-
BBC World Survey Ranks Israel Near Bottom in Global Popularity
May 24, 2013 | 14 comments
-
Muslim, Er, Youth Riots in Sweden
May 24, 2013 | 10 comments
-
Good Luck Quin
May 24, 2013 | 6 comments
-
One of The London Soldier Beheading Suspects British Born
May 23, 2013 | 9 comments
-
The Religion of Peace Strikes London Again
May 22, 2013 | 7 comments
The Spectacle Blog
O.K., I’m not ready to go to bed just yet. As I write this, with 98% of the vote, Santorum is leading Romney by five votes.
Although I find myself in agreement with Santorum in foreign policy, as I listen to his speech I feel like I am connecting with him for the first time. It’s the first time I’ve heard Santorum talk at length about his grandfather. His grandfather was a coal miner and so was mine. His grandfather mined the fields of southwestern Pennsylvania and mine was underground in southwestern Alberta. I don’t always agree with Santorum, the way he presents himself and am sure I will find myself at odds with him between now and November. But there’s now some real common ground, literally and figuratively.
I was struck by his comment on the values of working people, Santorum said, “These are the people who Barack Obama says cling to their guns and their Bibles. Thank God they do.”
If Republicans choose wisely, President Obama is in for one hell of a fight. As Santorum put it, “Game on.”
View all comments (19) | Leave a comment
More Blog Posts by Aaron Goldstein
http://spectator.org/blog/2012/01/04/santorums-grandfather
Follow us:
ADVERTISEMENT
Current Issue
- Downton’s Class System — and Ours
- Wincing at Cumberbatch
- The Great Train Robbery
SPONSORED LINKS
FLASHBACK TO: 1995
-
Pope Culture
A man of faith in a godless age is hitting Americans where it hurts.
-
Why the GOP Does Not, Like, Totally Suck
Mr. and Mrs. American Spectator Reader, let P.J. O’Rourke talk sense to your kids.
-
Dames at Sea
-
In the Absence of Guns
In Britain, defending your property can get you life.
-
The Metaphysical Martini
-
Counting the Costs of Clintonism
The debacle of this president’s administration is both a cause and a symptom of the decline of American values. Unless Congress impeaches him, that decline will go on unchecked. An eminent jurist surveys the damage and assesses the chances for the recovery of our culture.
-
Chuck McHagel
It won’t take long for conservatives to scratch this presidential wannabe off their 2008 scorecard.
-
The Legacy of Old John and Mother Fresh-Roasted
-
It’s the Best Time of the Year
The American Christmas, like the songs that celebrate it, makes room for everybody under the rainbow. Is that why so many people seem to be hostile to it?
-
The Bush Crack-Up
Was the President done in by the economy, or by the politics of the economy?
Clip of the Day
H/T to National Review Online
ADVERTISEMENT
apnep| 1.4.12 @ 1:21AM
I like Santorum. I used to listen to him guest host for Bill Bennett on Fridays and liked very much what he had to say. I'm glad he's gaining momentum. For a while he was sounding like a whiney brat in the debates because he wasn't getting anyone attention which was a real turn off. Hope he keeps moving forward.
Bob Grant| 1.4.12 @ 1:25AM
This was the first complete speech I watched Santorum give and it was impressive. Prior to the speech my impression of him was someone who was wooden, not comfortable in his skin, and somewhat whiny but tonight his story about his grandfather and connecting it with the plight of today's steel belt worker was moving...and politically savvy. He also made it clear he was the alternative conservative choice and is willing to fight him, and obama.
This could get interesting.
Clint| 1.4.12 @ 1:26AM
We're The Pennsylvania Gun & Bible Clutchin' Conservatives, Who Helped Throw Little Ricky's Ass Out Of The Senate, After He Stepped In The Last Weeks And Propped Up The RINO-CINO Poster Boy,Arlen Specter Against Our Republican Primary Guy, Pat Toomey.
Now, Little Ricky And Specter Have Been Chased Away And Our Tea Party Senator, Pat Toomey Is In.
If Little Ricky Comes Back To Pennsylvania,We'll Throw His Big Government Israel Firster Ass Out Again,
Make Our Day Little Ricky.
Bob Grant| 1.4.12 @ 1:27AM
Shove it socialist!
W| 1.4.12 @ 7:23AM
It was a billiant move to defeat Santorum so that Bob Casey, who votes 100% with Obama, would win. Without Casey Obama would not have had 60 votes for his Obamacare.
Bob Grant| 1.4.12 @ 9:58AM
And that's why clit is a socialist. He goes out of his way to ensure socialist senators are elected in Pennsylvania and socialist presidents re elected in the U.S.
smartalek| 1.4.12 @ 6:33PM
Can't we all just get along?
Clint| 1.4.12 @ 1:31AM
Why Don't You Try To Make Me, RINO-CINO Flunkie Stooge Cupcake, Grant.
Hmmmmm Toughie Girl ?
The Tea Party Rebellion Steps On The RINO-CINO Toughie Girl, Roberta.
Coal miner's grandaughter| 1.4.12 @ 3:54AM
My grandfather was a PA coal miner also; that does NOT qualify me to be president. Rick and his wife have a habit of USING family members to get votes, which is why his wife goes around with a sticker on her blouse showing her handicapped daughter. Pathetic.
Apnep, your first impression of Rick is the correct impression. He is a whiny brat who makes careless remarks about bombing other countries.
Maybe he doesn't care if he starts WW III since it will be OTHER people's offspring doing the fighting and the dying.
Santorum can pretend to be conservative till he's blue in the face, but his support of the pro-abortionist Arlen Specter says it all.
The Republicans of PA will not forget.
Heck, even his own nephew is not supporting him.
http://politicalticker.blogs.c.....-rep-paul/
W| 1.4.12 @ 7:27AM
Have you forgotten, or did you ever know, that;
1. Specter's questioning of Anita Hill showed her as a liar and led to the confirmation of Justice Clarence Thomas, who is pro life, and conservative.
2. With Specter on the Judiciary comittee, Bush was able to appoint and confirm Roberts and Alito, two pro life conservatives,
3. Specter's analysis of Hillarycare with the famous chart led to the defeat of Hillarycare.
While Specter did not always vote conservative, would you prefer Bob Casey to Arlen Specter?
Al Adab| 1.4.12 @ 10:51AM
So the battle of Pennsylvania goes on. There is an interesting line at the end of this Goldstein comment, "If republicans choose wisely"... when was the last time they did that?
W| 1.4.12 @ 11:23AM
Al Adab,
At the risk of sounding like a suishy pragmatist our choices have been between center right Republicans (Eisenhower, Nixon, Bush 1 and 2, Ford, McCain, Dole) and right-right Republicans (Taft, Steve Forbes,Goldwater,Reagan, and now Santorum).
Even Reagan, as governor of California signed bills for tax increases and abortion and had to compromise with the Dem legislature. The problem is that there are not enough voters to elect a pure conservative-libertarian such as Goldwater. Reagan was good for the economy with the tax cuts, but he was unable to eliminate any cabinets such as Education or Energy, or any significant agencies.
We can't focus on just Romney or Santorum. We need to elect conservative/Republican senators and congressmen who will support Romney or Santorum to cut spending, cut taxes, drill for oil, and reduce the deficit.
I don't see Gingrich winning or governing effecively. As Speaker he could not get along with even his conservative House members .
P.S. I answered your question about the income tax yesterday:
"Al Adab,
The income tax was unconstitutional for a number of reasons which is why the Dems, under Woodrow Wilson, amended the Constitution to provide for a progressive income tax. I believe Lincoln tried the income tax during the Civil War and it was struck down.
The is no moral basis for it except the voters now can elect representatives who will pass laws to take money from higher income earners and give the money to them. Since there are more low income earners than high income earners the Dems can always play the class warfare card."
Nick| 1.4.12 @ 10:33AM
My grandfather and two of my great-grandfathers were PA coal miners. So there!
Go away, Romney-bot, or whatever you are.
Go, Rick, Go!
Clint| 1.4.12 @ 4:42AM
Big Government Ricky Santorum's Record On Voting For Earmarks, Even The Bridge To Nowhere, His Support For The Lobbyist "K-Street Project" , His Tariff Votes, Medicare Prescription Drugs, No Child Left Behind,Etc. Is Gonna Sink Him With Tea Party Patriots.
Social Conservatives Won't Be Able To Carry Santorum ,The Big Government Statist.
The Tea Party Rebellion Heads To The East Coast.
albert constantine jr.| 1.4.12 @ 8:21AM
With all the coal miner ancestor talk going around, it bears mentioning that VPOTUS Biden used to tell folks about his coal miner grandfather during his 1988 presidential bid. As it turned out, though, his grandfather was actually a mining engineer, and it was Neil Kinnock's grandfather who was the coal miner.
apnep| 1.4.12 @ 9:27AM
Coal Miners Daughter, not my first impression of him. I'll take the whiney brat over One Big Ass Mistake America, any day of the week. It's really disturbing to me how people focus so intently on finding every little flaw of the GOP candidates and yet Body Odor continues to slide by doing all his damage and STILL nobody know where he came from or has a complete work history or can talk to people who supposedly knew him. Why can't people focus on what's important? The issues? All the ridiculous comments are too much. Anyone would be better than Body Odor and THAT's a fact.
Coal miner's grandaughter| 1.5.12 @ 5:03PM
I agree, anyone is better than Obama. But Santorum is NOT a conservative, and he is NOT a defender of the second amendment:
http://www.nationalgunrights.o.....n-history/
Skip| 1.4.12 @ 10:58AM
Silly Clint just showed his hand with the "statist" whine.
Another Branch Paulinian is heard from.
I'm guessing he has a defense for Pauls earmarks, though. "Its what Congress is supposed to do!" Irony!
Gadfly| 1.4.12 @ 12:04PM
So Romney is a moderate because he pushed a democrat state right (to the middle), but Santorum is a conservative despite opposing “this whole idea of personal autonomy,” not to mention “the idea that people should be left alone." The man may be a social conservative, but he's hardly a tea partier.