Governor returns from mystery trip to Argentina

SOUTH Carolina Governor Mark Sanford returned to the US yesterday from a secret private trip to Argentina, ending days of speculation over his whereabouts and raising questions about his judgment.

Sanford is the chairman of the Republican Governors’ Association and a prominent fiscal conservative who has been talked about as a serious potential Republican candidate for the 2012 US presidential election.

Analysts said his retreat to South America could damage his political career if he has presidential aspirations. Robert Oldendick, professor of political science at the University of South Carolina, said: “If he disappeared... without telling staff or his family, then that raises a question of: ‘Is this the type of person we want with the responsibility for being in charge of nuclear weapons or in crisis situations?’”

When media reported Sanford’s whereabouts were unknown since last Thursday, and that even his wife did not know where he was, his aides said he was hiking on the Appalachian Trail in the eastern US to get away for a break after a tough state legislative session.

Some South Carolina politicians accused him of abdicating responsibility for state affairs by leaving without giving details of where he was going and remaining out of contact.

Sanford flew to Atlanta yesterday and told reporters he had decided at the last minute to go to Argentina and drive along its coastline.

“I wanted to do something exotic... to get out of the bubble I am in,” he said.