Santorum....really?

I have been a little baffled the past few days.  I cannot believe that conservatives are uniting behind Rick Santorum, the Senator from Pennsylvania who lost his 2006 re-election bid in his own state.

According to the Taxpayers for Common Sense, Santorum helped secure $1 billion dollars in earmark funds for his state of Pennsylvania during his time as a legislator.  Yet despite this estimated $1 billion dollars in government funds, his constituents opted to elect a democrat to fill his Senate seat.  He lost the election with the largest margin of defeat for a Republican seat in Pennsylvania history.

Photo from Abcnews.com

Earmarks are one of the most corrupt and unethical spending habits of our legislators.  Yet according to Rick Santorum, he continues to defend his efforts to get money for his state by telling CNN that it is important for members of Congress to "fight to get your fair share."

I have never been a fan of earmarks and even though they provide great benefits for states, the process is corrupt and leaves those seeking the funds completely unaccountable for their actions.  Rick Santorum was a huge proponent of earmarks.  That says a lot about the type of president he will be.  Will he refuse to sign a bill loaded with earmarks?  If so, how can he justify that stance?

Santorum's tenure in Washington DC demonstrated to me that he figured out how to milk the system rather than trying to reform it.  He became corrupted by the system that is drowning our government in debt.  He was part of that corruption.  He added $1 billion to our debt by acquiring unnoticed funds for his state.

How can we choose a leader to go to Washington to clean up the fiscal mess that he helped create?

***

America needs a reformer and someone who is not going to Washington to make friends or earn money.

The New York Times ran an interesting article this morning about how Santorum benefited financially from the relationships he established during his time in Washington.  Click here to read: NYT Times article.

For conservatives to rally behind the most recent "Anyone-But-Mitt" candidate Rick Santorum without demanding that he defend his very "nonconservative" earmark habits is very hypocritical.  Is it a true conservative they want or just an Anti-Romney candidate?

Can this Anti-Romney candidate win the primary election?  You bet.  But can this candidate beat Obama?  No way.

That said, I have no doubt that Rick Santorum is a quality person and great American with strong conservative principals, but it is going to take an incredibly vibrant and successful candidate to stop Obama's re-election efforts.  I am just not so sure that Santorum can successfully stand up to Obama. Furthermore, I am NOT convinced that he is fiscally conservative.

Mitt however, has years of success behind him.  It is important to remember that Mitt's entire career has been dedicated to making weak things stronger.

Now more than ever, America needs Mitt.