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COLUMBIA
As the spectacular drama that is unraveling Sanford's political career enters its second week, the boyish Republican Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer has stood at the ready. Bauer and Sanford do not get along, and Bauer said he has talked with the governor only once since his confession last week.
“The basic gist was that he's ‘going to be a better man because of this,' and I told him I was ‘praying for he and his family,' ” Bauer said. “It lasted less than a minute.”
Bauer's chances to ascend seemed to escalate this week, as Sanford stunned his state again by admitting in an interview that he “let his guard down” and had casual encounters with a handful of women before meeting the Argentine woman he called his soul mate.
In South Carolina, Sanford's new admissions centered attention on Bauer, who has his own record of erratic behavior, and the prospect that it would fall to him to restore public trust has worried some GOP leaders.
“Everybody's holding their breath wondering, ‘What if he did become governor?' ” said James Guth, a political scientist at Furman University.
Added Will Folks, Sanford's former spokesman: “A lot of the reticence on (Sanford's) part to step down and a lot of the reticence on the part of others to ask him to step down was because of a distrust in the ability of the lieutenant governor.”
Bauer said that it's Sanford's decision whether to resign.
“It's better for me to sit back and not play a role in his decision-making process,” he said. But he added: “It's a dark shadow over our state. Our state needs leadership more now than ever.”
Bauer has a lot to gain if Sanford were to leave office. With Sanford term-limited out of office in 18 months, Bauer is among several Republicans seeking the party's 2010 gubernatorial nomination and could enter the primary election with the trappings of incumbency.
Since Sanford's confession last week, Bauer said, factions of the state's GOP establishment have tried to tar Bauer's reputation.
“It's sad that politics plays out that way,” Bauer said. “This isn't about an election that's 18 months from now. It's about if Governor Sanford should resign, who should fill his place?”
But The New York Times reported that Bauer's camp appeared to have orchestrated pressure for Sanford to resign.
“I need to get this guy (Sanford) out,” national political consultant Chris LaCivita wrote in recent days in an e-mail to another political operative.
LaCivita, hired by Bauer in April to run his campaign, is one of the minds behind the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth campaign. LaCivita is credited with raising enough questions about Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's war record to make President Bush's 2004 re-election victory easier.
LaCivita said he sent the message outside the context of the lieutenant governor's official duties.
“They (campaign staffers) have not been directed by me,” Bauer told The State.
‘A true entrepreneur'
Bauer, 40, comes from modest beginnings.
As a teenager, he would scavenge golf courses with his sister for stray golf balls, only to clean and repackage them in egg cartons to sell. As a child accompanying his mother to Lexington County GOP meetings, Bauer would sell candy bars and Christmas trees.
In the late '90s, when constituents complained of potholes while Bauer was running for the S.C. House, he rented an asphalt truck, grabbed a shovel and filled the holes himself.
“He's a true entrepreneur,” said Curtis Loftis, who once worked for Bauer. “He's at his best when he is thinking on his feet and making decisions in a hurry.”
Elected to the state legislature at age 26, Bauer rose quickly and won the state's largely ceremonial No. 2 position in 2002.
As lieutenant governor, he has made news for his personal behavior. In 2003, he was charged with driving 60 mph and running two red lights in Columbia. When pulled over, Bauer was so aggressive that a police officer pulled a gun on him.
In 2006, Bauer was stopped by a state trooper who clocked him driving 101 mph. He used his state-issued radio to tell the officer he was “S.C. 2” – the code for lieutenant governor – and was not ticketed. Then, weeks later, Bauer was injured when the single-engine airplane he was piloting crashed and burned.
Skilled, resilient politician
Opponents marvel at his political resilience.
“He had all of that in his first term and yet managed to get re-elected, so that tells you something about what a skilled politician he is,” said Carol Fowler, chairwoman of the S.C. Democratic Party.
Indeed, Bauer defeated older and more established candidates by appealing to grass-roots voters.
“The old joke was that he appeals to little old ladies in the Republican Party,” Guth said, adding that his image is that of “a devil-may-care bachelor.”
Over the years, Bauer's personal life has stirred rumors. In an interview Monday with The (Columbia) State, Bauer voluntarily brought up the subject of his sexual orientation. He denied that he is gay.
One of Bauer's political advisers said “all the knives and guns are out for Andre,” with “political mafias” fanning inaccurate rumors.
“You see this very well orchestrated and coordinated attack coming from potential opponents in 2010 and the governor's office aimed at him,” said the adviser, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “Andre didn't fly to Argentina. He didn't misuse taxpayer's money. … Andre's just there.”
Can he restore credibility?
Some observers wonder if Bauer has the credibility to restore respect to the governor's office.
“After a scandal, the person who comes in after has to rebuild trust between voters and this highest office,” said Doug Woodard, political science professor at Clemson University. “Now you've got a problem. You've got a guy who's got a reputation of doing some reckless things.”
Responds Bauer: “Of course I've made my missteps, but everybody in life does. The people of South Carolina are very forgiving.”
Now, Bauer's future depends on whether South Carolinians will forgive Mark Sanford.
The (Columbia) State, The New York Times and The Associated Press contributed.
