SC unemployment rate second highest in the nation, (Sanford set to reject stimulus)

[G_j]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090313/ap_on_re_us/sanford_stimulus

SC Gov. Sanford set to reject stimulus millions

By BETH FOUHY, Associated Press Writer – Fri Mar 13, 12:29 pm ET

NEW YORK – South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford has been the leading voice among Republican governors who have criticized President Barack Obama's $787 billion economic stimulus plan as a pork-laden boondoggle that will plunge the country further into debt. It's won him praise from many conservatives and boosted his national profile, fueling speculation he will run for president in 2012.
But the governor's announcement this week that he may reject nearly a quarter of the money headed to South Carolina has stirred criticism in the state and elsewhere that he has placed his own political future ahead of the needs of the state's most vulnerable citizens.

<snip>

"I've got a 15-year pattern of doing exactly this kind of thing," Sanford said.

But his announcement came the same week that South Carolina's unemployment rate shot to 10.4 percent, the second highest in the nation. With those dire figures as a backdrop, national Democrats — keenly aware of Sanford's rising national stature — piled on.

The Democratic National Committee planned to run ads on several stations in South Carolina next week accusing Sanford of "putting politics ahead of health care, jobs and schools." In an e-mail blast to reporters Thursday, the DNC assembled a collection of national and state news stories criticizing Sanford's action.
Even Democratic governors got in the game, with Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley issuing a statement decrying Sanford's "fringe" stance.

[monmouth]

1. I would hope he will not be re-elected. His constits mean nothing to him....n/t