Bib; I have a question, and I'm not being facetious.
Haven't you been surprised everytime Santorum won an election in that state? I never quite believed that Pennsylvania was that conservative - it was like he cast a spell on them.
That being said, he performed better in this campaign than almost every other Republican I can think of. Him and Steele.
Another question: if they both ran, who is the more appealing Presidential candidate now? Santorum or Allen?
??? Santorum got crushed...
As far as who I would vote for in a primary... I'm gonna go with Rick.
My opinion of why Santorum lost as a PA voter? Combination of factors. 1. He completely pissed off the hard-core conservatives by backing Specter in 2004. If Specter had won the primary over Toomey by 20 points, nobody would have held a grudge, but Toomey lost by 2 damn points, and many of us are still bitter.
2. He says a lot of wacky religious things, which irritate us non-religious types. My brother is a hard-core conservative as it comes, but he voted for Casey! When asked why, he said, "Santorum is kind of a wacko..."
3. Many see him as a faux conservative. He's the number 3 man in the Senate, so if the Senate is a wishy-washy bunch which is not advancing the conservative agenda, he's gotta bear some responsibility. I called his office after HR 2611 passed and the Mexicans were taking to the streets. I wanted to know his stance on HR 2611. The woman said, "The Senator has no position at this time, however, you are free to tell me your position...." Boom, a month later he's against immigration. If he thought he could have gotten away with it, he would have been on the Bush-open borders team, but couldn't with the election coming up. He might as well have, then he could have lost 62-38, instead of 59-41.
That being said, I voted for him, even made some phone calls on his behalf. He is a far better Senator than Bob Casey will be.
Allen looked like an idiot.
Santorum ran a hard campaign in a state that never "should" have elected him (not to mention his congressional seat). Santorum did everything he could. But the state is just too blue now.
I hope he doesn't disappear, but I have a hard time seeing him run for President. I'd be delighted, though, if he did....stranger things have happened.
That's an easy one -- Santorum. At least, he lost in a blue state in a Democratic year. Plus, conservatives respect him.
Allen ran a lousy race and lost a winnable seat.