By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
An enthusiastic crowd of over 180 supporters filled the Pelham Civic Center Complex Thursday to see former Senator from Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum, as his campaign traveled the length of Alabama with tour stops in Huntsville and Mobile in addition to Pelham. ‘The Alabama Political Reporter’ caught up with the Presidential Candidate in Pelham.
Senator Rick Santorum told the crowd, that he was the candidate for them, “If you are looking for a conservative candidate that can go up against Barack Obama in the fall.” Santorum said that he was the Republican candidate best equipped to go “out and make the case against Barack Obama.” “The most important issue in this race is liberty. The president is systematically taking away your liberty. The federal government is going to limit what loans you can get.” Sen. Santorum said that the government wanted ‘to dictate to people of faith’ what kind of services their health insurance provide and that the government was taking over their health care. It is about control. “Its not just about telling you what kind of light bulbs you have to use.” “Liberty is the biggest issue in this race.” “Unlike President Obama, I believe in you.”
Sen. Santorum was harshly critical of President Barack H. Obama saying that he was “A president who is on the verge of extinguishing the fundamental liberties we have in the nation.” Sen. Santorum blasted President Obama’s “apology tours around the world.”
Presidential Candidate Santorum said the Republican Party needed to nominate, “A person who can paint a positive vision.” “A President who has an understanding of the threat that we face from radical Islam.“ Sen. Santorum said that the Republican Party needed the candidate, who can go out and deliver a positive message about energy.” Santorum said,” I do not own any oil leases but my grandfather was a coal miner.”
“Liberty is at the core of this election. A quintessential threat to liberty is Obamacare.” “The singular issue that will define this race is Obamacare. I am the one candidate who can go directly at Obama on this issue.” Sen. Santorum said that he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1992 when Pres. Bill Clinton was elected promising “healthcare for everybody. I was a freshman member of the House in 1992. A lot of Republicans then were just cheap democrats. They wanted to do the same things the Democrats wanted to they just didn’t want to pay for it.” “Me and John Kasich (R from Ohio) met with a lot of different people” and proposed medical savings accounts. “I introduced the first bill on health savings accounts 20 years ago.” “Instead of the government or the insurance company managing your healthcare we put you in charge.” Sen. Santorum supports a system where citizens buy high deductible insurance policies and put the rest of the money into interest bearing Health Savings Accounts they manage themselves. “Once the economy is growing again we will have interest again.”
Sen. Santorum said that he then ran against an incumbent Democratic Party Senator. That Senator’s campaign manager was James Carville. “I faced the very best they had.” The Democratic incumbent was the author of Hillary-care (Pres. Bill Clinton’s healthcare reform bill that failed to pass). “I talked about free market health care and won.”
Presidential Candidate Santorum said, “The other people in this race don’t have clean records.” He said that Speaker Gingrich supported federally mandated insurance for 20 years. “Romney just supported state mandate insurance on the people.” “You are either for bottom up or you are for top down.” “Obama said he used Romney-care as his model. In 2009 Romney advocated requiring people being made to buy health insurance. Romney now denies he did that.” Romney says that everybody in Massachusetts likes his healthcare plan. Santorum said that we took exit polls and the majority of conservatives in Massachusetts do not like it.
Sen. Santorum said, “Why would a strong conservative, why would this area of the country elect somebody who gives away the strongest issue in this election?” “People oppose government mandated insurance.” “Why would the Republican party nominate somebody who gives away the issue of government mandated health insurance?”
Republican Candidate Santorum said that he understands “How the standard of living is tied directly to the cost and availability of energy.” He said that he “Will increase jobs and opportunities in the deep ocean, on federal lands, and by building the Keystone Pipeline.”
Sen. Santorum said that one of his opponents had proposed 59 changes to the tax code, now it was 70 changes. Santorum said that he would get rid of the tax code. He would have just two tax brackets on personal income: 10% and 28%. There would be just five deductions: education, charitable giving, housing, healthcare, and children. “35% is the highest corporate tax rate in the world.” Sen. Santorum said that he would half that to 17.5%.
Sen. Santorum said that one sector of our economy that needed extra help was manufacturing. To increase manufacturing jobs in this country and because manufacturing has unfair competition from China and other nations he would have a corporate tax rate on manufacturers and processors of just 0%. Sen. Santorum said “We have also got to do something about the regulatory environment.” President Obama has passed 2 and half times as many high cost regulations as any other president. His new clean air regulations alone resulted in six coal fired power plants being shuttered and 500 people being out of work. “I will repeal every one of those high cost regulations on my first day as President.”
Sen. Santorum said that businessmen and entrepreneurs were “suffering under a yoke of high taxation and the fear of what this President will do them to next. The reason the economy is struggling is because Americans don’t like losing their liberty being taken away and they don’t like being yoked by their government.” Britain raised tax rates last year on the very rich and revenues did not go up they found out that “rich people don’t have to work if they don’t want to” and they can take the money they do have and put it offshore. Now the British Government is running to make up for their budget shortfall.
Sen. Santorum said that the demands of a Presidential campaign are difficult. He is missing time with his Children including his daughter Bella who is afflicted with Trisomy 18 (a rare genetic condition where she has a third copy of her 18th Chromosome). His family is living off of their savings, but he believes that, “Our country is at a tipping point and needs someone out there with a record and a message that clearly contrasts with this President.” “Liberty is at the core.” “This election is about a choice in the direction we have for this country.” “I am not moderate.” “Moderates don’t win. Every time we nominated a moderate over the last 40 years we lost. Now you know why the media is for him (Romney). They don’t want him to win. They want Barack Obama to win.”
Sen. Santorum said, “The torch of liberty is flickering and fading.” If Barack Obama is reelected, “Government will control your very lives and health.” Sen. Santorum said that the American people should not “trade in that torch of liberty for an iv. line of public support.
Candidate for President Santorum said, “If you elect me here in Alabama a conservative will be nominated and if a conservative is nominated we will win the general election.”
Before Senator Santorum spoke, his daughter, Elizabeth Santorum addressed the audience: “It is great to be here in Alabama.” “Its been an incredible journey.” “The food and the people here are great.” “I am just here to share a little bit of my Dad’s heart.” “This is something I have seen all my life.” “It is honesty trust conviction and courage shown all this life not just through words but through actions.”
“I believe with all my heart and soul that he will be the best President we ever had.”
Shelby County Republican Party Chairman Freddy Ard and Pelham Mayor Don Murphy welcomed Sen. Santorum and all of us to Shelby County. Republican National Committee woman Bettye Fine Collins was in attendance as was Republican National Committee man Paul Reynolds, Shelby County Sheriff Chris Curry, Alabama Supreme Court Justice Glenn Murdock, Alabama State Senator Paul Bussman, former Alabama State Senator Hank Irwin, Candidate for Congress for the 6th District Al Mickle, Candidate for Congress for the 7th District Don Chamberlain, and Indian Springs Mayor Steve Zerkis.
Santorum is currently second in delegate count to former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney; but Romney has won more delegates than Sen. Santorum, Speaker Gingrich, and Rep. Paul combined.
Rick Santorum will be in Alabama again on Monday in the City of Birmingham at the historic Alabama Theater for the Alabama Republican Party Presidential forum. Newt Gingrich has also confirmed that he will be at that event. The other two candidates have been invited as well.
The Alabama Republican Primary is on Tuesday March 13th
For more information about the Santorum Campaign go to his campaign web site:
