Date Published: January 10, 2007   

Sanford welcomes supporters after being sworn in for second term

By SEANNA ADCOX
Associated Press Writer

Gov. Mark Sanford and his wife, Jenny, shook hands and posed for photos with several hundred supporters who lined up Wednesday outside the Gov.'s Mansion, hours after he was sworn in for a second term.

Sanford said the two-hour open house symbolized his belief in an "open government."

"This is the people's house," he said after the last visitors left about 4 p.m., just two hours before his inaugural barbecue. "So it's important that anybody can come visit."

While visitors toured their home, the Sanfords' four boys played football on the lawn with their cousins.

A half-dozen well-wishers gave the governor books they asked him to read, ranging from "The Tao of Warren Buffett" to "God's Words of Life for Leaders." Many admired the governor's new portrait hanging in the library, which portrays Sanford at his family farm in Beaufort County.

"I really like the paintings and the silver and the chandelier," said 10-year-old Madeleine Burrell of rural York County.

"It was neat," she said about meeting Sanford.

She and her 9-year-old sister are studying South Carolina history in school, so their parents wanted them to see firsthand what they're reading about. Their photo with the first family can be a show-and-tell for school, said their father, Chris Burrell, a Sanford supporter.

West Columbia resident Sam Montgomery said he and his wife "came on a whim" after picking up their 6-year-old granddaughter from school and asking her if she wanted to go.

Cheryl Cowart, of Greenville, said she attended all the day's festivities. "We want to enjoy it all the way," she said. "We worked hard" to help Sanford get elected.

"We're South Carolinians and very proud of it and very proud of our governor," said Geri Warren of Greenville. Putting her hand to her heart, she said the inaugural ceremony was "just beyond words."

Kathy Sheppard of Greenville said thinks Sanford's "finest moment" was when he carried squealing piglets in the Statehouse to protest the budget.

"We're OK if he ruffles feathers," she said.

A string quartet of students from the Gov.'s School for Arts and the Humanities played as people wandered through the mansion.

"It's really interesting," said senior Cindy Chen of Lexington. "It's really weird seeing him in person."