Could Santorum win a culture war

By Conn Carroll | Senior Editorial Writer

Washington Examiner political columnist Tim Carney has a column out today making the case that "Rick Santorum might be the best man to battle the president in November" if the general election turns away from economic issues and towards cultural ones. Carney reasons:

Santorum lacks many of the traits of effective politicians. He doesn't have Obama's or Reagan's soaring rhetoric. He doesn't have Clinton's or Bush's gregariousness. But anyone who's followed Santorum on the campaign trail has witnessed his ability to entrance a room with his impassioned discourses on the sanctity of life. When Santorum speaks from the heart on matters of conviction, people listen.

Santorum's cultural conservatism is a turnoff to many voters, but that is probably exaggerated as a political weakness. Santorum and Obama officially agree on gay marriage (both oppose it), and Obama, who hasn't retracted his pledge to sign the absolutist Freedom of Choice Act, can hardly claim the middle ground on abortion.

And if the culture war was going to be fought entirely on the grounds of abortion, I think Tim might be right. But its not. First of all, Tim mentions gay marriage, and I think Obama could switch sides on that issue at any time. Even if he doesn't, the liberal media all believe in their hearts that Obama agrees with them anyway, so they will mercilessly attack Santorum on the issue while giving Obama a free pass. It may not be fair, but there is a reason its not family-safe to Google Rick Santorum's name. Santorum already is a huge punchline to vast numbers of American voters, especially young voters.

And then there is Santorum's stated intention to preach to Americans about the evils of contraception. Here is what he said just this past October:

One of the things I will talk about that no president has talked about before is I think the dangers of contraception in this country, the whole sexual libertine idea. … Again, I know most presidents don't talk about those things, and maybe people don't want us to talk about those things, but I think it's important that you are who you are.

There is clearly a strong case to be made on a wide front of issues that traditional family values produce the happiest, most productive societies. But merely droning on and on about contraception and sexual promiscuity is who Santorum is. He can't help not doing it. Nobody wants to be lectured to on this topic, especially by a politician, even one with no apparent sexual skeletons. An Obama-Santorum culture war election would be a catastrophe for the conservative movement.

Campaign 2012
Michigan: Mitt Romney's campaign and the Super PAC supporting his race, have already booked nearly $2 million in radio and television ads in Michigan. Rick Santorum's campaign has reserved only $42,443.

Romney: Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder will endorse Mitt Romney at a campaign event in Farmington Hills, today.

Santorum: Rick Santorum released four years worth of tax returns yesterday, showing he paid an effective 28 percent rate on the $930,227 that he and his wife earned last year.

Gingrich: A new CNN poll shows that 63 percent of Americans view Gingrich unfavorably while a new CBS/New York Times poll shows only 16 percent of Americans feel positively about him, prompting The Washington Post to call him, "the most unpopular person in American politics right now."

Obama: President Obama kicked off a three day/seven fundraiser tour expected to reap more than $3 million yesterday. Actor George Clooney was among the 80 guests who joined the president for a $35,800-a-plate dinner at a Hollywood mansion last night.

Around the Bigs
The Washington Examiner, OMB director undercuts legal case for Obamacare: Testifying before the House Budget Committee yesterday, President Obama's acting budget director Jeffrey Zients admitted Obamacare's individual mandate was not a tax, directly undercutting one of the administration's key legal defenses of the law.

The Hill, Payroll tax deal would take first real bite from Obama's health law: A tentative deal struck late Tuesday between House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., would cut federal healthcare spending by $21.1 billion.

The Wall Street Journal, Oil Rise Imperils Budding Recovery: Rising oil prices, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline has jumped 13.1 cents to $3.518 in the past month, are emerging as a threat to U.S. economic recovery.

Fox News, Auto dealers warn fuel efficiency proposal will price out millions of buyers: American auto dealers say new Obama fuel economy regulations will price out millions of buyers from the new-car market, potentially jeopardizing the environmental benefits of the program and the resurgent auto industry itself.

Los Angeles Times, House Republicans push new oil drilling to fund road projects: A bill that would allow new oil drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts and open Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to energy exploration is headed for a vote in the Republican-controlled House today.

Righty Plabook
MEP Nigel Farage tells the European Parliament "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" when it comes to economic uprisings in Greece.

AEI's James Pethokoukis explains how Obama's new budget does raise taxes on the rich.

At The Corner, former FEC commissioner Bradley Smith explains how liberals apathy at Obama's decision to use a Super PAC illustrates the false premise behind campaign finance reform.

Lefty Playbook
Daily Kos' Markos Moulitsas announces "Operation Hilarity," an effort to get liberals to vote for Rick Santorum to prolong his campaign against Mitt Romney.

Talking Points Memo posts a chart based on latest CBS survey of registered voters (not the more accurate "likely voters") showing how severely independent voters have fled Mitt Romney over the last two months.

The New Republic's Jonathan Cohn's hopes Democrats use the contraception mandate debate to reframe the debate over Obamacare.