Santorum on Romney: Forget Talking to Democrats, Romney Should Stop Being One

Rick Santorum on the heels of finishing second behind Mitt Romney in Arizona and Michigan last night learned he in fact tied him in the number of delegates awarded from Michigan. Santorum also has seen a sizable bump in fundraising raising $9 million this month.

Today his campaign released two hard hitting press releases. One pokes fun at Romney’s complaint about Santorum appealing to Michigan Democrats saying, “Mitt Romney says stop talking to Democrats – Mitt Romney should stop being a Democrat.” They then compare him to President Obama:

JUST LIKE BARACK OBAMA – ROMNEY SUPPORTED ABORTION
As A Senate Candidate In 1994, Mitt Romney Forcefully Declared Himself Pro-Choice, Stating “You Will Not See Me Wavering On That.” “When Kennedy called him ‘multiple choice,’ Romney demanded an extra rebuttal. He revealed that a close relative died of an illegal abortion years ago and said, ‘Since that time, my mother and my family have been committed to the belief that we can believe as we want, but we will not force our beliefs on others on that matter, and you will not see me wavering on that.’” (The Boston Globe, 3/2/06)
According To His Spokesman, Romney’s Adherence To The Pro-Choice Position Had Become “Firmer” As “Mitt Has Studied The Issues With Regard To Choice More And More And Talked With A Lot Of People About Them …” (The Boston Globe, 9/10/94)
In 1994, Romney Declared His Support For Access To RU-486, Stating “I Think It Would Be A Positive Thing To Have Women Have The Choice Of Taking The Morning-After Pill. … I Would Favor Having It Available.”(Boston Herald, 5/19/94)
Romney In 2002 Gubernatorial Debate: “I Will Preserve And Protect A Woman’s Right To Choose, And Am Devoted And Dedicated To Honoring My Word In That Regard. I Will Not Change Any Provisions Of Massachusetts’ Pro-Choice Laws.”(2002 Gubernatorial Debate, 10/29/02)
In 2006, Romney’s Economic Development Agency Granted Approval For A Planned Parenthood Clinic In Worcester “That Will Provide Abortions.” “Former governor Mitt Romney’s economic development agency granted initial approval to a tax-exempt bond last year for a Planned Parenthood clinic in Worcester that will provide abortions, just two months before he left office and began highlighting his antiabortion position as a presidential candidate.” (The Boston Globe,12/29/07)
JUST LIKE OBAMA – ROMNEY SUPPORTED CAP-AND-TAX
Romney “Acknowledged That Carbon Dioxide Emissions Are Harming The Environment And Agreed To Help Design A Regional Emissions Cap” With Surrounding States. “In another nod to environmentalists, Gov. Mitt Romney has joined with New York Gov. George Pataki in a plan to limit greenhouse gases from Northeast power plants. In a July 21 letter to Mr. Pataki, Mr. Romney acknowledged that carbon dioxide emissions are harming the environment and agreed to help design a regional emissions cap for power generating plants.” (Shaun Sutner, “Romney Joins Bid To Curb Emissions,” Telegram & Gazette, 8/6/03)
Romney Committed Massachusetts To Implementing The Regional Climate Change Plan Adopted In 2001. “The Plan represents Massachusetts’ commitment to implementing the regional climate change plan adopted by the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers (NEG/ECP) in August 2001.” (Gov. Mitt Romney et. al., “Massachusetts Climate Protection Plan,” Spring/04)
Romney, In July 2003 Letter To Then-Gov. George Pataki (R-NY): “Now Is The Time To Take Action Toward Climate Protection.” “I concur that climate change is beginning to affect our natural resources and that now is the time to take action toward climate protection. … I share your interest in ensuring that the economic and security contributions made by our electricity generating system are not negated by the impact of emissions from that system on the health of our citizens. … Our joint work to create a flexible market-based regional cap and trade system could serve as an effective approach to meeting these goals.” (Shaun Sutner, “Romney Joins Bid To Curb Emissions,”Telegram & Gazette, 8/6/03)
JUST LIKE OBAMA – ROMNEY FELL IN LINE WITH BIG LABOR
While Romney Attacks Others For Kowtowing To “Big Labor,” It Turns Out He “Fiercely Protected A Costly And Controversial Perk” For A “Politically Influential” Union. “Mitt Romney this week accused President Obama of kowtowing to ‘big labor’ and slammed Rick Santorum, one of his challengers for the Republican presidential nomination, as ‘labor’s favorite senator.’ But as governor of Massachusetts, Romney fiercely protected a costly and controversial perk for police officers after seeking and receiving the endorsement of the politically influential police unions.” (Maria Cramer, “In Quinn Bill Debate, Mitt Romney Stood By Labor,” The Boston Globe, 2/18/12)
JUST LIKE OBAMA – ROMNEY ADVOCATED FOR AMNESTY FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
Romney’s signature Massachusetts healthcare reform provides free healthcare to illegals. “The Massachusetts healthcare law that then-Gov. Mitt Romney signed in 2006 includes a program known as the Health Safety Net, which allows undocumented immigrants to get needed medical care along with others who lack insurance.
Romney found efforts to legalize illegal immigrants like Arizona Senator John McCain’s and former President Bush’s to be “reasonable proposals” back in 2005. Commonsense conservative voters realize that any proposal to legalize illegal immigrants, which does not first require illegals to depart the U.S. and apply legally from their home countries, constitutes amnesty. “In a November 2005 interview with the Globe, Romney described immigration proposals by McCain and others as ‘quite different’ from amnesty, because they required illegal immigrants to register with the government, work for years, pay taxes, not take public benefits, and pay a fine before applying for citizenship. ‘That’s very different than amnesty….It’s saying you could work your way into becoming a legal resident of the country by working here without taking benefits and then applying and then paying a fine.’ (Scott Helman, “Romney’s words grow hard on immigration,” Boston Globe, www.boston.com, 3/16/2007)
JUST LIKE OBAMA – ROMNEY NOMINATED MANY DEMOCRATS AND INDEPENDENT JUDGES WHO STRONGLY OPPOSED A CONSERVATIVE AGENDA
By Mid-2005, Three-Quarters Of Romney’s Nominees For Bay State Judicial Vacancies Were Democrats Or Independents. “Governor Mitt Romney, who touts his conservative credentials to out-of-state Republicans, has passed over GOP lawyers for three-quarters of the 36 judicial vacancies he has faced, instead tapping registered Democrats or independents — including two gay lawyers who have supported expanded same-sex rights, a Globe review of the nominations has found.” (Boston Globe, 7/25/05)
JUST LIKE OBAMA – ROMNEY BELIEVES AND DEFENDS OBAMACARE
John McDonough (who the liberal group FamiliesUSA describes as “deeply involved in the design, passage, and implementation” of RomneyCare AND ObamaCare) recently released a study analyzing 15 key similarities between RomneyCare and ObamaCare, the list includes:(RomneyCare ObamaCare, Similarities Between Massachusetts Health Reform (aka: RomneyCare) and The Affordable Care Act (aka: ObamaCare) http://thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/RomneyCare-ObamaCare.pdf)
Both have an individual mandate – with a tax penalty for those who do not purchase insurance.
Both regulate insurance policies, and dictate what benefits can/have to be covered
Both regulate where and how individual insurance coverage is sold
Both heavily rely on expanding Medicaid (a program intended to protect the poor, expanded to the breaking point)
Both use taxpayer dollars to subsidize coverage .
Both create government panels to dictate “quality” and cost containment
Both require employers (RomneyCare = more than 10, ObamaCare = more than 50) that do not offer insurance to pay a fine (ObamaCare = fine if at least one of their workers receives a tax credit to buy insurance through the exchange).
Both eliminate or greatly restrict choice
Both limit insurers ability to use factors such as health status to set rates.
Both require insurers to cover young adults on their parent’s insurance up to age 26

Then they go after him on religious conscience…

ROMNEY’S GOVERNMENT INFRINGEMENT ON RELIGIOUS CONSCIENCE
Governor Romney’s own hallmark achievement, RomneyCare, forced Catholic Hospitals to provide contraceptive services. “C.J. Doyle, executive director of the Catholic Action League of Massachusetts, told the Boston Globe that Romney’s criticism of President Obama is hypocritical because as governor he did not lift the state-level requirement of contraception coverage. “The initial injury to Catholic religious freedom came not from the Obama administration, but from the Romney administration,” Doyle said.” (Jim Meyers, “Romneycare Required Anti-Catholic Regulations Like ObamaCare,” NewsMax, February 7, 2012, http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Romneycare-Obamacare-Catholic-birth/2012/02/07/id/428686)
Romney “Lied” About Forcing Catholic Hospitals to Provide Abortifacients
By Quin Hillyer, The American Spectator
http://spectator.org/blog/2012/02/23/romney-lied-about-forcing-cath
This report from the “Boston Catholic Insider” is so well documented, so well laid out chronologically, that I have no reason to doubt its veracity. It shows overwhelmingly that Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum have been correct in accusing Mitt Romney of personally forcing Catholic hospitals into the requirement to provide abortifacients (morning after pills, specifically).

With $9 million to spend Santorum has the cash to really go after Romney’s record on TV and radio in several key states.