Taking issue with Rick Santorum
By NEIL STEINBERG nsteinberg@suntimes.com February 22, 2012 1:06AM
Updated: March 23, 2012 8:16AM
Rick Santorum.
That, believe it or not, is the first time the name of the current darling of the Republican Party has appeared in my column. I tend to draw back from politics, out of disgust, mostly, but also because so much is said about it by so many all the time. What’s to add? Why spit into that fast-flowing Niagara of vomitous rhetoric?
Besides, it’s all so transitory — turned out, there was no need to think about, write about, celebrate or condemn Herman Cain — he flared for a few weeks, then vanished. Does anyone mourn his passing?
My gut says this will also be the fate of Santorum; that he is the latest in a chain of ideologues the far right flirts with — Pat Robertson, Pat Buchanan — then abandons. Right? The Grand Old Party of Abe Lincoln would never really nominate so shrill a zealot as Santorum to be its standard bearer. Frankly, it would be too much for a Democrat to hope for — President Barack Obama may be the luckiest man alive, but could he really be that lucky? No sooner did Santorum nudge ahead of the inevitable Mitt Romney than he began to talk about dismantling public schools and restricting amniocentesis. By the time he got the nomination, he’d be demanding we bring back stoning harlots.
But maybe I’m being shortsighted. Ronald Reagan was a joke, too — a Borax-ballyhooing, shoe-polish-haired Hollywood actor — until suddenly he wasn’t. Democrats were cracking “Bedtime for Bonzo” jokes right up to the moment Reagan crushed Jimmy Carter like an egg.
So who exactly is this Santorum fellow? I have my preconceived notions (relentless homophobe, glittery-eyed religious fanatic) but, in the name of fairness, let’s approach Santorum with an open mind.
Let’s look at his campaign website, ricksantorum.com. What does Santorum say are the most significant problems facing our country? Let’s click on “ISSUES.”
The first issue listed is “Enforcing Laws Against Illegal Pornography.”
“Pornography causes profound brain changes in both children and adults, resulting in widespread negative consequences,” Santorum writes. “Every family must now be concerned about the harm from pornography. As a parent, I am concerned about the widespread distribution of illegal obscene pornography.”
Issue No. 2 is “No More Leading from Behind for America” — and no, it doesn’t touch on the unprintably gross definition that Dan Savage made the No. 1 hit when you Google “santorum.” Rather, it is a 1,600-word tract on international affairs, condemning Obama’s outreach to Muslims, which Santorum characterizes as groveling. “Unlike President Obama, I will not bow before dictators, fanatics and thugs.”
The third most pressing issue facing America is the twin threat of gay marriage and abortion — which Santorum pairs together because both reflect “great, enduring, and foundational truths.” He notes, “Marriage is, and has always been through human history, a union of a man and woman,” which must mean human history has stopped in recent years, since a dozen countries and six U.S. states now recognize gay marriage.
No mention of the economy yet.
Fourth is getting closer, though: energy policy, which to Santorum means removing “bans on drilling” oil — everywhere it seems, plus slashing EPA regulations.
Fifth, back to families, but as a code for the economy — at last! He’ll help families by repealing health care (because nothing hurts families like access to health care).
Fifteen more issue statements left and more than half mention family in the first line. Two begin with the exact same sentence — “As a husband and a father, Rick Santorum knows the importance of protecting and providing for your family . . .” He would shore up the eroding moral foundation of the country by banning stem cell research, reinstituting the military’s Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell policy and defining marriage in the U.S. Constitution to exclude gays.
Democrats are nervously chuckling and predicting Obama would steamroll Santorum. Perhaps. But on Sunday, a Des Moines Register poll had Santorum beating Obama, 48 points to 44. Somebody is taking him seriously.
