FLORENCE - State Sen. Hugh Leatherman and others in the Pee Dee are angry after Gov. Mark Sanford vetoed a bill to create a commission to study if a trail should be established to honor Revolutionary War hero Francis Marion.

"I'm terribly disappointed the governor would see to pick on the Pee Dee area down here," said Leatherman, R-Florence. "It would appear that the governor relishes and enjoys doing things that are detrimental to the Pee Dee ... one of the poorer sections in the state."

The bill would have created a commission to collect private and public money to evaluate the trail. Sanford says such a commission would be unnecessary and create "a new avenue for regional political favoritism."

Other groups in the state, and specifically in the Pee Dee, have established tourism trails by seeking state and federal grants with the help of the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism, Sanford wrote in his veto message. "I believe that this is a worthy project and one which will likely fare well in the grants process," Sanford said.

Leatherman, who vowed to fight to get the veto overturned, said it isn't the first time Sanford has picked on the Pee Dee. He said the governor has also vetoed money for local colleges and downtown renovation projects. Those vetoes were overridden.

Florence attorney Ben Zeigler, an early supporter of the trail, said it is a major economic development project that could bring tourism from travelers heading to or from the beach or passing through on Interstate 95.

"I think we are missing a wonderful opportunity for this region and this state," Zeigler said. "I think this is a bad move, and if it's not overridden, the governor will have done a disservice to this region."