When the White House rejected Governor Mark Sanford's request to use $700 million in stimulus cash to pay down state debt, he said that he didn't want the money. The Republican governor is against the entire stimulus bill and has said he doesn't think spending money the government doesn't have is not a good idea.

His decision to not pursue approximately 25% of the federal stimulus cash that's slated for South Carolina has left lawmakers scrambling to secure the money. And they're getting a lot of support from Congressman Jim Clyburn (D-SC) who says the state's not out of luck.

On Saturday, Clyburn, majority whip of the US House of Representatives, continued to criticize Sanford's decision. He also continued to encourage state lawmakers to go around the governor and claim the money -- even in the face of possible lawsuits.

"If the state does not use the funds, they come back to Washington to be redistributed among the other states," Clyburn said while in Kingstree at a town hall event.

To prevent that from happening, Clyburn put a loophole in the stimulus package that's been coined the "Clyburn Amendment." It allows SC's legislature to bypass the governor to request the money so long as both houses pass a resolution.

The SC House of Representatives already voted to include the $700 million in next year's budget, a sign to Clyburn that legislatures intend to request the money.

That indicates, Clyburn said, that "the legislature will move forward to circumvent the governor on this issue."

But some question the legality of such a move, including US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. Graham solicited a legal opinion last week which found the state legislature might not have the power to go around Gov. Sanford.

Locally, state Sen. Hugh Leatherman, of Florence, supports going around Sanford but on Friday warned his constituents it could be a long road.

In a statement, Leatherman said in part:

"There is no guarantee that the legislature will override the governor's decision and request the money. If we succeed ... it is likely that it will invite a lawsuit questioning the constitutionality of our decision."

When pressed on whether he thought it was legal, Clyburn said he wasn't sure.

"I have no idea. That's why we have courts. And I'm not even a lawyer."

"That's a state law. Why are we worried about South Carolina? What I'm trying to say ... is if South Carolina doesn't use the money, North Carolina will. And they've been very clear, 'South Carolina, let us have the money,'" Clyburn continued.

Aside from the $700 million in question, Clyburn said SC will, for certain, receive more than $2.1 billion in stimulus aid.