COMMENTARY | Rick Santorum's backers are calling for Newt Gingrich to exit the race and Mitt Romney's camp has suggested his delegates lead is nearly mathematically insurmountable. Santorum, who told NBC's "Meet The Press" that Gingrich could "stay in as long as he wants," has been reluctant to push for his friend from Georgia to leave the race. As well he should. Santorum should hope Gingrich remains for a while because Gingrich is running interference for him.
Santorum has been elevated to co-front-runner status largely due to a couple of factors. One, he isn't Romney, which has been a problem for the Romney campaign, having to weather the ups and downs of the other Republican contenders as they play pretender to the nomination throne. Two, he isn't Gingrich, a character who not only sends the conservative moral compass spinning because of his personal life but who is also a known Washington power player with good-ol'-boy congressional ties and extensive lobbying connections.
These factors are Santorum's current strength. Who he is not is cloaking him from conservative votersactually paying attention to who he is. And Gingrich -- perhaps unintentionally -- is helping him do that.
Santorum comes off like some Bible-pounding preacher railing against big government and the moral decay of America, which is all well and good when propped up beside Gingrich's record. But Santorum's political record isn't much better. Like Gingrich, Santorum fought ethics charges while in Congress. Those allegations would see him lose his Pennsylvania senatorial seat in 2006. He subsequently went to work as a consultant for a major Washington lobbying group.
Hear that rick you are being told you are like newt.
No comments:
Post a Comment