Republican Sen. Rick Santorum. (AP Photo)
Santorum simply began his speech saying, “Game on,” after his surprising success in which he and Romney both finished with 25 percent of the vote in the first in the nation caucuses.
The former Pennsylvania senator then quoted Christian apologist and writer C.S. Lewis, who said, “A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.”
“My best friend, my life mate, who sings that song when I forget the words, is my wife Karen,” Santorum said.
“People have asked me how I’ve done this, sitting back at the polls, not getting a whole lot of attention paid to us,” he continued. “How did you keep going out to Iowa, 99 counties, 381 town hall meetings and speeches?”
“Every morning when I was getting up in the morning to take on that challenge, I’ve required a strength from another particular friendship. One that is sacred. I’ve survived the challenges so far by the daily grace that comes from God,” Santorum said.
“For giving me His grace every day, for loving me -- warts and all -- I offer a public thanks to God,” he said.
Santorum then finished his round of appreciation. “Third thanks: Thank you so much Iowa.”
The candidate, who only weeks ago polled in the single digits, rushed to a top-tier closing in Iowa, falling only eight votes shy of winner Romney, with 30,007 votes to Romney’s 30,015. Santorum took a shot at the first place finisher during his speech.
He said, “People have asked me, ‘Well, why do you think you can win? Because we’ve been told by so many people that there’s another candidate in this race (who is running a rather close race with me tonight) that is a better person to choose because he can win.’”
“Let me tell you,” said Santorum to boos from the audience, as one heckler shouted “Romneycare!” referring to Massachusetts health care reform, “What did you say? Oh, Romneycare, okay. I just didn’t hear you.”
“What wins in America are bold ideas, sharp contrasts, and a plan that includes everyone,” he said. “A plan that includes people from all across the economic spectrum. A plan that says we will work together to get America to work.”
Santorum was also critical of what he described as a limited GOP vision for the country. He said there are two visions, a Democratic one of “redistributing money” with “more and more government and more and more dependency.”
“And then there’s another vision, a Republican vision which is, ‘let’s just cut taxes,’ ‘let’s just reduce spending, and everyone will be fine,’” he said. “I believe in cutting taxes, I believe in balancing budgets.”
“But,” Santorum added, “I also believe we as Republicans have to look at those who are not doing well in our society, by just cutting taxes and balancing budgets.” He then talked about his plan for tax reform and cutting the corporate tax rate in half, and reviving the manufacturing industry.
Santorum also said Middle America voters have been “left behind by a Democratic Party that wants to make them dependent.”
“Those are the same people that President Obama talked about who cling to guns and their Bible,” he said.
“Thank God they do.”