Oh – it was monkey business – never mind – he’s clear

If you choose why not keep it simple?

Gov. Sanford – you abandoned your post, you’re fired.

Like – Senator Kennedy, you drowned that girl, you’re fired & need to do a little time.

Area pastors say Sanford may have to resign

They remain ready to forgive but say governor’s actions have consequences

Some of South Carolina’s religious leaders say they’re willing to forgive Gov. Mark Sanford for his marital indiscretions but at the same time send him packing, to repair his life as a private citizen.

“I do think he is going to have to resign or be removed from office,” said the Rev. Frank Page, pastor of Taylors First Baptist Church and past president of the Southern Baptist Convention. “There’s just simply too much of a break in trust.”

Page said he’s thankful Sanford is taking personal responsibility for the affair he admitted to having with a woman in Argentina.

“But as we all know there are always consequences for these kinds of actions,” Page told The Greenville News in a phone call from Louisville, Ky., where he was attending the denomination’s annual convention.

“I don’t know where it will eventually lead, but am praying for him and his family, especially his wife and his boys in this very difficult time.”

Page and other religious figures said South Carolinians are probably more willing to forgive a politician for infidelity than in the past as people have become more aware that no one is invulnerable to sexual temptation.

“I think that there is now a willingness to forgive perhaps that’s stronger than it’s been in the past,” Page said. “I just don’t know if South Carolina is willing to forgive a governor who has not only been untrue to his wife but also has been AWOL on the job.”

Sanford disappeared last Thursday without telling anyone where he was going and turning off his cell phone. His wife, Jenny, after his public confession, said she had asked him to leave because of the affair.

Children, Page said, should be taught that “no one is immune from temptation” but that moral failure brings serious consequences.

The Rev. Tony Beam, who hosts a talk show on Greenville-based Christian radio station WLFJ, said callers on the day after Sanford’s admission were heavily in favor of the governor resigning.

“We have one thing we are supposed to do when a brother or sister in Christ confesses their sin, and that’s to restore them to fellowship,” said Beam, who is a Southern Baptist. “But that process sometimes means costing something, and I think this particular event is going to cost him the right to be the governor of South Carolina.”

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Beam said he interviewed Sanford for his show on the day before the governor dropped out of sight last week.

“There was no indication of anything,” Beam said. “We talked for about 20 minutes, and it was all about the economy and his role as governor.”

In a state where Southern Baptists predominate, Sanford is a member of the Episcopal Church, a denomination that has been embroiled in controversy over sexual issues in recent years.

Kendall Harmon, canon theologian for the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina, said it’s “part of our duty as Christians” to forgive Sanford. But it will be a particularly difficult process for those who saw him as a presidential hopeful, he said.

“I feel like there was a lot of hope in him, so I think the disillusionment is that much greater,” he said.

But people should reserve judgment, because there “but for the grace of God go all the rest of us,” Harmon said.

“The story of David and Bathsheba is in the Bible for a reason,” he said, a reference to the story of an adulterous relationship between the king of Israel and the wife of a soldier. “People’s naivety about their vulnerability to these kinds of problems boggles my mind.”

The Rev. Virgil Sullivan, president of the Martin-Webb Baptist Learning Center in Greenville, was in Charleston this week for a regional meeting of the Progressive National Baptist Convention, a predominantly black denomination, and heard about Sanford’s confession there.

“People will forgive him, but they won’t forget him,” Sullivan said, adding Democrats in his denomination “are gonna rub it in big time.”

“He’s going to be ineffective (as governor) now, for a long period of time,” he added. “There’s going to be a whole lot of interesting stuff that’s going to tie his hands.”

The Republican governor apparently allowed his emotions to get the better of him, which is a mistake when it comes to marital relationships, said the Rev. Greg Snyder, who is leading a couples conference next month for the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina.

“If you let your emotions take control, things can go awry,” he said. “Emotions are important, but obviously the will to love is the most important thing.”

Stress can lead to frayed marital relationships and open vulnerability to extramarital affairs, he said. But admitting fault can be a good start in restoring the marriage, he said.

“I think what I saw (at Wednesday’s press conference) was a broken man. And from a spiritual standpoint, that’s a good place to start,” Snyder said. “If you’re broken, you can rebuild it. If you’re still hiding, you’re still making excuses and you’re not taking responsibility, then you’re not ready for reconciliation

“But I think he’s ready. I think it’s up to he and his wife whether than happens.”

http://www.greenvilleonline.com/article/20090629/NEWS/906290302/0/NEWS01/Area-pastors-say-Sanford-may-have-to-resign

Sex scandals like Governor Sanford’s and John Ensign’s are private matters that don’t affect public policy and shoot down rising political stars. It’s time to end hypocrisy in America.

When I first heard about Governor Sanford’s sex scandal, I was flooded with disappointment for many reasons. Particularly since his admission of an extramarital affair came so closely after Nevada Senator Ensign made a similar confession. I don’t know if it’s the fact that I am younger, or that just have a more open-minded view of politicians and sex, but it’s of very little concern to me who elected officials sleep with. Frankly, I think all of that is a private matter between a husband and wife, even if it is made public. Beyond that, life is complicated. And I can’t even imagine how complicated it must get after 20 years of marriage and four kids.

Of the times I have spent with Governor Sanford, I remember his family being absolutely beautiful in that way Southern families often are. I remember my dad describing his boys as “all looking just like Huckleberry Finn.” In other words, theirs was the very definition of a picture-perfect political family. It never crossed my mind that there would be any kind of scandal one day, but, especially in politics, you can’t judge a book by its cover.

The GOP is struggling right now to find anyone who looks to be our next leader. Going forward, I suggest that the party concentrate less on what goes on in the bedroom and more on what is going on in policy.

But what goes on in Governor Sanford’s personal life, I believe, just isn’t relevant to his role as a public official. The problem I see, like most problems I have with politics, goes back to the same thing—the hypocrisy of it all. One thing making everyone so mad, myself included, are the clips being played of Governor Sanford publicly blasting former President Clinton for his affair with Monica Lewinsky. It looks horribly hypocritical. And it is. We have to stop requiring that our politicians live at such a high level of moral superiority, as if they are infallible creatures. Let me assure you, they are not. Because when these same politicians fall from grace—especially in the South—we demand that they leave office immediately. (Unlike, say, Eliot Spitzer, Governor Sanford didn’t do anything illegal. If he were to be convicted of misusing state funds for traveling to Argentina, then, of course, it is a different matter entirely and he should step down. )

Now I do not condone Governor Sanford’s actions. Far from it. I am a big believer in the sanctity of marriage. And how the entire drama played out was far too intimate for me. Those excruciatingly personal emails. His strange and emotional press conference. Jenny Sanford’s long, Gospel-quoting press release. All of it is an uncomfortable glimpse into the inner workings of a political marriage and we as Americans eat it up with a spoonful of schadenfreude. Was Governor Sanford wrong to have an affair? As a husband, of course he was. But should we burn him at the stake and make him leave office? I don’t believe so. Because sex and politics are two very different things, even if sometimes they seem hopelessly entwined. What he does in his personal life, I believe, would have nothing to do with how he balances his state’s budget or conducts business.

Above all, the Sanford scandal just makes me sad for my party. The GOP is struggling right now to find anyone who looks to be our next leader. Those who have been anointed so far have ended up falling completely short. Going forward, I suggest that the party concentrate less on what goes on in the bedroom and more on what is going on in policy.

France—home of my absolute favorite foreign first lady, Carla Bruni—perfected the laissez-faire attitude toward the sex lives of its public leaders. Not here. We hold our politicians to impossible standards. We elect them, put our hopes and dreams for a brighter future on that one person, and then expect sainthood. Republicans—and Democrats—should forgive these private sins and move on. Life happens. People—especially politicians—make mistakes.

I, for one, lean more toward compassion and understanding—yes, even if Governor Sanford had been a Democrat—because I know from personal experience the pressure of perfection that is put on politicians and their families. At the end of the day, a politician’s job is to fix our country and take care of the states and constituents they represent. Yes, sex is an issue but it shouldn’t be the only issue

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-06-29/forgive-mark-sanford/