The State Ethics Commission report on Gov. Mark Sanford’s indiscretions regarding use of state money and campaign dollars was released today, but we’re not sure if this thing is really worth a damn or not. A few of these charges, here or there, might lead to a fine or a stern rebuke from the General Assembly. But, when they come across, one after one, it looks like the members of the House may have a case. According to the report, there will be a hearing at SEC offices at an undisclosed date to deal with the findings.

USE OF PUBLIC OFFICE FOR PERSONAL FINANCIAL GAIN
Section 8-13-700(A), S.C. Code ann., 1976, as amended
37 counts

Upgrade on flight

• Graz, Austria to Frankfurt, Germany (2005)
• Frankfurt, Germany to Charlotte, N.C. (2005)
• Chicago, Ill. To Tokyo, Japan (2005)
• Tokyo, Japan to Shanghai, China (2005)
• Beijing, China to Chicago, Ill. (2005)
• Charlotte, N.C. to London, U.K. (2006)
• London, U.K. to Charlotte, N.C. (2006)
• Charlotte, N.C. to Munich, Germany (2007)
• Munich, Germany to Paris, France (2007)
• Munich, Germany to Charlotte, N.C. (2007)
• Washington, D.C. to Beijing, China (2007)
• Beijing, China to Washington, D.C. (2007)
• Columbia, S.C. to Atlanta, Ga. (2008)
• Atlanta, Ga. to Sao Paulo, Brazil (2008)
• Cordoba, Brazil to Buenos Aires, Argentina (2008)
• Buenos Aires, Argentina to Atlanta, Ga. (2008)
• Upgrade on flight from Charlotte, N.C. to New York, N.Y. (2009)
• Upgrade on flight from New York, N.Y. to Warsaw, Poland (2009)

Improper use of state plane

• Spartanburg, S.C. to Clemson/Oconee County for a county party dinner (2005)
• Columbia, S.C. to North Myrtle Beach, S.C., transporting a Governor’s Office staffer, then North Myrtle Beach, S.C. to Columbia, S.C. for staffer and himself to receive a haircut (2006)
• Columbia, S.C. to Mt. Pleasant, S.C. for a book signing (2006)
• Mt. Pleasant, S.C. to Aiken, S.C. for a birthday party for a contributor (2006)
• Lewisburg, W.Va. to Brunswick, Ga. for family for a personal weekend (2006)
• North Myrtle Beach, S.C. to Columbia, S.C. for son’s sporting event (2007)
• Columbia, S.C. to Greenville S.C. for House Republican Caucus reception (2007)
• Columbia, S.C. to Greenwood, S.C. to Charleston, S.C. for Reason Weekend dinner (2008)
• Columbia, S.C. to Myrtle Beach, S.C. for family to attend “soft” opening of Hard Rock Park (2008)

Campaign funds for personal use

• Receiving $40 for activity not related to the campaign (2006)
• Receiving $329.40 for expenses from attending the Alfalfa Club Dinner in Washington, D.C. (2007)
• Giving $610.30 to staffer Marisa Crawford to attend the Republican Governors Association meeting (2007)
• Receiving $181.23 for direct marketing, telephone, Internet and/or cable services at the Governor’s Mansion (2008)
• Receiving $280.16 for direct marketing, telephone, Internet and/or cable services at the Governor’s Mansion (2008)
• Receiving $297.89 for direct marketing, telephone, Internet and/or cable services at the Governor’s Mansion (2008)
• Receiving $864.90 for expenses from the Republican Governors Association meeting and a hunting trip in Ireland (2008)
• Receiving $79.95 for direct marketing (2009)
• Receiving $96.95 for direct marketing and a presidential inauguration ticket (2009)
• Receiving $159.90 for direct marketing (2009)

S.C. Ethics Commission report

State legislators are not being content with letting Gov. Mark Sanford return to Columbia after his disappearance and tearful confession of an extramarital affair. Currently, Sen. Jake Knotts and Rep. Boyd Brown are both angling for an investigation of the Governor’s Office to look into allegations of wrongdoing.

Knotts wants the State Law Enforcement Division to figure out if Sanford broke any laws when it comes to the entirety of the case, including the Governor’s absconding with one of his SLED security detail’s SUVs. The Lexington County senator, who called Sanford “out of control” at a press conference on Friday, said earlier that anyone who wasn’t authorized to drive a SLED vehicle who did, “would go to jail.”

Right now, SLED chief Reggie Lloyd doesn’t see anything worth investigating

“And at this point, we don’t see any criminal need to be investigated,” he said to The Post & Courier. “Unless someone brought us some fact to suggest there had been a misuse of public funds, we would see no need to look into something like that.”

In other developments, Brown sent a letter to Atty. Gen. Henry McMaster to ask that a grand jury be called to “investigate the possible misuse of state property, finances, abuse of power, and the negligence of duties in the Office of the Governor.”

UPDATE: Just after 5 p.m. Friday afternoon, McMaster released a statement regarding the calls for investigations:

I have confidence in the professionalism and objectivity of SLED. If there is anything we don’t know, or if there is any credible evidence that any laws have been broken, then appropriate action should be taken.

At this point, none of the facts appear to be in dispute. The Governor has freely admitted everything he has been accused of. Clearly, his actions were personally and professionally unwise and inappropriate.

However, criminal investigations should never be politically inspired. I hope all sides will resist attempting to use the investigative and prosecutorial powers of law enforcement for political purposes. Mixing politics and law enforcement is never a good idea.

Mixing politics and law enforcement? That seems like what the attorney general’s office is all about.

While Gov. Mark Sanford splurged on himself for the June 2008 flight to Argentina, he wasn’t so good with the help at tony Buenos Aires steakhouse Cabaña Las Lilas. It was one of the only business events during the three day trip that culminated with Sanford becoming intimately familiar with Ms. Maria Belén Chapur.

At the table were Sanford, S.C. Department of Commerce employee Ford Graham, Manuel Aguirre of CH2M Hill, Alejandro Diaz of the American Chamber of Commerce-Argentina, Carlos Galmarini of Ford Argentina, U.S. diplomats Brian Brisson and Diana Brandon, and interpreter Ines Perrone.

Cabaña Las Lilas, according to the travel guide Fommers, is the best restaurant of its type in the city.

Widely considered the best parrilla in Buenos Aires, Cabaña las Lilas is always packed. The menu pays homage to Argentine beef, which comes from the restaurant’s private estancia (ranch). The table “cover” — which includes dried tomatoes, mozzarella, olives, peppers, and delicious garlic bread — nicely whets the appetite. Clearly, you’re here to order steak: The best cuts are the rib-eye, baby beef, and thin skirt steak. Order sautéed vegetables, grilled onions, or Provençal-style fries separately. Service is hurried but professional; ask your waiter to match a fine Argentine wine with your meal. The enormous eatery offers indoor and outdoor seating, and, in spite of its high price, is casual and informal. Patrons come in suits or shorts. And even if you’re a vegetarian, they offer a large and very good salad bar, so everyone can be happy here.

The crew ran up an impressive tab of $881 dollars, tipping a c-note. However, at about 11.3 percent, doesn’t come close to the accepted tipping level, especially at a place of fine dining, of 20 percent. If the Governor was taking care of his server adequately, the tip would have been $176.20.

Really — if you’re going to drop almost $900 of the state’s money on one lunch, the least you could do is take care of the people waiting on you.

Gov. Mark Sanford has made folk stories of himself as a guy that pinches pennies, making absurd requests of staff to make the most use out of everything and telling anecdotes about how, when he was a child, the house only had one air conditioned room.

Turns out, he’s not averse to the finer things when flying to see his Argentinean mistress. Last June, his “trade mission” to Buenos Aires involved having one of the Commerce Department‘s employees tagging along. According to the passenger tickets, the employee, Ford Graham, flew coach (KL), with a travel cost of $1,536.80. Sanford, however, went “restricted business class,” (DX) and, in the South American airlines, business class (JB, JV), racking up $8,644.03 in charges.

So, not only did he arrange state business to work his affair around, Sanford couldn’t be bothered with toughing it out with the grunts in steerage.

Sanford ticket

Graham ticket

General codes

If Sen. Jake Knotts hadn’t prodded the media to find out just where the hell Gov. Mark Sanford was, South Carolina’s “love guv” would have spent 10 days in Argentina with mistress Maria Belén Chapur. Sanford used his Delta Sky Miles to book a June 18 flight to Buenos Aires, with a return flight scheduled for June 28, according to Politico.

Sanford thought so little of his position as the state’s chief executive that he obviously felt he could disappear for a week and a half without anyone noticing he was gone. Where he was in Buenos Aires was the Palermo neighborhood, considered one of the city’s nicer places to live. Eric Lach, writing on newyorker.com, said:

It’s winter now in Argentina, but in summer you can smell the animals in the zoo across the street from my grandfather’s balcony—and from María’s place as well, no doubt. Guido’s bar and restaurant at 2843 is probably the street’s most iconic feature, a quirky Italian place with no actual menu, where you are at the mercy of your waiter. The surrounding neighborhood, Palermo, is a fashionable residential neighborhood featuring a large namesake park, a major shopping district, bars and restaurants. We’ve yet to find out much about Sanford’s mistress, but the charms of her neighborhood are obvious.

Indeed, it was at Guido’s where Sanford and Chapur were seen by the owner of the bar to be drinking, kissing and other associated activities.