Time for Santorum to bow out of race
T he morning after brought an onslaught of Iowa caucus coverage, and amid the sound and fury over the photo finish between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders on the Democratic side and the surprising strength of Marco Rubio with GOP caucusgoers, there was a story that stood out for us – the almost certain end of Rick Santorum’s political career.
A U.S. senator for Pennsylvania until he was crushed by Democrat Bob Casey in a 17-point landslide in 2006 when he was seeking a third term, Santorum managed to forge an unlikely political afterlife by launching a quixotic presidential bid in 2012. To the surprise of many, Santorum won the Iowa contest that year over eventual GOP nominee Mitt Romney by only 34 votes.
Santorum went on to first-place wins in 10 more states, including Minnesota, Tennessee, Colorado and Missouri. Overall, Santorum finished second in the 2012 Republican nomination battle.
Santorum was unable to repeat the feat this time around. By the time the dust settled late Monday night, only 1,783 Iowa Republicans cast their lot with Santorum, putting him in 11th place.
The only candidate who fared worse was former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore, a candidate who toiled in such Harold Stassen-like obscurity that he wasn’t even invited to some of the “undercard” debates for candidates who were barely making a dent in the polls (for the record, Gilmore managed to snag 12 votes in Iowa on Monday).
If Santorum couldn’t make it there, he couldn’t make it anywhere, to borrow some lyrics from “New York, New York.” According to the Des Moines Register, Santorum was reassessing his candidacy.
With a few rare exceptions, most politicians have a sell-by date, particularly if it’s been years since they last held office. Santorum has obviously passed his. And it stands to reason that in 2012, Santorum wasn’t so much Mr. Right but Mr. Right Now to hardline conservatives and evangelical Republicans who had no one else plausible to turn to in a weak, relatively narrow field. In this cycle, those voters had a banquet of choices.
Referring to the lack of enthusiasm this time for both Santorum and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, the 2008 GOP caucus winner, Janell Ross of the Washington Post pointed out, “Politics is certainly a business in which timing is everything. How a candidate fares is often dependent upon who they are running against and what voters are looking for at a particular time. Back in 2008 and 2012, Huckabee and Santorum clearly had what certain voters were looking for. This time around, they aren’t even making the debate stage.”
Some prognosticators, such as G. Terry Madonna, the Pennsylvania pollster and political observer from Franklin and Marshall College, have suggested Santorum could be a vice presidential prospect, but we find that to be doubtful.
While Santorum has avid fans, he also has equally fervent detractors, and doing no harm is usually the wisest path when it comes to picking a running mate. And the last time Santorum won an election in Pennsylvania was in 2000.
It’s hard to see how he would help turn Pennsylvania red in a presidential election for the first time in almost 28 years.
Both the Republican and Democratic races for president are unresolved, but the message voters sent to Santorum on Monday night was unambiguous – his moment has come and gone, and it’s time to exit the stage.