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talkpoliticsSenator Rick Santorum's quest for the Republican nomination moves on, having lost by a huge margin in the delegate rich state of Illinois and having won by a large margin in the not so delegate rich state of Louisiana. Most observers of the Republican nominating contest agree that Mr. Santorum has almost no chance of winning the nomination with delegates before the convention, and his sole remaining hope is to deny Governor Romney enough delegates to be assured of nomination on the first ballot when Republicans meet at their convention.
But Mr. Santorum's campaign is not without its strengths. Oddly enough, even as a Catholic himself, the former Senator has failed to win the Catholic vote in most states, even in states where he has won -- he is, in fact, drawing his most vigorous support from another important demographic in Republican politics: Protestant Evangelicals, and he is doing so by wearing his faith front and center.
Now I have to be clear: as a liberal, mostly secular Jew, I have no desire to see a Santorum Presidency. I am even ill at ease with someone of Mr. Santorum's views winning nomination from the Republican party given how much that would signal its radicalization. However, as I watch the candidate who was barely a footnote in December I have to admit a growing fascination with what he represents.
It isn't for any of his actual views, but rather for his absolute insistence upon NOT tailoring his views to suit whatever audience to whom he is speaking. He may be the LEAST political politician I have witnessed win this many delegates in a nomination fight.
Here is a candidate for President who had his opponent, a man with formidable cash resources, on the ropes in the state where he was born and where his father was a popular governor, and what does Senator Santorum do to court blue-collar voters? He spoke about how John F. Kennedy made him want to throw up.
Here is a candidate who was seeking votes in Puerto Rico, and decided a good wooing strategy was was to erroneously state that English as an official language was a prequisite for statehood...in a territory where English is already widely spoken.
Here is a candidate fighting for the nomination of the party that insists issues 1-10 in this election will be the economy and he insists that a priority of his administration will be to ban hard core porn. It isn't that Senator Santorum's campaign has no ideas about the economy, it is just that he would much rather talk about porn, abortion, gays and evoking the idea that President Obama is more on the side of Islamists than Americans.
So why do I enjoy this?
It may be nothing I want in the White House, but you have to hand it to Mr. Santorum for being honest. There is little guile here, almost no attempts to hide who he is just for the privilege of gathering a few more votes from the day's audience. Rick Santorum thinks social issues are the most important issues there are, and he isn't going to shift and pivot just because polling data says a broader group of Republican voters want to vote on the economy. And at the same time, he is forcing every single Republican who votes for him to say either that they endorse his views or that they think it won't effect them and don't care. That's a statement.
So here is to Rick Santorum -- the most upfront candidate for President to win this many primaries in my lifetime.
Mods, can I get my tag now?
EDIT: Mods, this Rick Santorum tag is totally insufficient.
EDIT: Mods, these Rick Santorum tags are totally awesome!
But Mr. Santorum's campaign is not without its strengths. Oddly enough, even as a Catholic himself, the former Senator has failed to win the Catholic vote in most states, even in states where he has won -- he is, in fact, drawing his most vigorous support from another important demographic in Republican politics: Protestant Evangelicals, and he is doing so by wearing his faith front and center.
Now I have to be clear: as a liberal, mostly secular Jew, I have no desire to see a Santorum Presidency. I am even ill at ease with someone of Mr. Santorum's views winning nomination from the Republican party given how much that would signal its radicalization. However, as I watch the candidate who was barely a footnote in December I have to admit a growing fascination with what he represents.
It isn't for any of his actual views, but rather for his absolute insistence upon NOT tailoring his views to suit whatever audience to whom he is speaking. He may be the LEAST political politician I have witnessed win this many delegates in a nomination fight.
Here is a candidate for President who had his opponent, a man with formidable cash resources, on the ropes in the state where he was born and where his father was a popular governor, and what does Senator Santorum do to court blue-collar voters? He spoke about how John F. Kennedy made him want to throw up.
Here is a candidate who was seeking votes in Puerto Rico, and decided a good wooing strategy was was to erroneously state that English as an official language was a prequisite for statehood...in a territory where English is already widely spoken.
Here is a candidate fighting for the nomination of the party that insists issues 1-10 in this election will be the economy and he insists that a priority of his administration will be to ban hard core porn. It isn't that Senator Santorum's campaign has no ideas about the economy, it is just that he would much rather talk about porn, abortion, gays and evoking the idea that President Obama is more on the side of Islamists than Americans.
So why do I enjoy this?
It may be nothing I want in the White House, but you have to hand it to Mr. Santorum for being honest. There is little guile here, almost no attempts to hide who he is just for the privilege of gathering a few more votes from the day's audience. Rick Santorum thinks social issues are the most important issues there are, and he isn't going to shift and pivot just because polling data says a broader group of Republican voters want to vote on the economy. And at the same time, he is forcing every single Republican who votes for him to say either that they endorse his views or that they think it won't effect them and don't care. That's a statement.
So here is to Rick Santorum -- the most upfront candidate for President to win this many primaries in my lifetime.
Mods, can I get my tag now?
EDIT: Mods, this Rick Santorum tag is totally insufficient.
EDIT: Mods, these Rick Santorum tags are totally awesome!
(no subject)
Date: 28/3/12 22:42 (UTC)This is not a good thing.
(no subject)
Date: 28/3/12 23:52 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 28/3/12 23:56 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 00:05 (UTC)he would much rather talk about
Pander to the base (caboose) then move to the center?
(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 00:39 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 01:00 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 01:04 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 01:31 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 02:25 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 02:32 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 02:33 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 01:25 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 01:44 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 02:20 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 02:24 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 03:14 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 01:58 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 02:31 (UTC)There's new video footage of Zimmerman immediately after his being taken to the police station, and has been released by ABC News tonight; and for a guy who claimed how badly beaten he was beaten by Trayvon Martin, Zimmernan's face even doesn't seemed bruised.
(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 03:27 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 03:36 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 03:13 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 03:23 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 07:23 (UTC)Or for a free pizza, you can write in Herman Cain
(no subject)
Date: 29/3/12 16:13 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 30/3/12 03:38 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 30/3/12 06:21 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 31/3/12 20:34 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 30/3/12 02:59 (UTC)(There's no way in hell that dude doesn't have a sizable back issue stack of Yew Got A Purty Mouth hidden away someplace deep where no one'll ever find it, I just know.)