Former Sanford Aide: 'Quirkiness' is His 'Brand'

2 years ago

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Of all the politicians I've occasionally wished would disappear, the fiscally conservative South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford is least among them. Yet that's exactly what happened these last several days.As the NY Daily News reported,

Sanford ditched his security detail on Thursday, missed Father's Day weekend with his family, and didn't show up at work Monday.

Neither his wife, nor the state's lieutenant governor, nor police officials know where he is, South Carolina newspapers reported.

This, apparently, is typical Sanford behavior. As one former aide told me, "Sanford is typically weird about his schedule and his whereabouts, playing to the whole eccentric thing." This former aide noted that when he worked for Sanford, he often had no idea where the governor was, "so at least he's consistently unique!"

When I noted the PR problems involved, he replied, "You gotta keep in mind you can't turn the quirkiness on or off. It's his brand, and he is who he is."

To be fair, it's good for people in high-stress jobs -- even elected officials -- to enjoy some down time. And the good news is, it turns out the governor is merely hiking the Appalachian Trail. But the bad news is that -- as far as the public is concerned -- the governor of South Carolina essentially went missing for several days. And that does not engender confidence in Sanford or his team.

Sanford's "eccentric thing" may still play well in parts of his home state, but my guess is it will not do anything to help get him to the short list of possible 2012 GOP presidential nominees. In the old days, this sort of thing might make a politician appear "colorful" or "rugged." After all, who wouldn't want to disappear every once in a while?

It would be irresponsible for you or me to disappear without telling even our family where we were going; it is insane for a governor of a state to do so. At the very least, it just looks erratic -- which is the opposite direction Republicans should go, in terms of branding. All of this, of course, could have been avoided simply by announcing he was going hiking ...

Filed Under: 2012 President

Tagged: appalachian trail, AppalachianTrail, mark sanford, MarkSanford, south carolina, SouthCarolina

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