COLUMBIA, S.C. — Gov. Mark Sanford is accused of breaking 37 ethics laws regarding campaign finances and travel, including using taxpayer money for high-priced airplane tickets that took him around the world and to Argentina for a rendezvous with a woman he once called his “soul mate.”
The governor’s attorney said he looks forward to answering the “technical questions” regarding Sanford’s travel and finances at a State Ethics Commission hearing early next year. Details of the civil charges were released Monday and carry a maximum of $74,000 in fines.
They came after a three-month investigation by the panel and could be pivotal in a push by some lawmakers to remove the Republican governor from office before his second and final term expires in January 2011.
The state attorney general is deciding whether Sanford should face any criminal charges.
Sanford has been under scrutiny since he vanished for five days over the summer, reappearing to admit to an extramarital affair with the Argentine woman.
