That's great if you can make it through college. A gigantic portion of our population cannot. Thus, I don't see college as some cure for the ills of the poor. Even if it were, there are ways to get a ride as it is.
The huge difference between Santorum and Bush is that Bush had some appeal to independents; that's how he won. Santorum has absolutely none because he's such a psycho. Also, the way to play it is very simple, and that's why I'm not impressed. You simply say, "I hate gays; deport the Mexicans; that global warming stuff is bullshit, and abortion is murder." And, boom, you have the dumbass contingent of the party, who vote in impressive numbers in primaries, on your side.
Education, in general, is going to cure the ills for the poor and making the education accessible is the key. It's not that a "gigantic portion of the population" can't make it through college; it's actually that a pretty substantial part of the population never see college or any form of higher education as an option because of their upbringing or family situation.
Regardless of what positions he takes, the guy brought his dead baby home to show his kids.....that's just [uck fay]ing weird.
What? Are you saying your kids wouldn't enjoy looking at a dead infant? Maybe they had it stuffed and put over the fireplace like a deer.
i agree completely. if this guy was well known a year ago there is zero chance he'd be in this race. people are voting for the new guy.
Santorum has had an effective ground game and performed well in debates, unlike Perry and Bachmann, his would-be opponents on those issues. Sure he appeals to some of the lowest common denominator vote, but you can't have a long-term campaign on that basis alone. I think Santorum has done the best job of hanging "Romneycare" as an albatross around Mitt's neck while striking it hot with the social conservatives too. This isn't a Rick Santorum issue ultimately; it's a Mitt Romney one. After campaigning for two years he has yet to wrap this thing up, which is both shocking and sad and a testament to what folks who call themselves Republicans think about him.
What they know about him -- including his failures -- is exactly what the appeal is. He has the upper hand on any "standing by his guns" debate that Mitt would frankly lose.
If it were a two man race it would make Santorum look more counter-culture. But with Paul and Gingrich in the mix it makes it difficult to see.
You're vastly overcomplicating it, Jo. Santorum's appeal only goes to the dumbass, fringe contingent of the party. That's the part of the party that is the most apt to go vote at these primaries. It's not "sticking to his guns"; it's him saying, "I love Jesus; gays are going to Hell; all Mexicans should leave, and if you've had an abortion, you're doomed for eternal damnation." That's all it is. Period.
I don't think Romneycare is really hurting Romney. Newt favored a government mandate; Paul is a states' rights activist, so Romneycare would not be inconsistent with his philosophy. The only person raising Hell about it is Santorum, and he's too stupid to actually articulate why Romneycare is bad.
Name one compelling argument that Santorum has come up with against Romneycare. The only thing I've seen have been fabricated statistics that were proven to be totally false by fact-checkers. I don't consider tossing out bullshit "doing an effective job." And, the only thing I see that's sad is that there are actually people stupid enough to waste a vote on a dipshit like Rick Santorum.
But plenty of other folks have done this in the past and some did it in this election (see Rick Perry's manly man ad). Why has Santorum continued to climb when guys like Huckabee, or David Duke, or Sam Brownback faltered with some of the same notions? There's more to it. You are perfectly fine to hate him; I don't care. But he has run a very good race starting in about the third week of December. As an aside, go back and look at all of the Republican presidents who have won races recently without blatant appeals to race. From George W.'s whisper campaign in SC, to George H.W.'s Willie Horton ad, Reagan's "welfare queen idea" and so on. People act as if Santorum's ideas fell from Mars and he is the first Republican to use these ploys as part of a campaign. He isn't. He has just done this more effectively and Romney hasn't been able to effectively counter it yet.
Again, now you're to the point of saying he's accomplished more than a former Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. I somehow don't find it astonishing that he was somehow able to run a better campaign than Grand Wizard Duke. Again, I caution you to not get caught up in this bullshit hooplah. Why is Santorum now running well? Easy answer. He's the next in line for the retard-sect of the Republican Party to try to prop up against the one they don't like, Romney, who's obviously by far and away the best candidate. That is absolutely the only reason he's even being considered. First, it was Newt, and now it's dumbass Santorum. It's simply a cyclical happening, not master campaigning by the man who puts dead infants on display at his house.
Oh, how genius. Nevermind the fact that one of the pillars of the Republican Party is states' rights. I guess that's in every case except if it's a Mitt Romney initiative, right? No one that has a brain actually buys that.
Unfortunately a problem is that the small government revolution has now moved to the point where I'll argue issues such as govt run healthcare at any level is a bigger issue that states' rights for the GOP. Hence, while I agree with you and see what you are saying, too many people want govt to stay out of it at every level. People are selective in how this stuff is applied.
I agree with that, Cardinal. And, I think the position you just articulated is a Ron Paul position not a Rick Santorum position.
