Former Rep. Mark Sanford in an interview on “Fox News Sunday,” said he believes the GOP needs to have a conversation about what it means to be a Republican. | Bruce Smith/AP File Photo 2020 Elections Mark Sanford announces GOP presidential bid: ‘We have lost our way’

Former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford on Sunday announced he will challenge Donald Trump for the Republican Party’s 2020 presidential nomination becoming the third member of his party to do so.

Sanford told “Fox News Sunday” he believes the GOP needs to have a conversation about what it means to be a Republican, adding, “We have lost our way.”


The former governor, who was also a congressman from 1995 to 2001 and 2013 to 2019, highlighted a need to discuss the country’s ballooning debt and deficits, as well as Trump’s turn toward trade protectionism.

“One of the hallmarks of the Republican Party and the conservative movement has always been: How much do we spend?” Sanford said, offering a nod to the famed University of Chicago economist Milton Friedman.

The candidate also said he wants to shine a light on how “institutions and political culture are being damaged by this president.”

POLITICO Playbook newsletter Sign up today to receive the #1-rated newsletter in politics Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

“A tweet is interesting. It may be newsworthy, but it’s not leadership,” he said. “We’re not going to solve some of the profound problems we have as Americans by tweet.”

Sanford expressed regret for the 2009 incident in which he, then a married governor, vanished for several days. One of his aides told inquiring reporters that he was hiking the Appalachian Trail, but he was in Argentina visiting his girlfriend, Maria Belen Chapur.

He said he has learned from his mistakes and cited his South Carolina apology tour, which led to his return to the House of Representatives in 2013. “I profoundly apologize for that,” he said. “I believe in the Christian model of repentance.”

Former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld and former Rep. Joe Walsh of Illinois are also running against Trump.

Sanford will have to pursue his battle against Trump without help from his home-state voters: South Carolina Republicans just canceled their 2020 presidential primary.

This article tagged under: Mark Sanford