S.C. Governor Mark Sanford Sues Over $700M in Stimulus Money
Gov. Mark Sanford files lawsuit to trump legislators after they overrode a veto.
May 21, 2009— -- COLUMBIA — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford said he wasted no time filing a federal lawsuit to trump legislators Wednesday after they overrode a veto and required him to seek $700 million in federal stimulus cash.He said the vote to force him to seek the cash was unconstitutional and that he would fight it in court.
Sanford has argued against the $787 billion federal stimulus law for months and said he'd only request bailout cash if it was used to offset state debt. The White House twice rejected that idea and told Republican Sanford the money has to first be used to avoid budget cuts in education programs. Along the way, Sanford's national political profile has soared amid speculation of a 2012 White House bid.
Sanford said the Legislature was running "roughshod over today's and tomorrow's taxpayers by overriding" the stimulus veto and that he sued in federal court in Columbia Wednesday night. His spokesman would not make a copy of the lawsuit available or provide details of who Sanford was suing.
The GOP-dominated Legislature was desperate for the cash. The current year's budget started out at $7 billion and was slashed by more than $1 billion as the recession drove the state's unemployment rate to among the nation's highest and forced sharp reductions in public school and college spending.
The budget that landed on his desk last week had $5.7 billion in state money and relied on half the $700 million the state's slated to get during the next two years to slow further cuts in public schools and the need for double-digit tuition increases.
In response, Sanford told legislators they needed to rewrite the entire budget and vetoed the spending plan and the requirement that he seek the federal stimulus cash within five days.
Legislators spent most of Wednesday overriding the vetoes, with the Senate voting 34-11 and the House 93-23 to require Sanford to seek the stimulus money.
The state's top educator said Sanford was obstructing government's fundamental job of educating children. "This isn't an economics class. It's real life, and real people are hurting," said Education Superintendent Jim Rex. "Governor Sanford is basically standing in the doorways of our schools while teachers are losing jobs and districts are cutting effective programs."
Related Stories
ABC News Live