WASHINGTON — In March 2020, veteran journalist Ryan Lizza stumbled upon an apology letter in his Washington, D.C., home that wasn’t meant for him.
His girlfriend, Olivia Nuzzi, had written the letter on hotel stationery, which had accidentally fallen out of her backpack and onto the floor of their Georgetown townhouse. The letter, dated March 5, 2020, read, “Mark, I’m sorry. I wish I hadn’t touched you. I can’t say I didn’t touch you.”
Lizza has claimed that the “Mark” referred to in the letter is Mark Sanford, a 2020 Republican presidential candidate. This letter was just one of three drafts that Nuzzi wrote and was discovered by Lizza, revealing how Nuzzi potentially blurred professional lines by having an affair with a source, as Lizza explained in his series about Nuzzi.
The discovery of this cryptic note has brought to light the complicated relationship between Lizza and Nuzzi. They were once a well-known couple in Washington. Recently, Nuzzi published a book titled *American Canto*, discussing her alleged digital affair with presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Meanwhile, Lizza’s ex-girlfriend released a web series that exposes Nuzzi’s history of romantic encounters with public figures.
Lizza reflected on a pivotal moment, recalling, “When I realized who he was, my heart stopped.” Nuzzi had been writing about Sanford, which added to the tension. He described making a dramatic call to his agent, revealing the affair. Though Sanford’s name wasn’t directly mentioned in the letter, Lizza put the pieces together based on Nuzzi’s visits to South Carolina and eventually confronted Sanford.
After the revelation, Nuzzi confessed to being “infatuated” with Sanford and reportedly sent him suggestive messages during his campaign. According to Lizza, Nuzzi later attempted to cover her tracks, citing a crisis with her mother as a distraction from the affair.
Lizza noted that Nuzzi claimed to have only slept with Sanford once, on February 24, 2020, after arriving at his home in the evening and leaving late that night. They had engaged in a somewhat uncomfortable moment where she briefly showed him her phone, which led to laughter.
Despite the troubling allegations from 2020, Lizza and Nuzzi stayed together and even got engaged in 2022. Unfortunately, they ended their relationship last August amid significant conflict.
Sanford’s past is also noteworthy; he was the former governor of South Carolina who went missing in 2009, claiming to be hiking the Appalachian Trail while actually visiting his mistress in Argentina. In 2020, he launched a Republican primary campaign against Donald Trump.
Interestingly, Lizza arrived in South Carolina just after the alleged affair took place, unaware of what had occurred. He later arranged a meeting with Sanford and Nuzzi, which Nuzzi reacted to with panic.
Afterward, she reached out to Sanford, explaining her relationship with Lizza and asking him to avoid her until he was single. This incident led to a note of apology addressed to Sanford, which Lizza eventually found.
Lizza pointed out other evidence of the affair, including recorded messages and drafts of a sensational article where Nuzzi seemed to anticipate the fallout of her actions.
In reflecting on the situation, Lizza called the impact “devastating,” especially as it led to the shelving of one of their book projects. They ultimately canceled another project planned for 2024, coinciding with Nuzzi’s alleged affair with Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Lizza concluded with a thought that encapsulated his frustrations: “How could Olivia write a book about a presidential campaign if she had a sexual relationship with one of the candidates?” The newspaper attempted to reach out to Sanford for comment through various channels.
