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Trashing Santorum for being himself is just foolish. The same is true of trashing Newt for being himself. They are what they are. At least they aren’t being phoney.

Ron Paul isn't being phony either, but most of us here have no problem calling him a loon. What's your point?

Because someone is being genuine doesn't mean we have to like or support them. There are plenty of people on the far left who aren't phony either, should we cut them a break too?

A lot of us do not want a general election nominee who believes it is his job as president to talk about why contraception is "not okay". And yes, Santorum did say that as part of his argument for why he should be President:

"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. Many in the Christian faith have said, 'Well, that’s okay. Contraception’s okay.' It’s not okay"

Sorry, but no. I don't want a nominee for President who believes this would be part of his/her job. I have no problem with contraception. I don't even know anyone who has a problem with contraception. It's a fringe position. Opposing government mandating contraception coverage is something virtually ALL conservatives agree on. Opposing contraception in general is something that most conservatives don't agree on - and as an issue it would be a spectacular loser in a general election.

Santorum would lose by an even greater margin than Romney. It would be one thing if Santorum were well known as some great conservative warrior on reforming entitlements, or spent his career fighting union thuggery in his home state, or battling to reduce/end the deficit/debt, etc. But he is not known for those things, he's known only as a social values guy, he is playing up those issues in the GOP primaries and he would never escape them in a general election. Again, if the focus of his social agenda were simply opposition to abortion and opposition to gay marriage we could all agree - but Santorum takes things to a whole new level as a guy who wants to re-fight contraception wars that have long been settled and go to battle against internet porn.

I support Newt, but am politically savvy enough to see that he probably can't win. I don't want him to drop out because there is simply nowhere else for my vote to go. I don't like the Romney the chameleon because he simply isn't a conservative at all, I think Ron Paul is a kook (on foreign and defense policy particularly), and I think Rick Santorum has only narrow appeal to those who are voting for who they think the most religiously acceptable candidate within the confines of a GOP primary is. None of them have broad based appeal, and all would lose - with Paul and Santorum losing in landslide fashion. At least with Newt we have a chance and I hope he sticks it out to the end and I'll pray for a miracle.

“Sorry, but no. I don’t want a nominee for President who believes this would be part of his/her job.”

Many times it has been said the POTUS should act as a bully pulpit. Santorum has his issues. Pornography and birth control apparently are some. Additonally, I trully think you exagerate Santorum’s fixation on this.

“I have no problem with contraception. I don’t even know anyone who has a problem with contraception. It’s a fringe position. Opposing government mandating contraception coverage is something virtually ALL conservatives agree on. Opposing contraception in general is something that most conservatives don’t agree on - and as an issue it would be a spectacular loser in a general election.”

Well then let me introduce myself to you. I go by the name of Sola Veritas on FR. I am an active Southern Baptist and I DO have problems with birth control - and know MANY others that feel the same way. I do not think unmarried women should have access to birth control pills. The unmarried should not be engaging in sexual intercourse. The arguement that “they are going to do it anyway” is surrender to me, and I don’t buy it. Plus, I’ve seen too many unmarried women that get pregnant that had full access to pills and all forms of contraception and they still got pregnant (ask Sarah Palin’s daughter). I’ve known too many young men that refuse to use condums because it messed with their enjoyment. Our culture is too pleasure oriented that this needs to be discouraged.

Even for married persons, I do not think that birth control pills are a wise means to prevent pregnancy - they mess with a woman’s natural hormonal cycle and there are risks involved. Ethically, progesterone based pills are just an abortion drug in that they keep a fertilized egg from inplanting in the uteris - they are a RU486. Estrogen based pills are not abortion drugs....they work by suspressing ovulation by tricking the woman’s body into sensing it is pregnant. So, my objections to this are not moral but concern for potential side effects. Taking estrogen based pills for years to suppress ovulation does not strike me as inherently wise. Plus, I “suspect” it causes many women to have trouble becoming pregnant later on when they chose. A married couple using a little self control and science can effectively avoid pregancy while still having a satisfying sex life. Also, when they are ready to have children, it is so much easier.

Now I DO NOT hold to a viewpoint that sex, in marriage, is just about procreation. I think it is something God chose to bond a married couple closer together. Sex is good, but only in the context of monagamist hetereosexual marraige.

IF you think my position is “fringe” then you run in extremely narrow circles, or don’t associate with serious evangelical Christians.

“and I think Rick Santorum has only narrow appeal to those who are voting for who they think the most religiously acceptable candidate within the confines of a GOP primary is.”

Then you aren’t paying attention to the news, because (much to my surprise as well), Santorum is doing much better than Newt. There must be a whole lot of those people looking for the “religiously acceptable candidate”....and they vote. I’m socially conservative, and I frankly am quite surprised at how well Rick Santorum is doing. Winning AL and MS was very telling to me.

Like I said, I still primarily support Newt because I think he is the most balanced. However, I would be almost as pleased with a Santorum win. Also, I think Newt should be working with Santorum to beat Romney.

However, go ahead a be a fool and so polarize the Newt vs Rick groups to the point that IF one can beat Romney....the other is so bloodied they are ruined.