Former SC Gov. Mark Sanford says Trump is fanning ‘flames of intolerance’

Former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford – a Republican currently serving in the U.S. House of Representatives – is making headlines again, this time slamming newly elected President Donald Trump.

In an extensive profile in Politico Magazine, Sanford says he believes Trump isn’t trustworthy and “has fanned the flames of intolerance.”

“At some level (Trump) represents the antithesis, or the undoing, of everything I thought I knew about politics, preparation and life,” Sanford is quoted as saying.

Sanford is best remembered for being less than trustworthy himself. He made international headlines in June 2009 for disappearing for days from his role as the state’s top leader, claiming later to have been hiking the Appalachian Trail. It turned out he was cavorting with a woman who was not his wife.

The magazine reports Sanford and Trump have spoken only once, and the interaction was brief, backstage at a primary debate in South Carolina. Sanford tells Politico he has nothing personal against the new president. In fact, he says he has heard good things about him personally from several mutual acquaintances.

But Sanford tells Politico that he can’t “look the other way” when he believes Trump “peddles false information” to suit his political aims and he has a “proven record of taking people down.”

“I believe in a war of ideas ... and I tell the staff all the time: Look, we’re in the business of crafting and refining our arguments that are hopefully based on the truth,” he tells Politico. “Truth matters. Not hyperbole, not wild suggestion, but actual truth.”

Sanford won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2013, in a special election following the resignation of U.S. Representative Tim Scott.

This story was originally published February 17, 2017 at 9:54 AM with the headline "Former SC Gov. Mark Sanford says Trump is fanning ‘flames of intolerance’."