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PHOENIX, AZ -- Rick Santorum told a crowd of Arizona Republicans today that he was "an outsider when he was inside" Washington, arguing he fought corruption and wasteful spending during his 16 years in Congress.
In his first campaign stop in Arizona, the former Pennsylvania senator pushed back against the onslaught of attacks he is now facing with his rise as a frontrunner in the Republican presidential contest. Rival Ron Paul released a television ad in Michigan today attacking Santorum's spending record and Mitt Romney's campaign blasted out another round of opposition research calling Santorum a career politician.
But here at a Lincoln Day Luncheon, Santorum said that despite his time serving both in the House and Senate, he was never part of the Washington establishment.
"When we came to Congress, we came and we shook things up to its very core," Santorum said about himself and former Rep. Frank Riggs, who now serves as the campaign's Arizona state chairman.
Without using Romney's name, Santorum said the former Massachusetts governor can portray himself as a Washington outsider due to his 1994 Senate bid.
"I think it’s really fascinating that here’s the guy who was outside of Washington, who was not a Senator or Congressman—not because he didn’t try—he just never got elected,” Santorum said.
"You see all these commercials, Rick Santorum is a big spender, but they never once mention, talk about how I voted for any increase in the appropriation bills. Why? Because I never did," said Santorum. "I voted to cut appropriation bills. They never talk about how I voted for a tax increase. Why? Because I never did in 16 years of public life … I voted for smaller government, lower taxes, less regulation -- the things that we need desperately in this country."
Showing a renewed interest in Santorum, the Romney campaign was quick to counter. Ryan Williams, a spokesman from Romney, emailed out a statement: “Republican primary voters have a clear choice. Mitt Romney spent his career helping turn around companies, the Olympics, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. At the same time, Congressman/Senator Rick Santorum spent his career in Washington, voting repeatedly to increase the debt ceiling and his own pay."
Santorum, latest Republican candidate to surge in the polls, is finding renewed scrutiny not only from his rival candidates, but also the national media. Recent comments questioning President Obama's theology and suggesting the president discriminates against disabled people have put under the microscope.
"Will you be the generation that sat on the sidelines and watched as candidate after candidate comes up and the national media takes their axe out to try to destroy them in every way possible as they’ve done with every single republican candidate," Santorum said.
Initially, Santorum advisers did not view Arizona as a state where they could have much impact, but recent polls show him closer than expected to Romney ahead of the state's Feb. 28 primary.
Santorum will hold a rally in Phoenix tonight before heading to Tuscan for an event ahead of Wednesday night's debate.
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This is what BOTH howdy-doody "flip-fop" romney and forked-tongue insane santorum are to their core: t-GOPers, back-stabbing each other, relentlessly.
And, no amount of paid GOP-shill deception is going to ever erase the memory of the actions of the biggest mouth of the t-baggers in the prior debt-ceiling debate, namely, zionist, ERIC CANTOR.
Remember now, it was eric cantor who openly backstabbed his own boss, john boehner, when there was pending agreement on President Obama's "Grand Deal", which did include tax increases for the uber wealthiest on the Planet. That grand deal was a $4-trillion dollar deficit reduction deal..., which did include tax increases for the upper 1% by elimination of corporate loopholes.
It was a deal sanctioned by Standard anf Poor.
But, you see, the t-gopers have two motivations in everything that they try to do -- trying to blame President Obama for the bush-neocon-gop era of COMLETE FISCAL CHAOS, and to block all tax increases for their masters -- the wall-street neocons, especially (eric cantor, coincidentally enough, is jewish).
Now, if you don't understand that, then you need to stop talking gibberish, and stop thinking and stop voting with your ears, brain, and eyes open wide shut.
A vote for ANY t-goper is EXACTY LIKE voting for health insurance companies, voting for big wall-street banks, and voting for corporate hospitals, and voting for big pharmaceuticals, and a vote for big-oil and big-oil speculators, and a vote for the owners of the Militray Industrial Complex of weapons manufacturers (owned by ULTRA-GREEDY, warmongering, elitists - gopers).
So, if you're going to shoot your own two feet off and your future away by voting for ANY t-gopers, at least know what the hell you are doing to yourself and your famliy!!!
A vote for any GOP candidate for any level of public office is the equivalent of voting to elect a wall-street thief!!
well said, if you are not worth a million dollars and vote for the GOP you are a fool.
And when it comes to the White House, Santorum will remain an outsider!
Well, K Street, (where Santorum spent most of his time) is not located in the congress. He's hardly going to have dinner with a lobbyist in the capital building, is he? So technically speaking he was "outside" of congress.
And how did Santorum make his money after being booted out of Congress by his own constituents? By working for lobbyists. What a hypocrite.
And how did Santorum make his money after being booted out of Congress by his own constituents? By working for lobbyists. What a hypocrite.
Yes K street, and the pharmaceutical Co's who after you were booted, lamented that they had lost a valuable voice and vote. Keep talking Ricky, that nose is about 3 feet long now isn't it? LOL
And I'm an 85 lb. ballerina trapped in a big old pepperoni pizza eating beer swilling man's body!!!
Right, Mr. Santorum. And pigs fly all the time.
What a knee slapper of a remark! Would he care to explain all the earmarks?
But in view of his announcment this afternoon that a Super PAC associated with him is returning a large foreign donation, it might be true that i ndeed hewas contolled by outsiders-those outside America. Perhapsfor once, inadvertenly hespoke the truth.
Ricky is standing their in his $1,000.00 suit telling everyone that he's really just in jeans and a t-shirt.
I wish he'd be an outsider in the presidential race. What a loser!
Little Ricky, got an idea for you. Let mitt strap you to the top of his car, and go for a long drive, Then you can poo all over his back car window, and get a free shower from Mitt. Think mitt would stop and do that for you. One can hope right? Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
He wears a mini skirt under his suit. The sweater hides his man boobs
Now there is a way to make friends and influence the media. Criticize them and they won't be as likely to be your friend. That applies not only to Rick but all politicians.
He is a outsider living in Pa.can't he move to Texas with Uncle Rick and Uncle George
What's next for Ricky? Perhaps we're down to his claiming he was bullied, sexually assaulted by a page, persecuted because of his religious views, jilted by Barney Frank or that he was never actually a senator at all, but rather a apostle sent to Washington to remove the money changers from the temple.
This campaign should be an embarrassment to any American with a valid high school diploma (read: elitist) who has the slightest concept of intelligence, leadership and/or (good) character. Any of these GOP loons would take it up the Santorum if it meant victory.
Ricky you were more than just an outsider in congress...you were the village idiot.
There is a village somewhere that is being deprived of its rightful idiot. Ricky, phone home!
Santorum's record certainly does not match his claims.
Santorum was thrown out of office for because of being recognized for the right-wing establishment nut job he is.
If the GOP wishes to give away the election in November all they need do is give the nomination to Santorum.
Ricky, Ricky, Ricky.
What about that photo of you standing smack in the middle of a group of white males, laying their hands on you as you 'prayed' for Ms. Schiavo?
You call that 'outsider?'
I call that hypocritical.
What will you not say to get the nomination?
They're all outsiders. That is, they vote outside the interests of the body politic, and instead seek to increase their own power and wealth, in bed with corporations.
The entire upper level of American government hasn't done right by the people in years.
That's what they all say! What a f*****g joke.
16 years as an outsider? I suspect that his claim is "manure" but if it isn't, maybe that's why he lost his re-election bid by the largest margin in the history of the Senate, 18%.
"WAS"? Let me tell you santorum you're still an outsider but more than that you're a delusional whacko and will NEVER be president of anything let alone America.
"I was an outsider while in Congress"...
This is code for: "They thought I was an azzwad back then as well"!
Sure, Rick. And the guy who got paroled last month from Corcoran State Prison was really an outsider during his 16 years there, more like a guest than a prisoner.
Santorum may be an "outsider" to the 21st Century, but joining up with K Street is hardly being an "outsider" in Congress "fighting corruption". When can this guy stop lying?
Santorum dreams of the day he will be ordained president. 800 years after the final Crusade and 500 years after the reformation he wants to launch an inquisition and burn President Obama at the stake. For over four years he has been claiming that protestants have departed from biblical Christianity. That is papal bull. Today he announced that he is in a spiritual war with Satan and human behavior.
His crusade against women's health care services implies that women cannot handle reproduction and do not have a moral perspective. He would have women treated as farm animals. Santorum's sanctimonious subjugation of women to less than equal status under the law demonstrates that he is unqualified to serve in any public office.
The Baltimore Catechism is not a road map of government, the Constitution is. Santorum missed his calling in Belfast Ireland a few decades ago, while he was busy making serial conceptions at home.
We;; everybody's definitley correct about mr santorum. And it's soooooo easy to push back againist this man that he would get dusted by Obama 65%-35% an election.