Opinion: Striking down Sanford's stance

Cindi Ross Scoppe, an associate editor at The State, has put together one of the better deconstructions of the latest hoopla surrounding Governor Mark Sanford and the $700 million in contested stimulus funds.

Read more stories on this subject in our stimulus package topic page.In it Scoppe tackles Sanford's assertion that he must be shielded by a federal judge from the newly created law that requires him to request the money.

A taste:

The most striking thing about the suit is how little it reads like a typical lawsuit, and how much it reads like a news release — from the very first sentence, where it refers to “massive new federal spending” to its repeated references to “Governor Sanford” instead of the usual “plaintiff” to completely irrelevant (from a court’s perspective) explanations of why Mr. Sanford has taken the political position he has on the $350 million in federal funds that the Legislature has ordered him to request. I’ll leave you to ponder the implications of that: Is it because the suit is nothing more than a publicity stunt? Is it because it’s an act of desperation? Or perhaps both — a desperate attempt to extend his 15 minutes of fame?

Needless to say, Scoppe is not writing in support of Sanford.

The piece is very well done, go take a read.