I spent some time yesterday on Twitter doing what I so love to do; stirrin’ the puddin’.  If you don’t follow me on Twitter (@talkmaster) … let’s just say I spent some time trying to tell Republican voters that if they drank enough social conservatism Kool-Aid to nominate Rick Santorum the reelection of barack obama will be assured.  That, of course, brought an onslaught of “why do you hate Rick Santorum” Tweets and emails, thus reinforcing my belief that Santorum = obama in an avalanche.   It’s this easy:  Your guide to the easiest way to guarantee the reelection of barack obama is only three words long:  Nominate Rick Santorum.

Let’s see --- now I mean this in the nicest sense – let’s see if I can talk some sense into the social conservatives out there.  Of course I won’t be able to do that if you don’t read this – or listen to my rant on the radio – so give me a shot.  After all, I’m hoping we all have the same goal here.

Look, I know full well that Santorum would be just fine with the majority -- the vast majority  -- of conservatives out there.  I understand you’re dedicated to conservative principles, devout in your religious beliefs, and scared to death of what four more years of obama would mean for your country.  Nobody wants you to deny your love of God.  Nobody wants you to abandon your socially conservative principles in your daily life.  Where the trouble starts is when you start pushing the candidacy of Rick Santorum with evangelistic zeal.  The problem, you see, is that as good, as wholesome, as Christian, as worthy, as right-about-everything that you are,  there just aren’t enough of you out there to defeat obama.

Not NEARLY enough.

The numbers are very simply against you, and you aren’t going to prevail in November unless you bring more people – more voters – into the fold. While you’re swooning over Santorum’s stalwart dedication to the cause of government control over a woman’s reproductive processes, we have a bit over 50% of the people in this country who get a check from the government every single month.  These people – those who actually vote -- are going to go to the polls and vote for the candidate who is going to take the most out of someone else’s pocket and put it in theirs.  Simple as that.  Some of these moochers and parasites could possibly be swayed by a candidate who focuses on creating a free and prosperous future for their children.  They will not be swayed by a candidate who preaches to them. 

Here’s another harsh truth.  Knowing that much of the moocher class won’t vote, even the Democrats are left with a problem. They, like the Republicans, just don’t have enough dedicated Democrats to reelect obama.  So guess where that leaves us?  You got it!  Independent voters.  The Republican candidate simply must attract a good percentage of the independent voters out there or the election is lost.  The Democrats will be working for those independents just as zealously.  And here’s another sobering thought for you .. .the independent voters are just not as dedicated to or worked up about making abortion illegal or making sure a gay couple can’t legitimize their relationship as you may be. 

Can you try to put yourself into the shoes of an independent voter for a second here?  You know obama is a failure, but you’re not sure the Republicans could be doing all that much better right now.  You’re willing, though, to take a good look at the GOP candidate to see if that is someone you might be able to support.

Here’s Rick Santorum asking you for your vote .. and he’s telling, or has told you, the following: 

• Vote for me and I’ll work to make it illegal for you to have an abortion for any reason.  I don’t care if you were raped or a victim of incest, I will try to prevent you from having an abortion.  What’s more, if you are raped I will make it impossible for you to buy the morning-after pill.

• Vote for me and I’ll work for laws that would allow for the arrest, conviction and jail time for any doctor who performs an abortion.

• Even though we might save money on benefits for single mothers who didn’t plan on becoming pregnant, Vote for me and I will make sure that young women living in poverty don’t have access to contraceptives through government health agencies and programs.

• Birth control pills do nothing but give women a license to do things in the sexual realm that is counter to the way I believe things are supposed to be.  Vote for me and I will seek a way for government to determine what type of sex you should be having, and will work to make you pay the consequences if you cross the line I’ve drawn.

• You should vote for me because I believe that homosexual relations are pretty much the same as and as vile as bestiality. 

• Remember when people were concerned about electing John F. Kennedy, a Catholic?  Kennedy said that there was a distinction between private religious conviction and public responsibility.  Well, I disagree.  I think that making a distinction between religious beliefs and your performance in public office has caused great harm to America. 

“Caused great harm to America”?  Now just think how the Democrats are going to spin this.   There are quite a few people out there – and I’ll venture to say that many of them are independents, who feel that religions convictions should be separated from public duties.  I know you feel differently, but the Republicans already have your vote.  Again … hammering this point home … many of those those independent voters we absolutely NEED to defeat Obama are not necessarily going to agree that separating religion and politics has caused great harm to America.  Will this be enough to dampen their enthusiasm to the point that they just sit home on Election Day?  You had better hope not.

Two weeks ago I had a Santorum surrogate by the name of Dan Tamburello, a New Hampshire legislator, on the air (Santorum is too busy to appear himself).  At the end of the interview Tamburello says “freedom of religion does not mean freedom OF religion” bit. 

Let me highlight that … because if Santorum were to win the nomination you would hear this phrase from many Santorum supporters over and over during the election:

Freedom OF religion does not mean freedom FROM religion.

Really?  Can you tell me clearly and succinctly just what it means when you say that you are NOT to be free of religion?  Does that mean that you must accept some religion, but it will be up to you to determine what religious dogma you will embrace?  Maybe you’re fine with that, but I can tell you what independents will have to say when they’re hit with this “no freedom from religion” line.  I can tell you because I’ve been hearing that “no freedom from religion line” and listener responses for many years.  The listener response – and these are conservatives saying this:  “The hell you say!” 

Another question.  Do you believe that you have a right to privacy?  You may absolutely agree with Santorum that you have no right to privacy.  Again, though, it is not you that counts here … it’s those independents.  My guess is that the bulk of those people who call themselves independents believe that such a right exists.  Can you see that those who believe you have a right to privacy might be somewhat afraid of someone who believes you don’t?  That’s ole Rick!  Santorum has made it plain that he does NOT believe we have a right to privacy.  Again … maybe that’s fine with you.  Perhaps it goes with that “you have no right to be free FROM religion” stuff.  But if Santorum is the candidate you had better believe those independent voters you need out there agree with you … or it’s hellooooooo obama! 

Now here’s something else you need to know about those essential independent voters.  Many of these people .. in fact, a LOT of these people, are actually libertarians. How many?  Let’s look to a 2009 Gallup poll.  Here’s how Gallup broke down the political philosophies of voters:

Liberals                      18%

Conservatives          31%

Populists                   19%

Libertarians               23%

Nine percent couldn’t figure out what in the hell they were. 

So … these libertarians, 23% of the voters out there;  are they going to be enthusiastic about a Santorum candidacy?  Santorum has declared that he is NOT a libertarian.  That sure doesn’t help.  What’s more … he has shown clearly that he has no clue what libertarians actually believe, saying that libertarians believe in NO government.

In 2005 Santorum was interviewed on NPR.  During that interview he said that libertarians “… have this idea that people should be left alone to do whatever they want to do.  Government … shouldn’t get involved in the bedroom… that is not how traditional conservatives view the world.” 

Really, Rick?  Traditional conservatives believe that the government SHOULD get involved in the bedroom?   And by the way … libertarians only believe that people should be left along to do whatever they want to do only so long as they don’t violate another person’s right to life, liberty or property through force or fraud.  Not quite the image Santorum conveys. 

There you go folks.  You have Santorum telling 23% of the electorate that they want NO government and that government does, indeed, belong in their bedroom.  Are these people going to be eager to donate to and vote for Santorum?  Hardly. 

I’ve been saying ever since obama was crowned over three years ago that if the Republicans got off on this social conservative, anti-abortion, what the hell are y’all doing in that bedroom over yonder kick they were going to hand four more years to Caesar Obammus.

I’m not trying to be dramatic or cute.  I’m just telling you the painful truth.  Those of you who are so blinded by your obsession with social conservative policies … just try, for a moment, to put yourself in the position of a moderate, independent woman headed to the ballot box in November.  There is no way in hell that any level-headed woman, or man for that matter, is going to vote for a guy who believes that contraception is harmful to women and bad for society.  It ain’t gonna happen.  Either those people trudge into the polling booth and reluctantly cast their ballot for our Marxist-in-Chief, or they sit on their hands and don’t show up to the polls at all.  In a way, that is also a vote for Barack Obama, because the GOP needs independent voters in order to win in November.  Period.  End of story.

As a respected businessman told me … Santorum couldn’t beat obama if obama had a sex change operation.