Rick Santorum

Rick Santorum Declares War On Two Democratic Presidents: John F. Kennedy And Barack Obama!

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Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum continues to rampage in his “cultural war” against liberals, progressives, and the Democratic Party.

He seems not to understand that what he is doing is political suicide, and if he is selected as the Republican nominee for President, a disaster awaits the party.

Establishment Republicans realize this, and can only hope that Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts Governor, can stop Santorum’s ascent in the 14 primaries coming up in the next eight days.

Santorum is stopping at nothing, not only attacking President Barack Obama, but also President John F. Kennedy.

Santorum continued his attack this past weekend on Barack Obama as an elitist, and a snob, for promoting higher education for all young people, continuing to assert that Obama is trying to poison the minds of young people, making them liberal and hating religion, and promoting indoctrination.

And he has attacked Kennedy’s declaration of the absolute separation of church and state that Kennedy uttered during the Presidential campaign of 1960, stating that religion should be part of government as the Founding Fathers intended, except for the fact that they were very clear in agreeing with Kennedy’s statement that religion and politics should not mix.

Santorum seems to be totally out of control, and one can wonder whether he has ever been able to accept those who disagree with him, as he still does not have even one US Senator and only three House members from Pennsylvania willing to endorse him.

The theocracy he is promoting will not be accepted by the American people, and hopefully, Republican primary voters will realize the dangers he presents and repudiate him finally, and send him back to Pennsylvania, where he should be, helping his poor wife and older children take care of his very sick three year old daughter, instead of pontificating on what he calls the “truth”, which is totally false!

The “family values” candidate needs to focus on his own family, and stop pursuing his ego that he is qualified and acceptable to be the President of the United States, which he most certainly is not. There is no way that he could ever unite the American people in any fashion!

Zbigniew Brzezinski’s Characterization Of The Republican Presidential Field: Priceless!

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Zbigniew Brzezinski, former National Security Adviser to President Jimmy Carter, was on CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS today, and was asked, as part of the interview, his feelings about the final four contenders for the GOP Presidential nomination.

His response, in one paragraph, was absolutely priceless, the best characterization yet heard about them.

Rick Santorum—sounds like a medieval Savonarola, referring to medieval Catholic monk Girolamo Savonarola, who lived in Florence, Italy, and condemned what he considered immoral art, promoted book burning, and attacked the Catholic Church leadership and the Pope for being corrupt and immoral. For a while, he ran a personal theocracy in Florence, but was then excommunicated, tortured and executed by order of Church authorities.

Mitt Romney—spends his time explaining why some of his wealth is in the Cayman Islands, rather than in American banks.

Ron Paul—wants to take America back to the 1780s and the Founding Fathers.

Newt Gingrich—using his credentials as a repudiated Speaker of the House (by his own party) to claim he should be President.

Brzezinski said all four are embarrassing as candidates for the Presidency, and progressives will certainly agree with this assessment!

A Forecast Of The Future? Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley Vs. Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell

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Yesterday, the political website POLITICO sponsored a debate between Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley and Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell over the controversial social issues that have come to the forefront in the past few weeks.

Martin O’Malley came to the strong defense of President Barack Obama, and hailed the successes of the administration, while being critical of the Republicans, led by Virginia’s Governor Bob McDonnell, who became embroiled in a controversy over an invasive vaginal ultra sound bill to undermine abortions by women.

O’Malley at the same time defended the decision in Maryland to make that state the eighth state to legalize gay marriages.

Bob McDonnell was on the defensive, as he explained his change of heart on the invasive ultra sound bill, after much outrage by women and the news media and others who believe in the right of privacy and women’s rights.

As one watched this debate, one could imagine the scenario of a possible 2016 Presidential debate between the two men, governors of neighboring states, with totally opposite views, and both strong defenders of their viewpoints.

Martin O’Malley is already seen as a top tier Presidential candidate for 2016 in the Democratic Party, and Bob McDonnell has obvious ambitions on the Republican side, and has made it clear that he is interested in a Vice Presidential slot with Mitt Romney, if Romney were to choose him. That is the obvious, although denied, reason for his backing off on the invasive ultra sound bill that he seemed ready to sign.

O’Malley has showed evidence that he would be a hard, aggressive campaigner if he ran for President, as he has become one of the major defenders of President Obama’s record, and a critic of the governors of not only Virginia, but also Wisconsin, Ohio and Florida, all hard line conservatives, who he accuses correctly of presiding over very poor employment growth, while Obama, by intervening in Michigan and other Midwestern states, has promoted a revival of the auto industry and the general economy, along with the general progress in decline of the unemployment rate.

Not only is Martin O’Malley demonstrating that a Catholic can have an open mind on issues such as abortion and gay marriage and labor rights, but also Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York, is showing the same on these issues, and both are certainly to be considered front runners for the Presidential nomination in 2016.

Not all Catholic politicians allow their faith to dominate their politics, although Rick Santorum, particularly, and convert Newt Gingrich, both seem to feel that their religious views should be dictated to the population at large, even though we were founded as a nation on the concept of separation of church and state, which John F. Kennedy so clearly enunciated as the first Catholic President of the United States!

The Republican Party Establishment In Panic: Jeb Bush, George Will, Haley Barbour

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The Republican Party Establishment is fully aware that the party is doomed if it follows the crazy path being tread by Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul.

These candidates are absolutely a calamity big time.

Mitt Romney spends time talking about the height of the trees in Michigan; the fact that his wife has two Cadillacs; the concept that he likes firing people; jokes about being “unemployed”; suggests a tax plan that would be worse than that under George W. Bush in cutting taxes on the wealthy; and continues to say that the auto industry bailout was a bad idea even though it saved between one and two million jobs.

Rick Santorum talks about Satan taking over America; attacks public education and higher education as promoting secular humanism; advocates the end of contraception availability to women; condemns homosexuality in the most extreme language; advocates religion in government; and calls for war on Iran immediately.

Newt Gingrich says that Barack Obama is dangerous to American security; calls for immediate action on Day One to wipe out everything Barack Obama has promoted; calls for a moon colony despite no funds available for it anytime soon; brags about his own brilliance and intellect and knowledge; has no shame about his moral lapses; and enjoys stirring a “hornet’s nest” and being a “flame thrower”.

Ron Paul calls for the elimination of the Federal Reserve; the immediate withdrawal of our troops from all nations overseas; the ending of five federal government agencies; is for massive immediate cuts in the federal budget;
believes in no regulation of corporations; and is a total advocate of libertarianism.

All four are a true disaster, and we have heard the lament from Establishment figures.

Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush deplores the promotion of fear and emotion; while George Will, of ABC’s THIS WEEK and also a Washington Post columnist, states that none of the candidates have made a good case for the nomination; and former Mississippi Governor and Republican National Chairman Haley Barbour also is critical of the performance of the candidates for the Republican nomination.

Whether anything can be done to avoid electoral disaster is very hard to predict at this point, but a sense of foreboding is clearly evident in Republican circles!

Rick Santorum Critical Of Public Education And Higher Education As Promoting Indoctrination

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Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum has now criticized public education and higher education as promoting indoctrination in what he considers liberal, secular, humanistic thought and learning.

Santorum touted the advantages of home schooling, which all of his children have experienced, as the way to counteract public education and promote parental values.

He complains that higher education institutions advocate challenges to religious values, and are out to propagandize liberal, secular values and concepts.

It is clear that Santorum does not see organized religion as indoctrination, promoting obedience and acceptance without open analysis, evaluation, and interpretation. He is disturbed that many young people move away from organized religion as they get older, and blames it on the secular humanism which challenges men and women to THINK, to come to conclusions, to JUDGE, to refuse to accept dogma, whether religious, political, or any other type of learning.

Santorum would rather have people accept religion without challenge, reject a worldly view, accept authority of all kinds without question, and keep women in a subservient role, as all religions promote.

The answer is that IF someone wishes to follow what Santorum advocates, then send your children to religiously based schools and universities, or keep them engaged in home schooling below the college level. But if one chooses to isolate his or her children from contact with others of a different religion, race, or ethnicity, those children are losing a valuable opportunity to learn about the real world out there. And if they do not learn to think, to evaluate, to analyze, to interpret information and challenge established institutions, then they are not able to accept the responsibilities of adulthood in a full sense!

Above all, separation of church and state, when it comes to public schools and public colleges and universities, must be maintained, as we are not a theocracy.

Religion is appropriate in churches and synagogues, but not in public education, and religion should not be taught in public schools or forced at the college and university level, unless one chooses independently to study it as a subject of inquiry.

This does not mean that religion as part of history should not be introduced and taught, but no indoctrination or advocacy can be allowed, despite the desires and wishes of Rick Santorum!

A “Brokered” Republican Convention Possible? YES!

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With the struggle going on for the Republican Presidential nomination, a scenario of a “brokered” convention looms.

IF Mitt Romney does not win Michigan and Arizona next Tuesday, and/or loses Ohio and other states on March 6, the “Establishment” Republicans, terrified at the thought of Rick Santorum or Newt Gingrich as the party nominee, COULD work together to prevent a majority for either of them, and create a “brokered” convention.

If that were to occur, the first contested convention since 1976, when Gerald Ford defeated Ronald Reagan by fewer than 100 delegate votes (a losing campaign, by the way), then former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, or Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan COULD emerge as the nominee.

It is clear at this time that trying to predict what will happen politically this year is still very much up in the air, as foreign policy or economic crisis could transform the race not just for the GOP, but also for President Barack Obama!

Speculation About Reported Alliance Between Mitt Romney And Ron Paul: Could It Lead To Rand Paul Being Vice Presidential Running Mate Of Romney?

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Political pundits, including Joe Scarborough of MORNING JOE on MSNBC, have noticed what seems like a warm friendship between two Republican Presidential candidates, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and Texas Congressman Ron Paul.

It has become obvious that Ron Paul has spent a lot of money on attack ads in various states against Rick Perry, Newt Gingrich, and now Rick Santorum, as each has become a major challenger to Mitt Romney. He has also attacked them on debate stages, as he did last night against Rick Santorum.

This seems very weird to many observers, as Mitt Romney is not a libertarian or a believer in the withdrawal of America’s involvement overseas, which Ron Paul stands for.

And Ron Paul is too old to be considered as a running mate, but then it is recognized that his son, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, who is 49 years old, has already said he would be honored to be considered for Vice President, a very strong hint that a deal could be struck to put Rand Paul in the Vice Presidential slot as a way to unite diverse elements of the GOP for November.

In many ways, it would be a “shotgun marriage”, but not the first in American history, as for instance, the team of Franklin D. Roosevelt and John Nance Garner in 1932; the team of Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon in 1952; the team of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson in 1960; and the team of Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush in 1980, were not based on close friendship or ties between the Presidential and Vice Presidential nominees. They were done for maximum political advantage.

The problem with this possibility of Mitt Romney teaming with Rand Paul is that it puts Rand Paul and his extremist libertarian philosophy a potential heartbeat away from the Presidency, although the positive side for Romney is that it makes a Libertarian Party challenger less likely or, at least, less able to draw away votes if there is one, such as former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson. Ron Paul has a lot of supporters, who could be drawn to support Mitt Romney, if he selected Rand Paul.

So this new rumor makes one think that it could be a way to help Romney clinch the nomination and have somewhat united support, but the thought of a possible President Rand Paul would be a radical change unacceptable to mainstream and centrist political attitudes.

The Likely End Of The Republican Presidential Debates: A Relief For America!

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With last night’s 20th Republican Presidential debate, it now seems likely that we have seen the last of the debates until the three Presidential debates and one Vice Presidential debate in the fall.

The end of the debates could not be soon enough, as what they revealed made us wish for them to end mercifully for those of us who felt a commitment to sit through them, while rolling our eyes and covering our mouths in disbelief.

They revealed the incompetence, recklessness, stupidity, and lack of compassion of this motley group of Republicans, past and present, and the horror of imagining any of them becoming our President next January 20.

Sure, some were worse than others, and on that scale, Mitt Romney looks to be the “best” of the survivors, but that is a pitiful test of competence.

To have had such fools as Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, and Rick Santorum even imagining themselves as “qualified” to be President demonstrates the extent of hallucination and arrogance of these four candidates.

Looking back, it could be argued that the two best candidates had no chance at all–Jon Huntsman and Tim Pawlenty–because the GOP crowds at these events proved that they were total airheads and Neanderthals, who one had to believe was just those crowds, and not potential Republican voters nationwide. If this is indeed the norm of Republican registered voters, which with lots of prayer can be hoped is not the case, then this country is doomed to go into the Dark Ages, rather than into the Enlightenment of the future world. But then, the historical Enlightenment was a challenge to, and skeptic of, the power and influence of organized religion over government, and the thought that we are receding into the pervasive influence of religion over government which led to the struggle for separation of church and state is a terrifying sense of deja vu!

The Republican Party has abdicated its right to the Presidency and to control of Congress, until and when they start displaying responsibility, intelligence, and sanity, making them worthy of national power again.

Wanting to believe in the intelligence and humanity of the American people at large, one can only hope reason and compassion win, and that Barack Obama achieves the victory he so richly deserves for dealing competently with the biggest set of problems faced by any President since Franklin D. Roosevelt!

The Arizona Republican Presidential Debate: Rick Santorum Received “Free Pass” On Controversial Social Views

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Tonight’s GOP Presidential debate in Arizona proved once again how vapid the Republican field of candidates is, but if anything, Newt Gingrich probably did the best; Mitt Romney held his own, which should help him in the upcoming primaries over the the next twelve days; Ron Paul showed courage in speaking up against the use of force overseas, and a rush to judgment about what to do in Iran; and Rick Santorum failed to impress, but received a “free pass” on controversial social views, by not being challenged on his growing use of religious dogma and invocation of Satan. Also, his great ability to laugh and smile helped him look undisturbed, and is his greatest asset by far.

In that sense, the debate was disappointing, and it is still going to have to wait for the judgment of Republican voters in 14 states.

The sense was that the audience in Mesa, Arizona favored Mitt Romney, so while all of the GOP choices are lacking, it could be a sign that Romney will recover from what looked like a possible disaster in the next two weeks.

Only time will tell, and it keeps a sane voter on tenterhooks as to who the Republican Party will offer as the alternative to Barack Obama.

Rick Santorum On Display Tonight At GOP Arizona Presidential Debate: What The Nation Will Likely Witness!

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Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum will be focused on at tonight’s Republican Presidential debate in Arizona, as it is his opportunity to implode, if he conducts himself in a reckless manner.

One can expect that Rick, who has been acting as if his id is separating from his ego and superego, will likely come across as nuts, whacky, extremist, weird, a religious zealot, and more!

The problem is that there is a substantial percentage of the American people who share his passions for theocracy and moral absolutism, and will look at Rick as a “nice, pleasant, handsome” guy who they can relate to, without realizing that to put Rick Santorum in the White House, or anywhere near it, would be a total disaster for the country and the world, as Rick has no limits to his self righteousness and absolute belief in himself. Even his wife promotes that with her public “worship” of her husband, a manifestation never seen in public life before now.

We would be bringing back the time of the Puritans of the colonial period, and a view of the world that if one is not Christian, one is the enemy. This man is extremely dangerous, and the idea that anyone could take him seriously, when what is needed is for him to have a psychiatric exam as to his level of sanity, is totally unnerving!

There is plenty to dislike about Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul, but any and all of them are safer for America than a President Rick Santorum! Whatever the GOP has to do, and the establishment types in the party know this, Rick Santorum cannot be allowed to be the Republican nominee for President!

And if by some craziness, Santorum is the nominee, every decent, sane individual must be convinced that he or she cannot sit home, as the dangers to the nation are too great to sit on the sidelines! Barack Obama must gain the support of all who have any sense of the long term future and protection of America!