Read more: Local, State, SC, Gov, South America, Hiking Trail, Absence
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- "Why all the big cover-up?" That's what one state senator in South Carolina wants to know.
With state leaders wondering where in the world Gov. Mark Sanford was after hearing nothing from him since last Thursday, the governor's aides yesterday said he had been hiking the Appalachian trail to clear his head after a bruising legislative session.
But today, the Republican governor tells The State newspaper that he'd decided to go to Argentina instead, because he wanted to do something exotic. The paper reported that Sanford arrived in Atlanta on a flight from Buenos Aires this morning.
Sanford tells The State he was alone on the trip, but declined to give any details other than to say he drove along the coastline.
The news prompted state Sen. Jake Knotts, a fellow Republican, to complain: "Lies. Lies. Lies." He says "that's all we ever get" from the governor and his staff.
Neither the governor nor his spokesman has commented on the criticism.
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