Gov. Sanford (R) Denies Constituents Stimulus Bucks, Promises Prayers Instead

Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly at 3:31 PM on February 23, 2009.

At this point, I kind of hope South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford (R) continues to strive for the national spotlight. The governor, who appears to be mad as a hatter, keeps saying crazy things that make for fun blog posts.

Here's his latest new gem:

"[Y]ou know, people who don't learn from history are destined to repeat it.

"The Golden Gate Bridge was a Hoover-era infrastructure project designed to get the economy going. The L.A. aqueduct system was a Hoover-era, you know, infrastructure program designed to get the economy going. The Hoover Dam was a Depression-era, you know, project designed to get the economy going."

First, Sanford claims to oppose government spending in the midst of a crisis, so I'm not sure why he'd point to public works projects like these. Second, as my friend Alex Koppelman explained, the Golden Gate Bridge wasn't a Hoover-era infrastructure project; it was originally proposed before Hoover was even born, and began being built six years before Hoover became president. For that matter, the Hoover Dam wasn't a "Depression-era project," either.

What was that the governor was saying about those who don't learn from history?

On a related note, during a C-SPAN appearance this morning, Sanford received a call from a man from Charleston who lost his job because he's been taking care of an ailing mother and sister. The man relies on unemployment insurance, and Sanford is "wrong" to decline the unemployment money in the stimulus bill. The governor's response? Sanford said his "prayers are going to be with him and his family because it sounds like he is in an awfully tough spot." As Ben Armbruster added, "Sanford offered no other alternative solution for his constituent."

And just for good measure, Sanford, appearing on Fox News yesterday, was asked about his decision to turn down unemployment insurance for struggling South Carolinians. He responded that the stimulus package "at times it sounds like the Soviet grain quotas of Stalin's time -- X number of jobs will be created because Washington says so."

The easiest way to make this guy appear foolish is to hand him a microphone and get out of the way.

Just keep on talking, gov.

Tagged as: gop, republican, south carolina, mark sanford, crazy, crazy talk

Steve Benen is "blogger in chief" of the popular Washington Monthly online blog, Political Animal. His background includes publishing The Carpetbagger Report, and writing for a variety of publications, including Talking Points Memo, The American Prospect, the Huffington Post, and The Guardian. He has also appeared on NPR's "Talk of the Nation," MSNBC's "Rachel Maddow Show," Air America Radio's "Sam Seder Show," and XM Radio's "POTUS '08."