. But one thing must be true — this ends his presidential campaign before it starts. Having an adulterous affair appears to be OK in Republican circles (or multiple ones in the case of Gingrich), but now everybody and his brother has a reason to call into question Sanford’s judgment. A president would have to be in perpetual contact and never ditch his security and Sanford has a record of both.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:43 am
“Obviously, a lot of this hinges on how odd it really is for a governor to travel abroad without alerting the embassy. ”
Or his family, apparently. Nothing suspicious about this story at all.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:43 am
Doing anything in secret is likely to create more not less publicity. EVERYONE knows this, so I actually tend to discount the secrecy as being related to something unsavory — I mean, if he were engaged in something unsavory I have to believe he would at least have given his wife some kind of lame excuse for going to Argentina. She was guaranteed to notice, don’t you think, esp. since he wasn’t there on Father’s Day?
What a loon.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:44 am
If you’re a governor skipping town on the sly for Argentina, at least make it worth your while and be there for a River-Boca match. He couldn’t even get that right.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:49 am
Time for a YouTube version of “Leave Britney Alone”. Hasn’t Gov. Sanford suffered enough?
June 24th, 2009 at 11:54 am
I read it somewhat differently. I see it more likely (and again – “likely” here still represents completely speculative thinking) that it was a trip to one of those crash course conservative therapy clinics which “teach” people not to be alcoholics, or not to beat your wife, or not to be gay. If it was an affair – this seems to be the absolutely worst way to go about an affair.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:56 am
As I speculated in an earlier thread, my money is on a deluxe rehab clinic. Would explain the sudden departure, the far-away locale, and the indifference to weather. But if it’s true that BA is a gay destination, I like that angle, too. Inquiring minds!
June 24th, 2009 at 12:00 pm
His trip might not have been as expensive as one might think. According to lowestfare.com, a last minute round trip from Atlanta to Buenos Aires is about $1,100, which is only about twice what it would cost to fly to California.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
I remember when Matt used to abhor speculating about affairs involving prominent politicians. In fact, I think I remember something performing felatio on goats, or something like that. Well, on second thought, I guess that only goes in circumstances in which the accused is a Republican.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
I don’t.
I do remember when trolls ginned up breathless “Matt’s a hypocrite” deflections whenever Matt wrote something unflattering about a Republican, but that’s not terribly impressive – said deflections being a daily occurrence.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:11 pm
zyxw -
As I understand it, a reporter was tipped off that Sanford was on a flight from BA to Atlanta, and met him outside of customs to confirm this and confront him.
BA of course might not have been where he was staying; the indication is that Sanford did not know his whereabouts were going to be discovered, and then said something about driving down the coast south of BA.
Of course, since he had to go through customs first, the reporter couldn’t have seen him disembark from that flight. Still if that was the tip, and he emerged after that flight had arrived, and Sanford said that’s where he had been, that part of the story (at least that he flew from BA) is confirmed.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
Isn’t a travel visa necessary in Argentina? If so how long does it take to get one.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
I think there’s far too little respect for privacy in America today, even/especially for politicians, so I will confine my remarks to “lulz” and move on…
June 24th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
I actually think the most interesting thing about this story is the fact that in practical effect it really wasn’t a big deal for the governor to be off the radar for a week. I know everyone thinks the CEO/Governor/President is absolutely crucial all the time, but really he isn’t.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Has anyone ever seen Mark Sanford’s birth certificate?
June 24th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Word has been that Sanford aspires to run for POTUS in 2012. We really need a President that just takes off on a whim, to “clear his head after a tough legislative session”, don’t we?
June 24th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
US citizens don’t need a visa to visit Argentina for 90 days; only a valid passport.
Josh Marshall at TPM is getting great reader submissions about the horrors of driving in BA, the awfulness of the coastline road south of BA (and its sheer ugliness), and the danger of wealthy important looking US business-types being kidnapped these days.
My guess is that the press conference at 2 ET is not going to come off. The lies are too stupid at this point. He’s going to have to come clean or come up with a much better story.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:28 pm
“Argentina Incognito” sounds like the name of a Pixies album.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
it’s about a 10 or 11 hour flight from Atlanta to Buenos Aries – not exactly the sort of trip the one tends to take spur of the moment. If he really needed to just “get away” and chill, and even take a scenic drive up a coast – there’s plenty of closer and easier places to go to than BA.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
Matt,
It’s worth pointing out that the weather there is bad this time of year, it’s the height of winter, and the days are incredibly short. That’s a weird place to ‘re-charge’ if there aren’t other people, social events, etc involved. Which makes leaving his family behind for Father’s Day all the more weird.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
Not necessaily spur of the moment, but much easier than flying to Europe or Asia – the flights are overnight, the time difference isn’t that great so no jet lag, and if you are flying business or first class, actually can be relaxing and restful (BA is one hour ahead of EDT at the moment).
June 24th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
He was with his lover, Willow Palin. Too soon?
June 24th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
Every sex addict on the East Coast grinned when Sanford said he went to Argentina because he “wanted to do something exotic”.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
I am with Joe from Lowell about Sanford’s irresponsibility. Wow, just wow. Well, at least he does not have to feel pressure to run in 2012 or ever for that matter.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:43 pm
As we discussed here before, Argentina’s economy collapsed in 2002 with the peso devaluation. A guy I talk with in Buenos Aires, Ferfal, indicates that life is still pretty grim and violent there, with high crime due to desperate people.
My understanding is that a central section of Buenos Aires is kept pretty clean and safe for the benefit of the tourista dollars but that you can get mugged pretty damm quick if you wander off the beaten path into the wrong neighborhoods.
Kinda like Capitol Hill, come to think of it.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
It was Medical Tourism. Argentina is a hotspot for cosmetic surgery. Perhaps he just wanted a little “freshening” in preparation for his run for POTUS.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:53 pm
Boringling (zat a word?) he might have been indulging in some inexpensive cosmetic surgery – look closely at that face when he appears at his presser.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:54 pm
Boringly (zat a word?) he might have been indulging in some inexpensive cosmetic surgery – look closely at that face when he appears at his presser.
June 24th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
Sure it’s not about the sex but the irresponsibility. But since when do people care about the latter. We keep the subject about teh hawt sechs and then when people (who only are paying attention because of the juicy details) get all “why are you so focused on someone else’s private life?”, we then say (truthfully) “it’s not about the sex, but the irresponsibility”
June 24th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
[...] among the list of key people who were completely unaware of Sanford’s travel plans was the U.S. embassy official in Buenos Aires. “It would be extremely odd,” said the embassy official, “that a [...]
June 24th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
Sebastian,
Governors aren’t needed at every moment, but if there is an emergency, like say a natural disaster or major accident they are and you obviously don’t know in advance when those will occur. To be out of contact for a week without preparing the Lt. Gov to take over is incredibly irresponsible.
June 24th, 2009 at 1:04 pm
Josh Marshall/TPM now relaying SC reports that Sanford traveled with a woman (parent of student(s) at same school his kids go to), he and wife have been in marriage counseling in recent weeks.
Apparently this got tipped from 2nd car at airport.
June 24th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
A lot of speculation here, some of which may be valid. It may take a while, but the truth will prevail. I’m sure there are investigative reporters in BA at this moment, who are digging up his every move. The Guv will lie at his peril. The real story may be even more bizarre than than idle guesses. Stay tuned…
June 24th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
Tango dancing features in this story someplace, I guarantee you.
June 24th, 2009 at 1:09 pm
Actually , I think Governor Sanford was fleeing in terror because of that fight over Stimulus spending — fleeing from retribution by the Obama the Omnipotent and Rahm the Raptor.
Alas, Gov Sanford forgot that we are a modern day Roman Empire–there is nowhere to hide. In 1776, Edward Gibbon explained:
————–
“The division of Europe into a number of independent states, connected, however, with each other, by the general resemblance of religion, language, and manners, is productive of the most beneficial consequences to the liberty of mankind.
A modern tyrant who should find no resistance either in his own breast, or in his people, would soon experience a gentle restraint from the example of his equals, the dread of present censure, the advice of allies, and the apprehension of his enemies.
The object of his displeasure, escaping from the narrow limits of his dominions, would easily obtain, in a happier climate, a secure refuge, a new fortune adequate to his merit, the freedom of complaint, and perhaps the means of revenge.
But the empire of the Romans filled the world, and when that empire fell into the hands of a single person, the world became a safe and dreary prison for his enemies.
The slave of Imperial despotism, whether he was condemned to drag his gilded chain in Rome and the senate, or to wear out a life of exile on the barren rock of Seriphus, or the frozen banks of the Danube, expected his fate in silent despair.
To resist was fatal, and it was impossible to fly. On every side he was encompassed with a vast extent of sea and land, which he could never hope to traverse without being discovered, seized, and restored to his irritated master.
Beyond the frontiers, his anxious view could discover nothing, except the ocean, inhospitable deserts, hostile tribes of barbarians, of fierce manners and unknown language, or dependent kings, who would gladly purchase the emperor’s protection by the sacrifice of an obnoxious fugitive.
“Wherever you are,” said Cicero to the exiled Marcellus, “remember that you are equally within the power of the conqueror.”
—Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
June 24th, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Meanwhile, Red State now “relaying” that Sanford’s staff knew where he was the whole time, his wife knew where he was, and he was in contact all week.
And by “relaying,” I mean “making stuff up.”
June 24th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
In all fairness to Red State, their last report on Sanford seems to be from yesterday, before the Argentina stuff came up. Surprisingly (ok, not really) they don’t seem to have said anything about Sanford yet today.
June 24th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
McClatchy –whose reporter was the only one to catch Sanford at the Atlanta airport — post a link to this ..er..background:
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/70599.html
“They’re part of a growing tango migration that’s brought thousands of Americans to Buenos Aires to feel the passionate embrace of Argentine tango, adding fuel to Argentina’s red-hot tourism industry…
..Buenos Aires is clearly “the mecca of tango.” On the floor with Leon were dancers from Japan, Korea and Hong Kong, as well as other Americans, many of them from the San Francisco Bay Area, home, they said, to the biggest tango scene in the United States.”
———
Hmmm. Anyone remember that Blue Oyster Bar in the Police Academy movies?
June 24th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
I’m currently located in La Plata (about 45 min outside of Buenos Aires) and this whole thing strikes me as bizarre. While Buenos Aires is a great city and attracts lots of tourists, I’m seconding the comment of hopeless pendant. I’ve never heard of anyone “driving down the coast” for a scenic ride since the road doesn’t even approach the water (you can’t see the river) it just parallels the coast. Additionally, it’s the middle of winter and pretty cold and miserable at the momement – kind of a strange time to visit.
June 24th, 2009 at 1:43 pm
As we discussed here before, Argentina’s economy collapsed in 2002 with the peso devaluation.
This is what makes Argentina a great place to go. Everything is relatively cheap for an American. Certainly as compared to vacationing in Europe.
It is, BTW, about 4 hours by car from Buenos Aires to Mar del Plata, which is the biggest beach resort. I don’t know why anyone would go to the beach in Argentina this time of year, though.
June 24th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
I’m going with Chesser in the 1st comment, because if there’s going to be a GOP sex scandal, it should absolutely be a *gay* sex scandal.
Or maybe Sen. Ensign just bought Sanford the ticket to get Ensign out of the headlines. “Veep spot guaranteed, Mark — just get the reports off my back!”
June 24th, 2009 at 2:01 pm
1) Actually, the people who seem most delighted by Sanford’s difficulty are REPUBLICAN rivals. Political news has tons of gloating this morning by unnamed “Republican strategists”.
2) Example 1: http://www.usnews.com/blogs/washington-whispers/2009/06/24/gop-presidential-strategists-sanfords-trip-ends-white-house-ambitions.html
“South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford might get that chance to take a hike on the Appalachian Trail after all. That’s because GOP presidential strategists say his weird behavior regarding his five-day absence over Father’s Day weekend has ruled out a chance of him running and being taken seriously.
“Governor Sanford has disqualified himself,” says a former Reagan and Bush adviser who was critical of Sanford for disappearing and then changing his explanation. ”
3) Example 2: http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/gov.-sanford-returns-from-argentina-not-appalachia-2009-06-24.html
“Enemies, meanwhile, are reveling in the opportunity to take their rival down a notch or two. Sanford has said he needed to get away following a brutal legislative session in which several of his vetoes were overturned by a Republican Legislature. Those legislators have used Sanford’s absence and bizarre behavior to score more points.
Party strategists who have clashed with Sanford in the past openly laughed when asked for their thoughts on the governor over the past few days.”
June 24th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
Ah –here’s one name: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090624/us_nm/us_usa_politics_governor_2
“Sanford is the chairman of the Republican Governors’ Association and a prominent fiscal conservative who has been talked about as a potential Republican candidate for the 2012 U.S. presidential election.
Analysts said Sanford’s six-day disappearance, during which he apparently failed to inform aides of his whereabouts, could damage his chances if he decided to run in 2012.
Republican strategist Rich Galen said the issue would “absolutely” torpedo any presidential aspirations. “To have someone who is willing to take a hike, literally or figuratively, I just think is a disqualification,” he said.”
June 24th, 2009 at 2:08 pm
Commanding officers have executive officers. Governors have deputies and lieutenant governors. These arrangements exist so that the principals can be away for short periods of time without the affairs of the command or the state being unattended to.
Give the guy the benefit of the doubt until you know what really happened.
June 24th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
Plus some South Carolina Republicans evidently see themselves sitting at that Governor’s desk: hee hee
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/morning-fix/062409-morning-fix.html?wprss=thefix
June 24th, 2009 at 2:13 pm
Bob
your point is true except for the minor detail he didn’t tell the LT gov that he was going or follow any of the procedures that would have allowed the LT gov to act.
June 24th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
As to contacting the embassy, governors get special treatment (someone meets them, they get help with arrangements, etc.) and the embassy likes to know who they visit/talk to in order to be sure that their actions do not conflict with US policy. (To the extent it is a private visit, they can obviously do what they want but it is illegal for anyone other than the US government to make foreign policy or negotiate with foreign governments on behalf of the US, and any official with a title like ‘governor’ might be understood by a foreign official to be speaking for the US. I am not suggesting Sanford did this, but I think that is why the embassy said what they did.)
June 24th, 2009 at 2:20 pm
Bob,
Yeah, and the Gov needs to tell the Lt Gov he is out and the Lt needs to take over, which in this case he didn’t do.
Say there was a natural disaster over the weekend and they needed to deploy the National Guard, they try to contact teh Governor, no one can find him. Now they need to find the Lt Gov, who not knowing that he was in charge is out fishing with his kids or something…
June 24th, 2009 at 2:35 pm
+1 Yglesias for the call on the affair! Holy crap this is a trainwreck to watch..
June 24th, 2009 at 2:37 pm
Affair scenario now confirmed.
I wonder how Erick at RedState is going to spin that!
June 24th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
Sanford, you idiot. If you want to break up with your crazy Argentinian mistress, just give her a call. Unless maybe he was trying to squeeze in some breakup sex….
June 24th, 2009 at 2:53 pm
How long does it take to break up with someone? Sheesh. He was there for days! And why not do it by phone? AM I missing something?
June 24th, 2009 at 2:56 pm
“Gay Democrats, furious at Governor Sanford for ending an affair in order to strengthen his marriage, responded with verbal terrorism to news that…”
June 24th, 2009 at 3:09 pm
I am sure it all made sense inside Sanford’s mind. People who do weird things like that often have some convoluted explanation that, to them, seems quite obvious.
It makes about as much sense as trying to turn down stimulous money.
June 24th, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Now that the mystery is solved, I officially don’t care about this story any more.
Seems like a deeply conflicting (for him), human scenario, and his clumsy handling of it aside, I applaud him for not breaking up with someone special by email. He may be clumsy, but at least he’s not 100% classless.
I wish we could’ve kept Sen. Diaper Boy’s unrepentant, smug, hypocritical face in the shit storm a while longer, though.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:01 pm
#11
perhaps he is a Huracán fan
June 25th, 2009 at 9:08 am
Now seems like a good time to harmlessly point out the completely irrelevant fact that Buenos Aires is the gay mecca of South America.
Actually, that is Rio. What BA has is a vast, recreational sex industry, and my suspicion is that this “affair” started in some illegitimate way. The erotic character of the e-mails suggests something that started in a nightclub at 2 a.m., not on an official S. Carolina trade mission.
June 26th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
OK- maybe gay sex or perhaps he is plotting with the Argentina mafia- no joke, they have a big mafia, to plan the assassination of President Obama. I hope Obama has ordered a complete investigation.