News Channel 7 viewers got the chance to take their questions about South Carolina government straight to Governor Mark Sanford. The Lowcountry Republican took office five months ago.

Tuesday afternoon, he took time out of his schedule to answer your questions.  We've ask you for several days to send us questions you'd like to ask the Governor. Carl and Amy asked those questions live on News Channel 7 at 5:30.

Several viewers wanted to know why more lottery money is not spent in the classroom for K-12 programs. Sanford says he believes a majority of the lottery profits should be spent on public education. Currently, most of that money is used to fund scholarship programs. The Governor says voters may have been misled where money generated from the state's Education Lottery would be spent. He cited bumper stickers used during the campaign touting it as the "education lottery".

Sanford says the state should honor the scholarships it's already promised, but then he'd like to change the law that designates how lottery money is spent.

The Governor also talked about state agencies' tightening their belts in this tight economic times. He pointed out South Carolina's state colleges and universities.  Many of them operate their own airplanes. He believes those fleets of airplanes should be consolidated, then let the colleges and universities share the resources.

Another big issue you wanted answers to, the controversy over a Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday in Greenville County.  We got several questions wanting to know why Sanford would not step in and lead the way to forcing Greenville County to implement an MLK holiday.

Sanford says he believes in "home rule". He does not believe Columbia has all the answers to problems facing counties, this being one of them. He says the state should let local issues be resolved by individual communities.

"Greenville should run Greenville, just like Charleston should run Charleston" the Governor said during the live interview.