presidential hopefuls from the Republican Party. We
shall review candidate Rick Santorum and his candi-
dacy. As he has suddenly, and some would say
unexpectedly, taken flight in the recent rounds of
caucuses and primaries --- Santorum won a trifecta
this week by winning the Missouri primary and the
Colorado and Minnesota caucuses --- the former
senator from Pennsylvania has emerged from the
back of the now-reduced pack to become the
apparent front-runner, displacing former Massa-
chusetts Governor Mitt Romney, who was favored
to win in Minnesota and especially Colorado;
Romney won the latter handily in his 2008 campaign.
Let's see what Santorum has to offer.
RICK SANTORUM
Born on May 10, 1958, Rick Santorum is the son of
Italian immigrant Aldo Santorum and Catherine San-
torum (nee' Dughi), an American nurse of Italian and
Irish descent. Santorum was born in Winchester,
Virginia, but grew up in West Virginia and Pennsylvania.
Santorum was the second of three children in a devout
Catholic family.
Santorum earned a B.A. with honors in Political Science
at Pennsylvania State University in 1980, an M.B.A.
from the University of Pittsburgh in 1981, and a J.D.
with honors from the Dickinson Law School in 1986.
He then practiced law for four years with the Pittsburgh
law firm of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart before leaving the
firm upon election to the U.S. House from Pennsyl-
vania's 18th Congressional District in 1990.
Santorum first became active in politics as a volunteer
for the late U.S. Senator John Heinz (R) from his state.
He was also an administrative assistant to Republican
State Senator Doyle Corman, later the director of the
Pennsylvania State Senate's local government com-
mittee (1981-84), then was director of its transportation
committee. When Santorum won election to the U.S.
House, he won in a district which was heavily Democratic
and had a 7-term incumbent.
While there, in 1993 Santorum was one of 17 House
Republicans who sided with many democrats in that
chamber to support legislation prohibiting employers
from permanently replacing striking workers. He was
also a member of the Gang of Seven that exposed
members of Congress involved in the House banking
scandal. Santorum was next elected to the U.S. Senate
in 1994, the year that saw the Republicans win both
houses of Congress for the first time in over 40 years,
defeating incumbent democrat Senator Harris Wofford.
From 2001 to 2007 he was the Senate's third-ranking
Republican. In 1996 Santorum served as Chairman of
the Republican Party task Force on Welfare Reform,
and was a co-author of and floor manager for the
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act.
That year he also endorsed liberal Republican Sen.
Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania's senior senator at that
time, in Specter's short-lived presidential campaign
although he differed sharply with Specter on social
policy. This was evidently to repay Specter for his
providing Santorum with key political staff for
Santorum's successful Senate campaign.
Santorum supports the War on Terror and the Bush
Doctrine regarding foreign policy, which states that
the U.S. has the right to secure itself against countries
that harbor or give aid to terrorist groups, which was
implemented to justify the 2001 invasion of Afghan-
istan after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In 2006 Santorum
announced that weapons of mass destruction (WMDs)
had been found in Iraq, his statement based in part
on declassified information from the U.S. Army
Intelligence and Security Command report. However,
some Defense Department officials, CIA intelligence
analysts, and the White House later stated that the
materials discovered were not part of the WMDs
threat that the Iraq War was supposed to quash.
Your faithful Peasant says that Rick Santorum spoke
out on the basis of information which he, and apparently
others had thought, to be accurate, therefore he should
not be pilloried for having advanced a faleshood for
the purpose of pursuing a foreign policy or defense
objective as some are wont to do.
Santorum has proven to be a solid social conservative
on issues such as abortion, but has been sketchy on
fiscal issues. Although he voted for the Bush tax cuts
while in the Senate, along with voting to restrain some
entitlements and favors a balanced budget amendment
to the Constitution, he also backed pricey federal
education and transportation programs, using earmarks
in some of his efforts to fund such legislation.
Although more Congressional Republicans have come
out in opposition to earmarks for funding various projects
and programs in their respective districts and states,
while in the Senate rick Santorum voted for earmarks
to be used to fund transportation projects in his own
state. Santorum had defended his actions saying that
he was ensuring that there would be plentiful jobs for
his fellow Pennsylvanians. An earmark is a legislative
provision that directs approved funds to be spent on
specific projects, or else directs specific exemptions
from taxes or mandated fees. A legislator generally
seeks earmarks that direct a specified sum of money
to either an organization or a project in the legislator's
home district or state. Earmarks are often linked by
many to "pork barrel" legislation, and although the two
are not necessarily the same some "pork", or wasteful
use of money, has been made possible with earmarks.
Santorum also stated as recently as June 2011 that he
would always "fight very strongly against libertarian
influence within the Republican Party and the conser-
vative movement." Santorum has long been critical of
what he terms "the libertarianish right", stating in an
interview with NPR in 2005, that "they have this idea
that people should be left alone, be able to do whatever
they want to do. Government should keep our taxes
down and keep our regulation low and that we shouldn't
get involved in the bedroom, we shouldn't get involved in
cultural issues ... people should do whatever they want.
Well, that is not how traditional conservatives view the
world, and I think most conservatives understand that
individuals can't go it alone ..."
Although very cool toward gay rights, Santorum has
been active in supporting efforts to combat global AIDS.
He has worked to provide assistance to orphans and
endangered children in third world countries and to offer
debt relief those third world nations. His work earned
praise from Bono, rock musician with the renown Irish
rock group U2 and noted humanitarian, who stated that
"he has been a defender of the most vulnerable."
On the environment, Santorum does not go along with the
notion that climate change is mostly, if not entirely, the
result of humanity's activities; he calls such claims "junk
science". He has blasted the theory as a ploy to have
more government control over our country. On energy,
Santorum backs a policy of "drill(ing) everywhere" for oil
and that there is "enough oil, coal and natural gas to last
for centuries".
STRENGTHS
Rick Santorum is a very consistent social conservative,
most notably in his uncompromising defense of the
unborn on the issue of abortion. He has also been said
to possess an almost pugnacious style of politics and
government. In former Senator Rick
Santorum's own words, he avers: "I just don't take the
pledge. I take the bullets ... I stand out in front and I lead
to make sure the voices of those who do not have a voice
are out in front and being included in the national debate."
this is a most refreshing contrast to so many politicians
who will say only what they perceive their audiences
to agree with, even saying contradicting things to differ-
ent groups of people. He is also a proven advocate
for increased employment, as has been mentioned earlier
in this article, even if one does not agree with the use of
earmarks. Furthermore, Santorum is solid on defense
and foreign policy matters, supporting what needs to be
done to protect our country and her interests. His forth-
rightness on these issues would be a welcome change
from the leadership and policies of Mr. Hope and Change
who currently resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
WEAKNESSES
Again, Santorum has been not as consistent on fiscal
issues as he has been on social and national defense
and foreign policy issues, as he has supported some
expensive programs while in the Senate, some of which
were championed by such big government advocates
as the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA).
Santorum's hostility to libertarian ideas regarding privacy
matters and his reasoning for his opposition to same,
combined with his quirkiness on domestic spending
matters leave some conservative activists to believe
that he is not a small-government conservative. The
foemer senator from the Keystone State seems to find
that a larger government would fulfill his desires on some
issues which he places a great premium upon. And his
idea for ending funding for contraceptives would bring
protests from those opponents of abortion on demand
who believe that the availability of contraceptives is
essential to reduce the number of unplanned pregnancies
ending in abortions. Santorum must realize that there is
more than one point of view on preventing unplanned
pregnancies and abortions in the pro-life camp. And on
things fiscal, he should also realize that we need someone
who will be consistent in implementing fiscal restraint in
our federal budget, and will have the discipline along with
the sense of urgency required for this.
ANALYSIS
Rick Santorum may leave a few things to be desired,
but he is certainly not any worse than the remaining
contestants in the Republican field at this point in the
campaign, as far as his conservative bona fides are
concerned. At least he has no history of fecklessly flip-
flopping on issues, nor has he any extramarital activities
and dubious divorces, nor does Santorum display
any sign of naivete on defense and foreign policy. He
may be the most conservative candidate still standing
at present. And after the sellout of conservative prin-
ciples, especially on fiscal matters by the previous
(GOP!) administartion, and the abandonment of fiscal
probity by the current one, we need a reliable antidote.
If only Santorum were more consistent on the fiscal
side and less hostile to libertarians and libertarianism
on some other matters ...
MEM
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