Lakhota
Diamond Member
By Jon Ward
In fact, Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania, went further, explicitly saying that it was true that many conservatives don't care about the poor, elderly and disabled.
"You have a lot of folks in our party who say, 'Cut government, cut taxes, everybody will be fine,' as they go off to the Hamptons for the summer. No," Santorum said, speaking to a large crowd in Steubenville, Ohio. "Go to the Lower East Side for the summer. Help out those in need in our society. Take the gift that God has given you and plow it back in, not to the government any more, but to your neighbors in your community."
Yet Santorum also spent much of his 45-minute speech emphasizing that he nonetheless wants to dramatically reduce the size of government. He acknowledged that this would mean reducing government aid, including welfare and entitlement programs for those in need.
"We not only have to revitalize this economy and understand what's at stake there, but we have to revitalize the basic institutions of our country, the church and the family," he said.
In unpacking his argument that the government should do less, Santorum exposed a deep challenge to conservatives like himself who do not espouse a simple blind faith in the free market to solve all inequalities and injustices. His belief, he said, is that people will have to step up of their own free will and help others, sometimes through institutions like churches and charities, and sometimes on their own.
Much More (if your stomach can stand it): Rick Santorum: 'If Government Is Going To Get Smaller, Then People Have To Get Bigger'