The latest in our presidential teleconference series features former Sen. Rick Santorum. He took a few minutes out from campaigning to speak to CitizenLink President and CEO Paul Weber.
Santorum spoke about the importance of faith in his life, both political and personal.
“We all have a worldview or whatever you want to call it,” he said, “a way to look at what is right what is wrong, what is true, what is false, what is decent. All those things are taught as a believer, as a Christian, through the Bible and through our faith. I’m very clear that that’s where I get the moral precepts that I apply to the decisions that I make.”
When it comes to standing for religious freedom, Santorum has taken steps as an elected official to protect Constitutional rights.
“I can tell you 12 years ago I introduced a bill on workplace religious liberty, well before the gay marriage issue came up,” he explained, “because even before that there were instances where people were not able to practice their faith outside of the four walls of the church. That’s always been a real important part of my political career — making sure that faith is vibrant and alive — not just in the church, but in people’s personal and professional lives.
“As president, I’m going to try to pass a First Amendment Defense Act, which is important to protect individuals and companies from government imposing their values on these businesses and individuals.”
How does he feel about the Supreme Court decision on gay marriage?
“When the court says, ‘We are going to create out of whole cloth a new constitutional right that has no anchor or no basis on anything in the Constitution,’ then the court has gone beyond. It has acted unconstitutionally.
Santorum has experience as a senator vetting judges for the federal courts. He says that experience would be invaluable in his choices as president.
“As far as Supreme Court justices are concerned,” he said, “I want to make sure you can take the heat and continue to stand for what you believe in. I think too many times we look for the best and brightest lawyer, one who everybody likes and says they are a conservative. Then we find out when they get on the Supreme Court or one of these high courts, and they start taking heat for the positions they take, they wilt.”
“And when the Constitution is violated, as it was in this most recent Supreme Court decision, then I think the President has an obligation to counter that decision.”
Santorum said he believes the customer of the American education system is the parent and they should have the power to choose what is best for their child.
“If we create a vision that says that parents and teachers and kids can design an educational program that meets the needs of every child in America, then we’ll have a system that is truly accountable,” he said. “The people at the closest levels will be the ones who are accountable and have the resources to put in place to do what they think is best. I can tell you that I will push hard to make sure that parents have the power and the resources to design a program of education that’s best for their kids.”
