He just guaranteed himself fifth place in New Hampshire.
"Rivals race to block Romney sweep; Ex-governor expected focus in pair of debates as Santorum draws crowds in 1st post-Iowa events" January 07, 2012|By Matt Viser and Bobby Caina Calvan, Globe Staff
TILTON, N.H. - Tonight’s debate will be the first since an impressive surge in the polls for Rick Santorum.
Voters who packed his events yesterday heard him spell out his strong conservative views on social and economic issues. At an event in Keene, for example, Santorum called for immediate cuts to Social Security benefits, even for current beneficiaries. The federal deficit is so immense, Santorum said, that everyone must sacrifice.
Except Wall Street and the wars.
In addition to raising the eligibility age for Social Security, Santorum calls for tighter restrictions on benefits for the wealthy.
His position is more aggressive than those of other GOP candidates, who either refrain from talking about Social Security cuts or call for trims for future recipients.
Santorum also faced a number of questions on his positions on social issues.
“I’m sure you are sick of this question,’’ said one voter in Dublin, who then asked Santorum to explain again his position on gay marriage.
I am.
Santorum, becoming more impassioned each time the question was posed, said it was harmful to families because it could mean that children grow up without both a mother and a father.
“You’re robbing children of something they need, they deserve, they have a right to,’’ Santorum said. “They have a right to know and be loved by their dad and their mom. And that’s what marriage is about. It’s not about two people loving each other. There’s lots of people who love each other that we don’t give a privilege to and call it marriage.’’
You are doing the same thing when schools enslave them with debt or governments send them to war over lies.
During the hourlong visit to a school in Dublin, Santorum was asked about gay marriage three times and abortion once.
His conservative stances in a state that tends to be more moderate on social issues are likely to also be a topic in the debates. With Romney so far in the lead, the other candidates are jockeying for second place and the right to promote themselves as the alternative to Romney, said Dante Scala, associate professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire.
Santorum, Scala said, will be seeking to convince voters that he is electable. He and Romney will be positioned at the center of the candidates in tonight’s debate.
“I would imagine that he would be on center stage in ways he hasn’t been in previous debates,’’ said Scala.
“Santorum was the guy standing on the side, saying, ‘Look at me, look at me,’ ’’ Scala said, referring to previous debates. “Now people are looking, and there’s going to be some pressure that goes along with that.’’
I didn't see it or him.
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