I have been an ardent supporter of Mark Sanford and I believe him to be a sincere conservative and a good man. I was, as were many others, devastated by the news of his fall but I still believe him to be a worthy man and I fervently hope that all will be made right with him and his family.
A message
from Mark
Dear Friends, I write to apologize and ask for your forgiveness. Well beyond the personal consequences within my own family, I know that at so many different levels my actions have upset, offended and disappointed friends and supporters and for this I am most sorry. As I mentioned in last week's press conference, I've always believed God's laws were there to protect us from ourselves, and what has transpired over this last week vividly illustrates the damage that comes personally, and to those you love and respect, in doing otherwise. So in the aftermath of this failure I want to not only apologize, but to commit to growing personally and spiritually. Immediately after all this unfolded last week I had thought I would resign - as I believe in the military model of leadership and when trust of any form is broken one lays down the sword. A long list of close friends have suggested otherwise - that for God to really work in my life I shouldn't be getting off so lightly. While it would be personally easier to exit stage left, their point has been that my larger sin was the sin of pride. They contended that in many instances I may well have held the right position on limited government, spending or taxes - but that if my spirit wasn't right in the presentation of those ideas to people in the General Assembly, or elsewhere, I could elicit the response that I had at many times indeed gotten from other state leaders. Their belief was that if I walked in with a real spirit of humility then this last legislative term could well be our most productive one - and that outside this term, I would ultimately be a better person and of more service in whatever doors God opened next in life if I stuck around to learn lessons rather than running and hiding down at the farm. They have also made the point that a good part of life is about scripts - that the idea of redemption isn't something that Marshall, Landon, Bolton and Blake should just read about, it's something they should see. Accordingly, they suggested that there was a very different life script that would be lived and learned by our boys, and thousands like them, if this story simply ended with scandal and then the end of office - versus a fall from grace and then renewal and rebuilding and growth in its aftermath. I won't belabor all these points, but I did want to write as expressed earlier to say that I'm sorry and that more than anything I personally ask for your prayers for me, Jenny, the boys and so many others who have been impacted by what I have done. Thank you for taking the time to read this. Take care. Mark
Governor Sanford has said far more than he should have and has increased the doubts many people have about his continuing to serve as Governor. Now it is reported that he will be with his family in Florida over the the 4th of July weekend. I found the following analysis very interesting. Cut and paste the following link: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/07/02/analysis-paddling-politicians-hypocrisy-pleasurable-pasttime/
Governor Sanford has said far more than he should have and has increased the doubts many people have about his continuing to serve as Governor. Now it is reported that he will be with his family in Florida over the the 4th of July weekend. I found the following analysis very interesting. Cut and paste the following link:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/07/02/analysis-paddling-politicians-hypocrisy-pleasurable-pasttime/