Current Position:Attorney and former US Senator and US Congressman
Age:53
Background:A son of first-generation immigrants, Santorm was born in Virginia but graduated high school in Illinois and then moved to Pennsylvania. He was only 32 when first elected to the US House of Representatives and gave up his law practice to serve in Congress. He is deeply religious and doggedly conservative.
Family:Married to Karen; seven children (and two who died from birth defects)
Education:Pennsylvania State University, B.A.
University of Pennsylvania, MBA
Dickinson School of Law, J.D.
Religion:Roman Catholic.
Abortion:Santorum is staunchly pro-life and sponsored dozens of pro-life bills in Congress. He advocates for a “culture of life.”
Budget/Spending:Santorum sees the nation’s entitlement programs as a cancer to the long-term fiscal health of the nation and sees their reform as necessary. His first two bills sponsored in the House were the Balanced Budget Amendment and the Line Item Veto.
Economy/Jobs:Santorum believes that putting America’s fiscal house in order will lead to a better economy and the creation of more jobs. He states that bailouts and stimulus programs actually do more to harm the creation of jobs than vice-a-versa.
Energy:Santorum says that our sagging economy is held back by a lack of domestic energy production. He is also an advocate for alternative energy for the future.
Foreign Policy:Santorum sees the presidency’s greatest responsibility as protecting America’s freedoms and that we shouldn’t apologize for that. He believes we need to confront our enemies.
Guns:Santorum has a good history of supporting the 2nd Amendment and limiting attempts to chip away at that right.
Health Care:Santorum touts repealing Obamacare.
Immigration:Santorum advocates for enforcing currently existing laws and opposes amnesty for undocumented immigrants. He supports the construction of a barrier along the US-Mexican border.
Social Security:Santorum supports the privatization of Social Security for younger generations. He has stated that the “abortion culture” has limited the number of payers into the system effectively causing some of its demise.
Taxes:Santorum has been named a “Friend of the Taxpayer” by the National Taxpayers Union. He spearheaded the passage of the President Bush’s tax cuts in 2001 and 2003 because he believes that reducing the tax burden on businesses and individuals is key to spurring economic growth.
