Republican Gov. Mark Sanford clashed with lawmakers again Wednesday, as the GOP-led House angrily overrode his budget vetoes — 105 of them in 99 minutes.

Sanford’s administration was furious that his 43-page veto message was decimated only a few hours after it was released. Sanford spokesman Will Folks lashed out at House leaders, singling out chief budget writer Rep. Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, by name.

“This is a mockery of the legislative process,” Folks said. “Clearly, Harrell and other leaders in the House are more interested in being the mayor of Importantville” than considering the justification behind the vetoes.

But Speaker David Wilkins said the House had given close consideration to the $5.5 billion budget for 2004-05. He said House members worked on the budget for months, received the vetoes early Wednesday and talked about them throughout the day and almost unanimously decided to stick with their own plan.

“We gave a lot of thought to it,” said Wilkins, R-Greenville. “It’s disappointing to me that when things don’t go their way, certain members of the governor’s staff get personal and get petty.”

The House did sustain one veto, agreeing to leave the State Accident Fund as an independent agency rather than moving it to the Department of Insurance.

Folks said the votes were a “slap in the face” and “an embarrassment” to Sanford. “This is not something he’s going to forget any time soon.”

Sanford later met with reporters individually to distance himself from his spokesman’s remarks. Sanford described the House’s efforts as “reckless,” in that it gave as little as 30 seconds’ consideration to some of his plans.

But he said he did not agree with Folks’ describing legislators as slapping him in the face or trying to be self-important. “I think those people care, and I would not stand by those parts of his comments.”

It is unusual for the governor to disavow his spokesman, who gives hundreds of interviews a week on his behalf. Sanford generally approves his spokesman’s remarks even on minor issues.

The spat underscored frayed feelings in the House and governor’s office, as the five-month session came down to the last five days.

The House was frustrated that the governor vetoed 106 items — more than any governor in 20 years.

The governor was frustrated that the House moved so quickly, with little or no discussion of such big-ticket items as $380,000 for the Palmetto Bowl college football game, and smaller ones, such as $1,952 for phones and travel at the John de la Howe school for troubled teens.

The clanging bell that signals a vote rang every minute or so Wednesday afternoon, each ring reminding those in the State House that a Sanford veto was falling.

Before the votes started, Wilkins took the floor for only the third time this year. He reminded House Republicans in particular that the budget gives $52 million in tax breaks and pays back a 2-year-old $155 million deficit — though not precisely as the governor might want.

“This is a conservative budget,” Wilkins said. “If anyone tries to paint it otherwise, they’re missing the point, or they’ve got an agenda other than the budget.”

Wilkins also pointed out that Sanford vetoed $37 million — less than 1 percent of the total budget — so they were not far apart overall.

After Wilkins stopped speaking, Sanford made a rare visit to the House to pull the speaker off the floor. They met in the speaker’s conference room, within earshot of the ringing bell.

Wilkins said he respected the governor’s right to veto and he wished the governor respected the House’s right to override.

The vetoes now move to the Senate, which could take them up today.

The clash was raw, even given the contentious nature of the relationship between the Republican governor and the Republican General Assembly this year.

Democrats joined Republicans in overriding the vetoes, saying Sanford’s suggestions cut too deeply into state agencies — such as vetoing a cancer registry that helps track where cancer strikes, enabling the state to find out whether poor, rural people are affected disproportionately by contaminated soil and water.

“When this governor ran for office, he promised to be the governor of all South Carolina,” said Rep. Joe Neal, D-Richland. “What he has done in the vetoes here today is renege on that promise.”

Sanford said what he was trying to do — unsuccessfully — was to give more money to the Department of Social Services to avoid cuts to the neediest of the needy, children.

The clash put a damper on the governor’s scheduled 7 p.m. pool party for legislators. Many Republicans said they would not attend.

Rep. Leon Howard, D-Richland, was trying to round up companions, tagging Rep. James Smith, D-Richland, on the arm.

“Are you going to eat the governor’s dinner, now that we’ve eaten his lunch?” Howard asked.

Reach Bauerlein at (803) 771-8485 or vbauerlein@thestate.com