DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE THE BUBBLE:

Case of walkabout South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford grips US (Brad Norington, June 24, 2009, The Australian)

The case of South Carolina's missing Governor set tongues wagging across the US yesterday, after no one had heard from him for five days.

Last Thursday, Mr Sanford left his governor's mansion in the state capital, Columbia. He was seen driving out alone in his security detail's black Chevrolet Suburban 4WD.

Mr Sanford's last known location was reportedly a long way from home, a few days later, after a mobile phone tower picked up his signal near Atlanta in the adjoining state of Georgia.

The disappearance could be dismissed as a man seeking time alone, and no one has suggested his safety was in doubt.

But Mr Sanford is no ordinary wanderer. He is not only South Carolina's head of state, and normally accompanied by bodyguards. In recent months he has been touted as a potential Republican Party candidate for president in 2012. Some commentators speculated yesterday that Sanford had already blown his chances after the demonstration of bizarre behaviour.

Would it be voters or just the media who are bothered by his having the temerity to get away for awhile?

Posted by Orrin Judd at June 23, 2009 11:51 AM