Posted on 03/29/2005 6:40:35 AM PST by Conservative Goddess
Some very smart people believe that U.S. Senator Rick Santorum is poised to become ex- Senator Santorum, a casualty of his scheduled re-election contest next year with State Treasurer Bob Casey.
....
In fact, a close look at the record suggests that his confrontational style and conservative rhetoric conceals more than it reveals. Too much attention has been spent on Santorum the cultural ideologue and not enough on his pragmatism and political opportunism; inside this raging bull of a conservative is a pragmatist for whom getting re-elected always trumps ideology, which may not make him any different than other politicians.
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The independent and much respected National Journal’s rating system cited here is probably the most highly regarded measure of its kind. What its analysis reveals is that Pennsylvania’s junior senator consistently shifts toward the center in those years just before his reelection. Santorum may continue to talk like a conservative, but he’s voting like a pragmatist. Last year, for example, according to the Journal, Santorum was actually narrowly left of the Republican center, with his votes placing him closer to Arlen Specter than to his more conservative colleagues.
Last year was not the only year he moved left. He did the same in the run up to his 2000 re-election. The year before the election, he supported a decidedly un-conservative sales tax hike in 11 western Pennsylvania counties to build new sport stadiums in Pittsburgh, campaigned for pro choice Christy Todd Whitman, and supported increasing the minimum wage. In 2000, he supported federal funding for several Pennsylvania projects, including money for aquatic habitat. He also fought to save the health care benefits of 560, 000 Pennsylvanians who participated in the Medicare+Choice program. Most revealing of all, he backed off his commitment for the 1997-balanced budget act.
Similarly, this election cycle, Santorum is showing renewed interest in transportation and other Pennsylvania pork barrel appropriations. Indeed, he has now become a key player in bringing the bacon back home. He has also held high profile press conferences with John Kerry promoting a measure that would accommodate workers’ religious practices and with Hillary Clinton for money to study the effects of TV viewing, Internet and other media on children. And he is now rethinking his position in favor of capital punishment.
Santorum even now supports Clinton’s Americorps program that he once ridiculed as a colossal waste of taxpayer’s money for kids to sit around campfires singing kum ba yah.
His conservative talk and moderate walk were on display recently in key congressional budget votes. Initially, the “conservative” Santorum voted against a variety of Senate initiatives to restore budget cuts by the House--from Medicaid to Homeland Security grants, to education, and even Amtrak funding. But then on cue, the “moderate” Santorum, voted with the majority, 51 to 49, on final passage to restore the cuts to education, Medicaid, and the other domestic programs he had previously not supported.
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But this focus on Santorum’s high profile rhetoric has been myopic, causing his adversaries to miss much that is important. In particular, insufficient attention has been paid to Santorum’s unflagging work at his party’s grass roots; how he’s established comprehensive constituency services; how he’s worked tirelessly for Republicans--ask Arlen Specter about this--and how he has joined Specter in the Pennsylvania pork brigade. And far too little notice has been given to how he has blended his conservative zealotry with political pragmatism.
Maybe Democrats will learn the lesson taught here. Maybe they will learn not to underestimate Santorum. Maybe they will learn to watch what he does more closely than what he says. Maybe they will learn to take him less seriously as an ideologue and more seriously as a politician. And maybe they will finally defeat him next year. Maybe!
How would you suggest rewarding "conservatism when convenient?"
You aren't the only one that has noticed - also noted all the Bush bashing going on (he's terrible, he stinks, would rather vote for a Dem, he's a loser President, I'm switching parties, yadda yadda)One minute you're the greatest thing since sliced bread then your lower than cow dung!! Go figure!!
Oh yeah! Hold him accountable and elect Bob Casey! Unbelievable.
Miss guided anger is the leads to a poor future. Miss guided anger is short term thinking.
Exactly! Said like a Texan! This has been amazing to watch to say the least!
You simply just gave your support to casey, the one of two who has a shot at winning the Senate seat in PA in 2006.
Earth to conservative goddess, the political world ain't perfect.
Do me a favor, when you reach your destination called the perfect world, could you send me a postcard. I beleive I will be waiting a long long time.
That's the typical myopic view. Look longer term. If he isn't held accountable, we will continue to get more of the same, or worse. We might have to stomach Casey--which I would hate--but the next Republican would toe the line, which is what we want.
Talk is cheap, as Santorum has abundantly shown. What remedy would you suggest for this duplicitous politician? Shall we reward him with re-election? If so, why?
How is it misguided to remove a politician who says X, but then does Y? How would you discipline this individual?
Not if we can beat Santorum in the primary with a viable, conservative candidate.
Only to you would a 96% ACU rating be not "toeing the line".
Beam me up Scotty.
Amen! They're either 'Rats or myopic and self righteous losers! Santorum has a 96% ACU rating and they act as if he's worse than Arlen Spector. They must be infiltrators. I know the GOP has been called the stupid party...but not THAT stupid!
If we continue to reward this behavior, we'll see more of it. Rick Santorum does not represent the conservatives of PA. The choice in the general election will be between socialism and socialism lite. That is no choice at all. If we don't draw a line in the sand, refuse to cross it, we'll inevitably continue to slouch toward full socialism. We must not allow it! We must hold those politicians whose words and actions are incongruent, accountable.
"Conservatives like this erode the party from within,..."
No, it's people with unrealistic expectations and very little understanding how things get done who are always ready to turn on a good person and stab them in the back who will erode the party from within.
It doesn't make any sense to let him lose, but I knew that this decision was going to hurt him.
I wonder if the White House will go to bat for him with the same vigor they did for Specter. I would hope so...they owe him that much, at least.
You are an absolute, complete, incontrovertable, nutcase.
Dane, you got beamed up long ago.
No, I agree with you, the solution here is to do everything we can to ensure that Casey is elected and Santorum goes down. But why stop there? I betcha everyone of those so called "Conservatives" has voted in a manner not consistent with their beliefs. Lets get them out as well. If we work really hard enough, we can get the Senate, hell even the house, into the Dems hands. That will teach those faux Conservatives a lesson.
Hell, I bet the first thing the new Dem congress would do is impeach that faux Conservative Bush (No Child Left Behind, faaa, Perscription Drug Bill, faaa). Sure, the cause would be screwed, sure the Dems would institute the fairness standard in three seconds flat, sure the Dems would appoint more screwy Judges, sure they would shut this site down faster than you could count to three, but we are after REVENGE here and nothing else matters!!!! Even if we have to shoot oursevles to do it, damn the torpedos man.
Lets recite our new credo:
"better a liberal democrat than a faux conservative
rah rah rah
shoot ourselves in the foot,
hah hah hah,
political suicide
ideological suicide
yuuuuuuheeeeeeeeeeh."
Yeah a 96% ACU rating is "socilaism lite". JMO, you are obvioulsy a troll, especially when you stated yesterday that Specter picks judicial nominees, when he doesn't the President does.
BTW, how are things going at the casey/rendell HQ basement?
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