Mark Sanford Comes Unglued and Runs Around SC Asking Women if They Hate Him

Last updated on May 8th, 2013 at 06:55 am

It’s looking like Mark Sanford has some issues. In order to prove to the media that women don’t hate him, Sanford walked up to random women in Summerville, SC, and asked them if they hated him.

NBC reported on the House candidate’s latest burst of bizarre behavior,

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On Saturday, after answering several questions about whether he thought a trespassing charge at his ex-wife’s home might compromise his standing with female voters, Sanford led reporters on a foray in downtown Summerville, S.C., stopping women to ask them their opinion of him, specifically referring to the question posed by a reporter for NBC News.

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Sanford then walked across the street to begin his meet-and-greet, flanked by two campaign staffers and three reporters, telling the reporter who asked the questions about his status with women that he rejected the “premise” that women wouldn’t vote for him because of his personal life.

He then indicated he wanted to seek out women who “hated” him.

“Let’s go to this woman – does she look biased?” he asked as he crossed the street, the NBC reporter walking next to him.

As a car whizzed by, he told the reporter, “Watch out, I don’t want you to get run over. Actually I kind of do, but that’s a different story.”

Wow, Mark Sanford is batsh*t crazy.

Here is the problem with Sanford’s canvas. If somebody comes up to you on the street and asks do you hate me, the vast majority of people are going to say no, especially if they are being asked this question in front of the media. Most people will lie, even if they do hate the person, because most people don’t want to look like hateful jerks.

The ironic part of this story is that the media’s premise is completely flawed. According to the media, only women should hate Sanford for abandoning his family and cheating on his wife. I guess the media assumes that all men are self absorbed little boys, who would be totally cool with Sanford’s behavior.

Polling revealed that Sanford has a definite problem with women voters.

The Democratic Party has been trying to appeal to the district’s Republican women with ads:

Mark Sanford responded to these two events by running around town asking women if they hate him.

Something is very wrong here.

I can honestly say that I have never heard of a candidate approaching voters and asking them if they hate him. Sanford is exhibiting some emotionally disturbing behavior. Even more troubling this was just the latest episode of strange candidate behavior that has plagued the Sanford campaign.

That being said, it is very possible that Sanford wins on Tuesday night. The state’s Republicans have resorted to dirty tricks to defeat Democrat Elizabeth Colbert-Busch. As Michele Bachmann demonstrates every two years, if your district is Republican enough, insanity is viewed as a virtue.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association