Earlier today, I made the case that Rick Santorum’s language has been intemperate of late. The problem for Mitt Romney is a different one: opportunism. I have in mind, among other things, last week’s debate, when Governor Romney, in criticizing Santorum, said, “Well, I’m looking at [Santorum's] historic record” — including “a whole series of votes. Voting to fund Planned Parenthood…” and more.
This charge is technically correct but incomplete. In fact, it creates an utterly false impression. Santorum voted for a large spending bill that included funding for Planned Parenthood, the kind of difficult and prudential judgment members of Congress are often forced to make. (It helps explain why long-serving members of Congress rarely win the presidency.) But that vote cannot obscure this fact: Santorum has been one of America’s most vocal champions for the pro-life cause, to the point that he opposes abortion even in the case of rape and incest, and we all know he would defund Planned Parenthood in a millisecond if he could have his way. On culture of life issues, Rick Santorum is among the least compromised of all politicians.
Beyond that, though, what makes the charge particularly unfair is that Romney, at one time in his career, strongly favored the right to an abortion, attended a Planned Parenthood fundraiser in 1994, and according to press reports, his wife Ann donated to Planned Parenthood. So to have Romney attack Santorum for being insufficiently pro-life is a bit much.
Romney has shifted his position on abortion, and I’m glad he has. But for him to portray Santorum as unprincipled on this issue strikes me as deeply unfair. It might work in a narrow tactical sense. But these attacks are dangerous for Romney, because they can easily reinforce a pre-existing impression, which is that there’s a shamelessness to Romney’s attacks that can be discrediting. (Trying to lay blame for Obamacare at the feet of Santorum is also a fairly brazen charge.)
There are plenty of arguments Romney can make on his own behalf, as well as criticisms he can level against Santorum. But Santorum being an ally of Planned Parenthood is an argument Romney really should stay away from.
You neglect to take into account here that Romney's not presenting himself to primary voters as a purer-than-thedriven-snow conservative as Santorum is. If Rick going to attack Mitt's conservative credentials on Planned Parenthood as he has, Romney has every right to fire back and show that it's the pot calling the kettle black. n n It seems like an awful lot of conservative commentators have Mormonism confused with Quakerism, or something. I'm not an expert, but I'm pretty sure Mormons DO get to defend themselves from criticism heaped upon them by flaming hypocrites, Peter. n nRick Santorum has essentially predicated his entire candidacy on the notion which HE has chosen to advance that he's the perfectly consistent conservative as opposed to Romney. n nYet as his record has undergone the closer scrutiny candidates at the front of the pack are traditionally subjected to, voters have discovered he's not been any more consistently conservative than Mitt or Gingrich or anybody else outside of the right wing fantasy dream world concocted by right wing bloggers, talk show hosts and FoxNews' paid pols-turned- 'analysts'. n nSantorum, just like every other AnyoneButRomney before him who was also susceptible to demands by the sillier precincts of right wing media that they all characterize Mitt's imperfect fealty to conservatism as uniquely unacceptable to Republicans, has inaccurately insisted to the base that he's been more faithful to the orthodoxy than Romney, which in turn made him a legitimate – and frankly quite predictable – target for a fact check from the guy whose record he was impugning. n nThat's not opportunism on Romney's part. That's political ineptitude on Santorum's.
"But that vote cannot obscure this fact: Santorum has been one of America’s most vocal champions for the pro-life cause, to the point that he opposes abortion even in the case of rape and incest" n nOh, wonderful.
Really . . at some point one moves from conservative in favor of traditions to becoming a right wing fascist zealot . . Santorum sometimes seems to have crossed that line, at least in his rhetoric. Makes him a scary candidate to much of the populace more than a consistent conservative.
I think the GOP has flipped its gourd with this guy. I just can't vote for someone with his egregiously extreme social positions. This is not Reagan conservatism, this is theocratic Catholicism from the Dark Ages.
No, that vote DOES INDEED obscure Santorum's work for pro-life. ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS and that vote makes him a HYPOCRYTE. That is because it is only a PART of a LONG STRING of very ultra-Liberal votes that he made. n nYou have to draw the line. Taking a baby step to the right for every 10 Giant Steps to the Left is NOT the definition of a Conservative. n nWhen you look at the whole, Santorum is no Conservative. nHe voted against Federal Right to Work. nHe voted to give FELONS the VOTE without them qualifying under the Constitution to earn it back. nHe voted for a lot of tax hikes. Including to strike down the marriage penalty tax relief. nHe voted for Weird Gun Control legislation. nHe vote pro-illegal alien a number of different times. nHe voted for media to give politicians a price break on political ads – pure Feudalism. nHe voted pro-union quite a few times and including sheltering union reps from investigations. nHe votes Pro-NEA and ANTI-Military – i.e. anti-missile defense program. nEtc, Etc, Etc, ad Nauseum. n nI won't vote for such a Liberal who supports all manner of Marxist Dim policies. nI will not authorize him. Most particularly while he falsely wears a label of "Christian" and "Conservative".
"(Trying to lay blame for Obamacare at the feet of Santorum is also a fairly brazen charge.)" n nIt's so sad that so many can't see it is a clear response of absurd irony. , this absurdity is an in your face response to the many repeated and unfair characterizations Santorum (and others) have made to stretch the truth and connect dots into whatever picture they want to tell. No one thing led to Obamacare except for Obama. Others had their part, so we see all the finger pointing. n nIn ads and these sound bite debates you only lose if you sit there on defense and blabber about how somebody else is picking on you. There isn't ANYBODY who would smile and sit there and take it and the Specter offense was a great way to show the absurdity of some of the stuff thrown out there while still scoring points on the decision. Even Specter didn't buy Santorum's defense. n nYou could see steam coming out of Santorum's ears but apparently the absurd irony is lost on some. That is exactly what he deserves for.his two-faced attacks AFTER having already gotten himself comfortable with endorsing Romney. I can see Santorum now saying: "I was right before I was wrong, but then I was wrong and now I am right" Such thinking results in Santorum (and others) to keep going back to pre-2008 as if what they learned and said in 2008 and since does exist. n nUp through the middle of the debates I had looked more at the character of the candidates (my first measure of the candidates) and early on decided I like Santorum, Paul, and Romney for the way they carried themselves in their lives and their campaign. I can't agree with everything any of them say, but fortunately they don't act alone and Congress will balance whoever wins anyway. n nThese three to me seemed to be better people, at least as politicians go. They're all acting as politicians do (look at fact checking ratings and each one appears "truth challenged"), but Santorum seems to have sold his soul as he's gotten his turn at the top of the pack. His actions after coming this close has been completely unexpected. Very disappointing. n nPaul and Romney also have their own problems, but those will keep till another post.
….Santorum has been one of America’s most vocal champions for the pro-life cause, to the point that he opposes abortion even in the case of rape and incest… n nWow! I didn't know that. Another black mark against him and a reminder that up to viability we are dealing with something less than life as dramatized by the instances of rape and incest.