Rick
Santorum is on a mission from God. He believes
that, with all his heart. I do, too: I think that
God has a plan for Rick Santorum, and that God
wants him to save the United States of America.
That plan, though, doesn't include being
president, not, at least in 2012.
In his
most recent fund-raising pitch (which - full
disclosure - I receive as a Santorum contributor),
the Republican presidential candidate appears in a
video, telling a story about his first campaign
for congress, when he defeated a seemingly
unsinkable incumbent.
Knocking on doors in
Pittsburgh, Santorum encountered an invalid
shut-in, and chose to sit down the old man and
chat a while, rather than hustle off to the next
house. The old man had a big family and mobilized
them all for the young Santorum. An act of
kindness, Santorum explained, gave him an
electoral advantage
by the grace of God. The
old man was dying, and refused to go to hospital
before Election Day, mindful of his promise to
vote for Santorum. He did so and died a few days
later.
I buy into every word of Santo
rum's's story. A lot of things happen that don't
seem accidental. As the 18th century founder of
Hasidism, the Baal Shem Tov said, when you go on a
journey, you only think you're going to do
whatever you set out to do, whereas in fact, God
has sent you on that journey, to do something that
only you can do. You'll find out what that is when
you get there. I have no trouble believing that
Santo rum's's courtesy to a sick old man was part
of God's plan to put Rick Santorum right at the
fulcrum of American politics.
It's within
Santo rum's's power to be the savior of his
country. All he needs to do is issue something
like the following statement some time during the
next two weeks:
"I am suspending my campaign and
endorsing Mitt Romney for president, and I will
devote all my energy between now and November to
ensure that he wins the general election. To all
the people who devoted time they did not have,
and gave me money they could not afford, and
offered me the ultimate trust, I say this: We
have triumphed, more grandly than we had a right
to hope only a few months ago. Together, we have
demonstrated that the voice of faith cannot be
stilled in American political life. Whether
people of faith form an electoral majority or
not, is not the point: Together, we have
demonstrated that we form the backbone of this
nation under God, and that the founding
principles of the United States America and the
faith that holds together our families are of
the same fabric.
"By supporting me in
this great challenge to the Republican Party's
establishment, you have shown that faith can
beat the odds and confound conventional wisdom,
and you have forced traditional values back onto
the political agenda in a new and powerful way.
You have given me the honor to speak for what is
best in America and to bear the sacred flame of
American values.
"Now I ask you to
redouble your efforts and your passion and help
elect Mitt Romney. I've been tough on Mitt, and
rightly so: that's what political campaigns are
for. I'm not asking you to settle for half a
loaf. I'm asking you to acknowledge that we've
won. Mitt Romney is a man of faith and family,
as well as man of knowledge and skill. I've had
questions about his commitment to conservative
values, and the way to get those question
answered is to call him out before the voters.
"And we have seen that Mitt Romney is
listening to our wing of the party. He's moved
to the right, not the center. He's committed
himself to Reagan-style across-the-board tax
cuts. And he's committed to keeping America the
strongest power in the world.
"The
future of our country depends on reversing our
economic and military decline during the next
presidential administration. We can't stand
another four years of economic depression and
obeisance to every miscreant on the world scene
from Vladimir Putin to the Muslim Brotherhood.
The economic disaster that Barack Obama has
brought upon us is destroying tens of millions
of American lives and ruining tens of millions
of families. Mitt Romney has shown that he's
with us on the critical issues. We have won the
battle inside the Republican Party, and now it's
time to win the battle before the nation.
"I want to say one more thing. I know
that many Christians have questions about Mitt's
Mormon faith. We know him by his works. Here is
a man who is married to his college sweetheart,
surrounded by five sons who love him, who
achieved great worldly success and then devoted
himself to good works. What a victory it will be
for people of faith and family to have a man
like Mitt in the White House! I ask you to let
his good deeds and virtues speak for themselves,
to set aside your doubts, and rally behind him
with the same spirit you brought to my campaign.
"I haven't discussed this statement with
Governor Romney. I ask nothing of him but the
opportunity to help him win the presidency next
November and lead this country back to
greatness."
If Santorum were to issue
this statement on Monday, Romney would be 10
points ahead of Obama in the polls on Tuesday.
By one of those coincides, Santorum was
one of the first people to learn the identity of
the anonymous essayist "Spengler". My friends
Michael and Barbara Ledeen were among the handful
to whom I had confided the secret. In January
2009. I was about to join the masthead of First
Things magazine, and prior to the announcement I
traveled to Washington for get-acquainted meetings
with board members.
Walking into the
Ethics and Public Policy Center, I ran into
Barbara. She said, "There's someone you have to
meet!" and ushered me into a conference room.
There sat former senator Santorum. Barbara said,
"Senator, this is Spengler!" Santorum started for
a moment and said, "God bless you!"
God
bless you, too, Rick Santorum. I believe, as you
do, that God has a plan for you, but it is not
just a plan for you personally, but a part of his
plan for the United States of America. He has
elevated you to a position of great influence from
which you can determine the outcome of great
events. You have rallied Americans of
faith-including many from the observant Jewish
community-and galvanized voters around the core
values of this country. That is an inestimable
contribution, and you have had the inestimable
privilege to make it.
But now you stand at
the crossroad. You are not going to be president
in 2012, but you can make the president in 2012.
You can be a beacon for generosity and
disinterested patriotism, and in a moment become
one of America's senior statesmen. You are young
enough to be president eight years from now. But
if Obama is re-elected through your inaction, what
will be left over which to preside the next time
around?
Spengler is channeled by
David P Goldman. Comment on this article in
Spengler's Expat Bar forum.
(Copyright 2012 Asia Times Online
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