Did you happen to see the interview? He definitely was not using a teleprompter and in retrospect, should have. All of the statistics may be correct about women in combat. However, his response was silly, amateurish and showed his lack of experience. To assert that women can not make good judgement because of emotions is inflammatory and this will haunt him.. There are far more valid reasons why a woman should not be in combat, yet Ricky chose the hormone aspect of women. I am an extremely conservative woman and do not believe women should be on the frontline but he made my ears hurt.
You may want to read this: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2844712/posts?page=136#136
Key point: “As a former member of the Senate Armed Services Committee whose father was a career Veterans Administration psychologist, Santorum is better qualified than most people other than military veterans to make his statement. His father spent his entire career dealing with the consequences when servicemembers break down ... I know lots of kick-butt female soldiers and respect their service. I strongly believe most women would not want to do what they do, and would not be very good at doing it. Those positions are not incompatible in the least. Let's let women who want to fight do so, while respecting the fact that it takes personalities and skills to be a soldier which most women do not have and do not want to have.”
Bottom line: Santorum’s comments are defensible to conservatives but they sound bad even in our circles, and may be indefensible to moderates and liberals who don't understand the military.
Repackaging them and reminding people of his father's career and his own service on the Senate Armed Services Committee may help.
That's funny. I didn't read it the same way you did at all.
To me, he was asserting that men will behave differently on the battle lines in the presence of women. He talked about the "camaraderie of men" causing them to do "things that may not be in the interest of the mission."
I read it as an assertion that men on the battlefield will be more concerned with the welfare of the women in their unit than they are in completing the mission.
I saw the interview, and I did not hear him criticize women’s emotions. He was talking about men’s emotional inclination to protect women and how that could compromise the mission. This is an argument I have heard for many years, and one that I completely agree with based upon my 23 years of service in a sexually integrated Army.
Having said all that, I am no fan of Saint Rick the Sanctimonius. Sadly I am also no big fan of any of the other three either. I will, however, enthusiastically support the eventual nominee against Obama(even if it is Romney).