Rick Santorum: Turn Away from 'Snobbish Elite'

All eyes were on Shelby Township on Friday as the Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum addressed a full house at Palazzo Grande just after 11 a.m.

Santorum was the keynote speaker at the Michigan Faith and Freedom Coalition’s “Road to Victory Rally '12” forum.

Santorum told the crowd of about 1,500 people that even though he’s not from Michigan, his blue-collar ties run deep. He said his grandfather came to Detroit to work in the auto industry before he was laid off and returned to Pennsylvania to work in the mines.

The former Pennsylvania senator and competitor Mitt Romney have been touring Michigan the past few days in hopes winning over voters before the Feb. 28 primary election.

“Your country needs you to step forward here in Michigan," Santorum said. "First, to make sure we have he right candidate in the general election. Secondly, to be that state that stands up, like Pennsylvania, and turns away from big government and the snobbish elite that believes they know best for you.

"That's your choice," he said. "What does Michigan have to say?"

Santorum addressed a variety of topics from health care to income inequalities in America, and he also stated his stance on Iran. 

The GOP hopeful said President Barack Obama’s health care plan is what pushed him into the presidential race in the first place.

“Obamacare. That’s the reason I’m here. Karen and I are very blessed. We’ve been married for 21 years and have 7 children ages 20 to three and a half. Frankly, the last thing I should be doing is running for president right now. My wife reminds me every once and a while,” he joked.

But in all seriousness, Santorum said he and his wife thought about what their children’s lives would be like in a county where the government tells you what access to health care you will have.

Santorum stressed that America’s forefathers left the oppression of Europe to start a new county based on a bottom-up approach, rather than a top-down.

"We didn’t believe in class warfare then," Santorum told the crowd. "We believed in everybody’s ability to rise. We didn't talk about income inequality, we talked about opportunity, because that’s what America is all about, not making everyone even, but giving everybody the opportunity."

Santorum criticized Obama’s dealings with heightened nuclear concerns and a potential Israeli strike on Iran.

“Now we’re seeing this Arab spring turn into a very cold and dark winter and it’s going to get worse as the president sits on the sidelines and allows Iran to get that nuclear weapon and they will do nothing. How do I know that? Because when Israel was contemplating doing what needed to be done, the president revealed that information to the world, criticized them and held them up for scorn,” said Santorum.

Shelby Township Trustee Michael Flynn, who led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance, said Santorum’s comments on Iran and economic issues resonated with him.  

However, Santorum’s message didn’t connect with all crowd members.

“I feel like I’ve heard it all before from different candidates. It sounds like he’s basically saying the same thing as everybody else. It all sounds good until something actually happens,” said Christina Consolino of Macomb Township.

Ultimately, Consolino said she came to find out how Santorum’s plans for America would affect her life.

At the end of the day, Consolino told Patch she plans on voting for Obama, just as she did in 2008.

“My life has been better with Obama than the Bush days,” she added.

Pat Skibinski of Washington Township said she has not made her decision on who to vote for yet, but she highly respects Santorum’s opinions on family, trade with China and the auto bailouts.

Although 11-year-old Nick Sinistaj of Macomb Township, who attended the rally with his mother and 8-year-old brother, can’t cast his vote for a few more years, Santorum has already won over his heart.

“I like his Christianity and his faith,” he said.