Governor Mark Sanford on Friday said he would waive the right of confidentiality for proceedings of the state Ethics Commission focused on his travel expenses.At this time on Friday afternoon, Ethics Commission Executive Director Herbert Hayden says the Commission has not yet received any waiver of confidentiality. The governor’s spokesman says the document has been sent.

But Sanford says he wants transparency to apply to all levels of state government. Sanford has said his own research so far shows that some members of the General Assembly have taken business-class trips. [Read more...]

Governor Mark Sanford held a press conference in Conway today to discuss the current State Ethics Commission investigation on his travel records, and he came with a challenge.

“I would challenge the House and Senate to step to the plate and do the same thing. Let’s change the system from one system over here and a different system for the legislative body. Let’s have the same system for everybody and let’s have them waive their rights to confidentiality as well on the disclosure front,” says Sanford.

Sanford also made a challenge to the members of the media.

“And let me say to my friends in the press, some of ya’ll are friends, some of ya’ll are debatable, but what happens is really going to be in ya’lls hands. In other words, the way it gets reported it can be a circus, it can be a Mickey Mouse court, if that’s the way ya’ll report it. One of the dissappointing things I’ve seen in the last 60 days of my life, is that it’s not been about effective journalism, it’s been about advocacy journalism with an agenda,” says Sanford. [Read more...]