Rick Santorum

Rick Santorum is running for President. If you don’t know this, it isn’t because he hasn’t campaigned hard enough, raised enough money, or put enough commercials on television. “It is because the liberal media doesn’t want you to know about him because I (he) has the best chance of beating Obama.” “The liberal media is ignoring him because they don’t want him to succeed.” Never mind that at an 8:00 am town hall in Washington, Iowa, whose newspaper could hardly be described as liberal, (it is hard to even describe it as a newspaper) there were only 18 people present to greet the former Senator Santorum.

Santorum entered the room at the Washington Library at 8:10. He went around the room shaking the hands of all eighteen people, asking our names, and offering the occasional “God bless you for being here.” He introduced himself and talked for the next 30 – 35 minutes before opening up for questions.

In his remarks he talked about why he decided to run for President. We got the sob story right away as he told us about his grandpa, a World War I vet who immigrated to the United States from northern Italy in 1927. He didn’t quite make it clear that his grandfather fought in the Italian army so I doubt some of the 18 folks in the audience figured out that he was not a U.S. veteran. The grandfather “came for freedom and scratched out a living, scratching out the ore in the mines of Pennsylvania.” As Santorum put it, his, “grandfather came for freedom, not government mandates.”

A lesson in American history ensued as he explained to us that at its core, “America is a moral enterprise.” He did some expository preaching on the Declaration of Independence explaining that “the pursuit of happiness” is not “licentiousness,” something he pinned on the far left and far right of both parties. In this section he sounded more and more like a preacher delivering a sermon with great conviction.

Next on the list was healthcare and the dangers of “Obamacare.” He told us that in 1776 life expectancy was 46 and that at the time of Jesus the life expectancy was 46. Instead of telling us he wants to lower life expectancy, he said that in the U.S. life expectancy doubled as “we released individual freedoms coupled with moral teachings.” In his view the healthcare bill takes away freedom and morality, leading to his conclusion that “if we don’t defeat Obama we will be the generation that gave freedom away.”

The first question was “Can Obamacare be gotten rid of?” As he answered it became clear he wasn’t going to take a lot of questions because he took 10 minutes to answer each one and he was scheduled to leave at 9:00. Santorum gave a lesson on the three branches of government and the need to control the legislative bodies, but he told us his “first promise is to get rid of Obamacare.” He then went on to talk about the need for a balanced budget amendment, plus the story of how he almost got us one but that John McCain and George W. pulled the carpet out from underneath him.

As he rambled on about cutting I raised my hand and asked if it would be necessary to cut defense spending in order to balance the budget. He asked what the main purpose of government is and quoted the preamble for me and said he would prefer not to cut defense spending. That it was really the only function the federal government should be worried about, that State’s should take care of everything else.

The next question was about his support for Israel. He told us he was the strongest supporter of Israel one could be, then moved to a criticism of current US policy in the Middle East. Here he argued that Obama has been supportive of the critics of the US (Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood) while throwing our friends, (Mubarek) under the bus.

The last question was from a middle-aged women concerned about the distortions of the liberal media. After he finished, he shook everybody’s hand again. When he got to me, he thanked me for my concern and asked what I do. I told him I was a history teacher which he seemed to like. I said that in the midst of his talking about freedom and individualism I wondered about the concept of the “public good.” He referred me to a book he had written but talked until his aid pulled him away.

He seems like a nice guy, but frankly when you read more about some of his positions he is on the scary side, at least if you have a libertarian bent. Outside of Iowa and some real conservative states, he doesn’t have a chance of winning and it doesn’t have to do with the liberal media.

"Caught in the Middle: America's Heartland in the Age of Globalization"

If you live in the Midwest or care about the future of the Midwest you should read Caught in the Middle: America's Heartland in the Age of Globalization by Richard C. Longworth. Though Longworth's analysis and predictions are rather depressing I found the book to be interesting and at times rather amusing. It seems obvious Longworth cares deeply about the Midwest and hopes for a positive future but at the same time he recognizes most Midwesterner's are content to either ignore the problems, or to blame their problems on others.

Longworth's description of the Midwestern mentality - complacency in the face of change, seems accurate though in the part of Iowa where I live,it is often accompanied by a certain fatalism. At times this is expressed in religious language in phrases such as, "it must be God's will." If it is indeed God's will there is obviously little we can do but long nostalgically for the good old days and bemoan the fact that our children are growing up and leaving for the coasts.
Longworth doesn't talk much about religion though he did have a line which also rings true. "In a world of the Next New Thing, devotion to biblical inerrancy and traditional values doesn't cut it. The global world is diverse, open, multinational, with no loyalty to place or places. The rural world is still white-on-white, local, fixed on itself as the homeland of all virtue."

I have contended that recent arguments in our area about the six-day creation and a 4,000 year old earth, reflect a subliminal fear, or acknowledgment that life is changing in ways we don't understand. At these points it becomes easy to latch onto something which seems foundational to our beliefs. If someone refuses to believe the way I do, then I can write them off, or if they represent the forces of globalization I can demonize them, especially if they refute my belief in a six day creation, or if I refuse to acknowledge the relevance of the issue.

Longworth offers several ideas for changing the Midwest, some of which will be controversial. Opening the doors to all immigrants is probably not going to play well in most Midwestern states or towns.

The idea of cities working together, the development of clusters centered around biotech, biofuels and other new industries may have promise, though Longworth doesn't have much hope. Longworth also critiques the politicians who have added to the mess he see's in the Midwest. He is especially hard on those who demonize immigrants, foster fear, and cut education and research budgets.

Globalization is here and it isn't going to reverse itself anytime soon even if gas goes to $5 a gallon or more. It will only hasten the decline of the small towns which still dot Iowa as people will no longer be willing to pay for the hour long commute to work or to buy groceries.

Is it entirely hopeless? I like to think there is hope. Midwesterners are resilient, know how to work hard, and many are still willing to sacrifice, if not for the good of their state or country, then for the good of their family. Solutions will emerge and people will adapt, much as many have done for the last hundred plus years. It may be ugly, it will certainly be messy, but the Midwest will survive in some form.