Ann Coulter, I Am More of a Catholic than a Conservative, Just Like Rick Santorum

Catholic Online ^ | 1/9/12 | Keith A. Fournier

[tcg]

Ann Coulter's criticism of Rick Santorum for being "more of a Catholic than a Conservative" makes me want to do even more to help people come to understand his positions. ...Coulter's comments help explain why Catholics like me consider ourselves to be 'reluctant Republicans." She was derisive of Rick Santorum's concern for the poor. She mocked his insistence upon the connection between moral, social and economic issues. She was condescending and dismissive of his integrated campaign message.

...Santorum understands that freedom is a good of the human person. Further that he sees that the market economy, as promising as it is, requires the continual expansion of opportunities for participation. Many of us who are inspired by him are from blue collar backgrounds. Our ancestors did not come over on the Mayflower. We care about the poor and cringe when any candidate seems to lack concern for them.

However, we also now know that big government does a horrible job of providing care for them and that collectivism - be it of the right or the left - is anything but the solution. We want a candidate who speaks of opening up economic participation in the American dream to as many as possible. One who recognizes that the market was made for man, not man for the market.

...Recently I heard Rick Santorum defend his proposal to increase the child tax credit in order to help parents, promote the family and grow our economy. He accurately explained the fact that a demographic winter is leading many Nations in Europe to do all they can to increase the birth of children.

He then persuasively argued that America needs to encourage strong families because strong families build a strong Nation. He is correct. ...

[Lauren BaRecall]

Rick Santorum actually worked to decrease Welfare, that is a good thing. I wish however we could get rid of this idea that poor people are entitled to the rewards of other peoples labor whether it be a little or a lot, that is either slavery or indentured servitude.

Actually, he agrees with you that it's slavery. I've been watching a lot of online videos and I see and hear what comes out of his mouth, as well as the context.

[Apollo5600]

So far as I know, every candidate expresses the exact same thing. The dullness is that he lacks charisma, and has no real ideas that aren’t being offered by every other candidate, and even pulls short compared to the others.

The rhetoric and the surface level stuff might impress you, but it’ll be the death of the party if we keep putting up with people who sound the way we want them to sound but can’t produce significant results that will pull us out of this death spiral we’ve been in.

[Apollo5600]

To summarize, his image and his conservative talking points is all he has, and even that is delivered in a way that is utterly dull. His platform and his record aren’t exciting or bold in any kind of way. Cain was bold, even Newt and Perry’s flat taxes are bold (though not as bold as Cain’s), as well as many of their other ideas; Santorum’s is the same stuff we always hear, every time we have a Republican nomination process.

[madmaximus]

FUAC!