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Some Trying to Link Sanford and Palin Stories

7/6/2009, by Proloy Bhatta

HIGHLIGHTS

• 69% want Sanford to resign.
• 91% thinks he is damaged or finished.
• 63% have no trust in his ability to function as governor.

According to Adam Fogle, founder of The Palmetto Scoop, Palin resigned as Governor to take advantage of a void in the 2012 race that Sanford's infidelity presented.

Opinions of Sanford in the state are pretty grim. When South Carolinians were asked in a poll conducted by Survey USA on July 1, 69% of adults said that he should resign, up from 60% a week ago. 91% thinks he is damaged or finished. 63% have no trust in his ability to function as governor. 68% feel that Sanford has revealed too much about his private life. 62% disapprove of the job he is doing as governor. Whoa, wha a laundry list.

If Sanford were to resign, the Lieutenant Governor Andre Bauer, a 40-year old Republican would take over his post. He's been serving as the current Lieutenant Governor since 2003. According to the same poll, his approval and disapproval ratings were 49% and 38% respectively. And when asked whether he was prepared to be Governor, 20% felt that he was completely prepared, 38% said somewhat prepared, and finally 34% saying not prepared at all.

Whether Sanford will resign and let Bauer take over is yet to be known. He may be able to repair his image in South Carolina but any hopes of becoming President have pretty much vanished.

Fogle's assertion that Palin resigned as Governor to begin her 2012 campaign has merits but his theory that Sanford's infidelity played a role in it is a stretch. Sanford was not that much of a player in 2012. The latest national poll in which his name appeared was conducted by Fox News on May 12-13. They had him polling at 4%. Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney were in a statistical dead heat.

The latest 2012 national poll was conducted a few days later by CNN and showed Huckabee (22%), Palin (21%), and Romney (21%) all in a statistical dead heat. After being brutally bashed during the 2008 election, Palin supporters should be encouraged by the news that she still ranks among the top Republican candidates for 2012.

Any poll conducted this early should be taken with a grain of salt considering in June of 2005, Obama was not even included in any polls , and Giuliani was considered a front runner Republican. But suffice it to say, Palin's decision was not due to Sanford's infidelity but rather to her own strong polling numbers that she would want to maintain by spending more time in the lower 48 states.

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