Of his divorce decree, that is:
By BRUCE SMITH — Associated Press
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Newly elected Congressman Mark Sanford and his ex-wife have settled a complaint that said he was at her home without her permission in violation of their divorce agreement….
Under the settlement, Sanford admits he was in contempt of the divorce decree then and on previous occasions. The judge agreed to withhold sentencing Sanford as long as he complies with the provision in their divorce settlement that he not enter his ex-wife’s Sullivans Island, S.C., home without her permission.
Sanford also agreed to pay her $5,000 in fees and court costs…
As to the matter of his showing contempt for the people of the 1st District, and them just eating it up, that’s another story.
He’s all yours, Lowcountry, and welcome to him.
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This story breaking the day AFTER it’s too late for people to vote against him is classic Sanford timing.
In 2006, he vetoed the entire state budget just hours after it was too late for anyone to punish him by voting for Oscar Lovelace in the primary.
He doesn’t like for the voters to be overburdened with information…
More specifically, quoting from my column at the time:
As you can probably tell, that was a critical moment in the evolution of my opinion of Mark Sanford.
Actually, looks like Jenny lost with regard to what she really wanted.
Can’t help thinking that this whole situation is saddest not for the voters of District 1, nor for the residents of South Carolina, but for their children. Those four kids need to go board at a prep school. Using your children as a prop, weapon, tool, etc. is about the most despicable thing one can do.
I don’t know. I sort of think she really wanted him to keep his a__ off her property. But maybe I’m being too literal-minded.
I agree, Brad. I mean, could any reasonable person abide his creepy presence?
Sending the boys to boarding school is a Solomonic solution. Jenny seems like a decent parent, from my significant remove.
I might agree except for the “bombshell” nature of her disclosure of the contempt filing. This just sounds like endless spite and retribution. Clearly he’s a jerk, but that just seems to be the beginning of her wrath.
It was not clear that she disclosed it.
“could any reasonable person abide his creepy presence?”
Or hers?
Well, he was busted on HER property, so….
One school of thought is that Jenny actually settled once she couldn’t keep cameras out of the courtroom.
Inclined to agree.
Which leads one to wonder what this was all about, really? (I know the short, surface answer is trespass, but that just doesn’t seem to be at the heart of this dysfunctional wrangling.)
I can’t get the image of the young son standing stricken looking on stage at the primary win out of my mind. Clearly there is a lot going on in this family as far as relationships and communication go; and none of it looks good from the outside.
Brad, I think that you’re ascribing too much to his intellect and/or concern. He’s so narcissistic that he doesn’t see any problems with anything he does.
Y’all are really overanalyzing this. A judge was going to find him in contempt. As I said in a comment a week or so ago, it’s an open and shut case of contempt of court. He admitted to a finding rather than going before a judge and litigating an issue that can’t be disputed.
The only question in my mind was how much attorneys’ fees he would be made to pay. There was zero chance a Judge was going to do anything other than make him pay attorneys fees. He wrote a check for $5k to Jenny for her lawyer’s fees, and that’s that.
They simply agreed to do what was going to happen anyway.
On an unrelated note, I got the snot kicked out of me in Family Court today. Serves me right for getting affirmed 3-0 on another case from the Court of Appeals yesterday.
Not sure anyone would call it justice, Bryan, when the only outcome is an attorney gets paid by one party instead of another…
Sounds more like the system rolling on…
What do you think justice would look like?
The Court has to decide whether any remedy it has at hand is better than the status quo. What remedy would you have preferred?
I don’t know, Kathryn. It is a very good question. I do not think anyone outside of the Sanford’s and their attorneys have any idea what this was really ALL about. So it’s hard to say.
I would like them both to act in the best interests of their children; but no court can force them to do that.
That’s not the only remedy she got. She got reinforcement of what she wants, which is for him to stay out of her house…
And the right to use his now-admitted trespassing against him if/when he doesn’t.
Meh, Sanford probably writes a $5,000 check like you and I write a $5 check. He could care less. Heck, it would have been cheaper if he had TAKEN his son to the Super Bowl.
He did probably agree to the sum since he now has a job for life.
I think Mark Sanford is sweating blood having to write such a check. He gave Jenny a $25 bike for Christmas and birthday prez one year. He is a miser!
Yea! Another criminal in Congress! Keep it classy Sanford. BTW, there’s the Tidal Basin.
Wilbur Mills and Fanny Fox.