Daily Santorum: More RW love
Rev up the high dudgeon -- another liberal media source is attacking Rick Santorum.
Talking Points Memo yesterday had a story about Santorum equating "Latino" voters with "illegal" ones at the Tampa debate Monday, which got picked up by the mighty HuffPost.
But it appears it was a fairly innocent flub, the NY Observer says:
After criticism from the peanut gallery, TPM appended an editor’s note: “Some viewers contend that Santorum said ‘the legal’ and not ‘illegal’”–but didn’t change the headline on the post, which was retweeted more than 100 times and appreciated on Facebook almost 600 times.
One TPM reader, an NYU linguistics Ph.D candidate, mapped the sound waves of Mr. Santorum saying “illegal” earlier in the debate versus the disputed quote in the clip, and calls it a “slam dunk” for the more charitable interpretation. Mr. Santorum’s pronunciation of “illegal” is shorter than the quote in question, the student, Simon Charlow, wrote in an email to The Observer.
Speaking of the evil left, Philadelphia Weekly has some problems with the web ad Santorum posted last week. As in, "it is meant to induce suicide."
On the other hand, Santorum keeps getting love post-debate from some of the conservative establishment.
Kathryn Lopez of the National Review:
Making the case for himself in the presidential race, Santorum said: "I've gotten things done, I've been willing to make the compromises necessary, but never compromises on principle."
When people talk about wanting Washington to work, I think this is what they mean. They want people there who know who they are, and are willing to work with leaders of different points of view to move the bar. That's not what President Obama did when he forced through his radical and unwieldy health-care plan. It is what Rick Santorum and others did when Santorum worked with Ted Kennedy and then-president Clinton to pass welfare reform (since rolled back by President Obama).
There is, of course, a certain liberation that comes from dismal poll numbers that lead people to underestimate your campaign. But this is who Santorum is. Anyone who, like Matthews, has watched him over the years knows that.
And it's attractive. Even to an MSNBC host who frequently disagrees with him. Even in a climate where 54 percent polled want every member of Congress voted out of office.
Jennifer Rubin at the WashPost, in a post worrying over the GOP candidates' weak foreign policy stances:
Perhaps Santorum should get another look. In response to my request for comment (Santorum was not asked to weigh in on this point during the debate), I got this e-mail: “As I said on Greta Van Susteren’s show last night, I listened to both men answer and I couldn’t believe that neither mentioned the word victory. To stand for anything less is a disservice to our troops, their families, and our nation. Let me be clear, I hate war — and every day I pray for our troops safe and speedy return. In fact, I believe our troops should come home as soon as the job is done. But the problem is, Barack Obama has never outlined a mission for victory. We cannot leave the region when there is still a good chance the Taliban can take control. To leave leadership in the hands of a radical terrorist group, known for its horrific treatment of women and for carrying out unprovoked terrorist attacks on this country — with promises for more — is something I am unwilling to do. The number one job of our president is to defend America, and for Governor Perry to skirt this complicated issue for an applause line shows a fundamental misunderstanding of the region and a level of inexperience only topped by our current president. ” Well, yeah.
Schedule:In Bluffton, Hardeeville and Hilton Head, S.C.