Santorum: I'm conservative candidate for Alabama

Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum speaks during the Alabama Policy Institute 2012 Presidential Candidate Forum, March 8, 2012, in Mobile, Alabama. / AP Photo/Eric Gay

(AP) PELHAM, Ala. - Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum appealed Thursday for votes in Alabama's upcoming primary, calling the state the "heart of conservatism" and casting himself as the best fit for its voters.

During appearances in the Birmingham suburb of Pelham and earlier in Huntsville, the former Pennsylvania senator said he was the true conservative presidential candidate who would present the best contrast to Democratic President Barack Obama in November. His campaign hoped wins here and Mississippi, as well as Saturday's contest in Kansas, would push rival Newt Gingrich from the race and leave Santorum as the leading alternative to front-runner Mitt Romney.

The former Massachusetts governor is too moderate and too much like Obama, having enacted a state health care package that became the model for Obama's national overhaul, Santorum said. Rival Newt Gingrich also has backed health insurance mandates, he said.

"Why would this area of the country put forward a candidate that gives away the most important issue in this election?" Santorum said in a crowded banquet room at a civic building. With his arms spread wide, he added: "There's one option not to give it away."

"We believe in you!" a woman called from the back of the room earlier.

"Unlike President Obama, I believe in you," Santorum said to loud applause.

Santorum was waging a campaign on two fronts: to emerge over Gingrich as conservatives' preferred alternative to Romney, and to derail Romney's march toward the GOP presidential nomination. He told reporters before a late speech in Mobile that strong showings in Alabama and in Mississippi were key to that plan.

"If we can finish first or second in Mississippi and Alabama on Tuesday, that will be a big win for us and hopefully get this race down to two candidates," he said.

"Then we can, again, make the case that there's one conservative who can win in every other place in this country, that has earned the right to take on Gov. Romney, one-on-one, and give conservatives a chance to coalesce around one person to able to win this nomination for the conservative cause."

Santorum and Gingrich were both campaigning hard to win Southern states that will vote in the coming days.

Gingrich has just two wins to his credit: South Carolina and his home state of Georgia. His spokesman said that Gingrich must win the next Southern contests to justify a continued campaign.

In Huntsville, Santorum drew big ovations from hundreds gathered at a state-owned museum with calls for increased federal spending on defense and space programs and less spending on social welfare programs.

Standing under a Saturn V rocket hanging from the roof of the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, he recalled watching the moon landing as a child. He also praised Huntsville's importance to the Apollo missions and NASA in general.

"As an American, I want to say thank you, Huntsville," Santorum said. "Thank you for the work you've done."

Forty-seven Republican convention delegates are at stake in Alabama's Republican primary on Tuesday. Romney visits Alabama on Friday. Gingrich visited earlier in the week, including a stop at the space museum.

Decatur resident Robert Couey, who attended both space center events, said Thursday that he doesn't support Romney and contended that Romney isn't conservative enough. Couey said he likes Santorum, adding that he thinks Gingrich has been inconsistent on issues.

"He speaks with conviction," Couey said of Santorum. "Gingrich is intelligent. He has the background but look at ... all the things he's said."

Huntsville resident Gay Nyberg said she is down to deciding between Santorum and Gingrich. Romney, she said, isn't for her.

"I think the other guy is not a true conservative," she said, "and I don't know that I can trust him to represent me."

[NewtsArmy931]

Here you go, check out this clip with a better angle!

JFK Mitt or Jimmy Carter Rick, really?

http://youtu.be/D3EJwdpEgP0

[2happy2ride]

How does being "conservative" give you the experience and acumen to get our country out of this nose dive? IT DOESN'T!
EXPERIENCE COUNTS, and Santorum & Gingrich are career politician with ZERO business experience. Santorum talks about growing up in a steel town, yea so what. With all his whining & complaining, it would seem he still hasn't grown up.
Romney is our best chance for recovery.

[nancy_naive]

He bankrupted 37 companies.... that's the experience you want?

[Rafterman11]

I love how all the conservatives fight each other over who's "the most conservative". LOL. They could check every box in the "conservative" column, but if they show even one liberal or even moderate view, they point at each other like the pod aliens in "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", screeching "LIIBBBERRAL!!!!"

I hate to break it to you 'cons, but while this may play to the far right wing base, all the moderates and independents (the ones that decide national elections) aren't going to care how purely conservative you are. While the GOP candidate will be showing moderates how conservative they are, Obama will win because he will show some moderate and even slightly conservative views on some topics.

[Rafterman11]

Romney will, but not Santorum. I could live with Romney or Obama, but I would stab myself in the head if Santorum wins.

[RobAla]

Where is the CBS article on this:
ABC News: Devin Dwyer: 03/08/12
After making a point of standing up for women during the Rush Limbaugh controversy, President Obama is taking flak from one corner for not speaking out against "vile misogynist" and liberal Obama supporter Bill Maher.

Maher, a comedian who specializes in politics, is also a $1 million contributor to Priorities USA Action, a super PAC that supports Obama's reelection.

Penny Nance, president of the conservative group Concerned Women for America, said in a letter to White House chief of staff Jack Lew that Obama "needs to publicly disassociate himself from Priorities USA" until it returns Maher's money.

"President Obama cannot put forth the eloquent position he announced on Tuesday, while sending administration officials out to raise money for an organization that not only counts a vile misogynist as its largest single donor, but whose executives actively boast about that vile misogynist's support," Nance wrote in her letter to Lew.

Last month, in an about face, Obama approved support for Priorities USA Action, a super PAC backing his campaign, allowing senior White House officials to appear at Priorities fundraisers.

The move also drew a $1 million contribution to the group from Maher, though he is not the group's largest donor as Nance mistakenly noted. (Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg gave the group $2 million last year.)

Nance says Obama and his re-election campaign are advancing a double standard by singling out Limbaugh for criticism over liberal perpetrators of sexist speak. Limbaugh has been taken to task and later apologized for calling Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke a "****" for advocating for free coverage of birth control in employer health plans, which Obama favors.

[Rafterman11]

What Frune said. Also, Maher made his comments months ago and it was in the news, as was his donation, and he took heavy criticism for what he said.

By the way, when lib Ed Shulz made similar comments about Laura Ingra-whatsherface, he got suspended for a week without pay by MSNBC. Where's Rush's suspension?

But you are suffering from conservative filter disease *

* conservative filter disease: the ability of conservatives to only notice things negative concerning conservatives and positive concerning liberals in the media or in discussion, creating a false sense of bias. Positive conservative news/discussion or negative liberal news/discussion is ignored and filtered out from the conservative brain, further enhancing the conservative sense of perpetual victimhood.

[TJphoto]

If you are a religious fruitcake and would like to have your values impose upon the American people via the legislative process, then Rick is your guy.

[RobAla]

I find it interesting that on most of these posts, that supporters of President Obama fail to list reasons regarding WHY they support him; they fail to list his accomplishments over the past 3 years.

Most of the liberals supporting President Obama say that they support him because he is not President Bush. This is 2012 - not 2008 - President Bush is not running. Supporters of President Obama make smirk comments about Republicans, but they don't list the facts concerning President Obama. Anyone can make goofy comments - and free speech allows it. Supporters of President Obama can only really add credibility to their support by listing the accomplishments of President Obama over the past three years.

The problem with supporting President Obama is that his failures and horrible policies put in place far outweigh any accomplishment.

[Rafterman11]

Killed bin Laden

Strong foreign policy accomplishments: Turned Libya with no US losses, brought NK envoy to the US for first time, Iran now wants to talk, killed more al queda than Bush

Saved US auto industry

Reformed credit card abuse

Just a few off the top of my head.

Here's more:

http://obamaachievements.org/list

[nancy_naive]

Santorum: I'm the MORON candidate not the Mormon candidate.

[fitstshu]

Just glad that I left the country,and can now drop in every once in a while, so I can listen to the blithering idiots on here. When I turn you off, it is like taking a bath IT FEELS SO GOOD you people have no life

[Rafterman11]

Then why are you here? Apparently, you have no life either.

[nancy_naive]

Bubba, two years hence, and I'm head to expatriate ville myself.

[ricky_paradox]

Face it folks, the republicans dont have a single qualified candidate. If we are honest and look at what Obama has done,lowered the deficit by 400 billion from where it was when he got here,cut spending by 1 trillion bucks,created over 2 million jobs, saved the economy from total collapse,got Osama,pass a health care bill(which is a good thing no matter what the health ins companies have told the clueless)..I smell landslide. And what is the ISSUE the GOP is talking about...'BIRTHCONTROL' ROFLMAO...

[jdaryyl]

I like Obama because his version of the NDAA makes me feel safer at home now because I can be detained by our military indefinatly without trial. Thats security! PLUSS!!! Now his administration wants to bypass the congress using international institutions to obligate our military to die around the world!! What more could we want! WE DON NEED NO STINKIN SOVEREIGHNTY!! Yay, who we gonna friendly drone bomb regime change today? Thank god that Bush started this nazi-like behaivior with the patriot act (repeal 4th amendment act).

[twmat311]

Ever notice how the neocon talking-points ranters never have access to "spell-check"?

[smittyc]

I wish Limbaugh and Maher would run on the same ticket, I would vote for them. They could be co presidents and co vice presidents at the same time. Maher could be put in charge of the red states and Limbaugh in charge of the blue states. Such a scenario would be a boon to the media and the entertainment industry. It would kind of be like my bumper stickers on my car. They read, Vote Obama, Vote Romney Vote Gingrich, Vote Santorium Vote Ron Paul