3 Men & Their Baby?.

Sanford gets no support
MYRTLE BEACH -- Gov. Mark Sanford always has been a loner, but on Saturday he didn't have a friend in the House. Not a single member of the House Republican Caucus spoke up for the embattled GOP governor in this oceanfront city at an organizational meeting that wrapped up with a 45-minute discussion about why Sanford should resign or be impeached.

Kennedy eulogized for keeping dream alive
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Edward M. Kennedy was laid to rest Saturday night alongside slain brothers John and Robert on hallowed ground at Arlington National Cemetery, celebrated for "the dream he kept alive" across the decades since their deaths.

These two news snippets above reveal a lot about what two flawed men did with their lives after they fell to temptation. Let's throw in another, Bill Clinton. Kennedy as a young man of 37 years made the horrible mistake of (1) committing adultery, (2) drove under the influence (3) and after several attempts to rescue his female companion, left the scene of the accident. Arguably even a man from a less wealthy background would have had to pay huge fines for DUI and leaving the scene but bottom line it was an accident; a tragic horrible accident and rich or poor there would have been no imprisonment involved. Civil suits for wrongful death would be expected but not jail. Kennedy publicly and tearfully acknowledged the horrible mistakes he made. He was contrite and repentant and dedicated his life to righting the wrongs suffered by those with no one to stand up for them. He served in the Senate writing and passing more than 300 bills to help people who had no avenue to help themselves. He supported, voted and helped pass 1100 bills that again were the foundations for helping preserve individual rights for every citizen. He came back to the faith of his youth, sought counsel with the church and became a different man. He fulfilled the dreams and promise of his brothers whose lives were tragically cut short by assassination. He loved his family and was in his last days surrounded by their love.

Clinton was a politician of many accomplishments and I am sure, a man who loves his daughter and his country. However he was not someone I could admire for his moral fortitude, his faith in God and his willingness to confess his flawed acts and with contrition seek the forgiveness of the nation. I say the nation because when a man in office commits these acts of adultery, he does not just betray his wife and family but also betrays the trust of the nation and the trust of his peers. The consequences for that should be meaningful especially if in front of the public one seeks to escape these consequences not by truly asking forgiveness and meaning it but rather by building a screen of lies and calling in political favors to continue in office with the premise that although he is at fault, that fault lies in his personal life and is immaterial to how he does his job as President. Clinton accomplished a lot but it should not go without noting that his legacy will always have the name of "Slick Willy" and his statement of, "I did not have sex with that woman." attached to it.

Sanford seems to be modeling his defense on the Clinton model but it is a little more offensive and arrogant. There is no remorse at all evident. He is defiant both in his positions and verbally in staying in office and stating he has done nothing that should require him to resign. He seems to think that holding office is not a privilege but is his right. His legacy is yet to be written but I would not think he should be optimistic in that regard. he has broken the public trust, he has betrayed the public, his children and his wife. His record in office is more of an obstructionist rather than someone who is productive and creates a better place for his children and the children of the citizens of this state.

I would hope that the Republican Party in South Carolina is not just positioning itself by the overwhelming condemnation seen in the news article above. Is this just another bait and switch? In other words are they positioning themselves to convince the public of their "righteous" intent when in the end they will use the law to say well we could not legally impeach him and then just close the books with a public censure of the governor? I suspect this is what we are being set up for. I hope that either he will abandon his present position and seek to emulate Teddy Kennedy and carry on or I hope that responsibility, morality and love of family and country will prevail and he will be impeached and removed from office.