WINDSOR HEIGHTS, Iowa (AP) — As he speaks to hundreds of Iowa evangelicals about his "faith walk," it's clear former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum is connecting with the audience.
Santorum may have been trounced in his 2006 re-election bid, but on Tuesday night at a suburban Des Moines church the crowd of about 500 people seemed to agree with every word as he described his journey from being a Republican congressman afraid to highlight his anti-abortion beliefs to an outspoken advocate who may be considering a run for president.
"There are a lot of people who vote pro-life. There are few people who stand up and fight for life," Santorum told the crowd gathered for the Iowa Christian Alliance's spring meeting. "I was a busy man, and I was pro-life but I dared not talk about it. In some ways I was a pro-life fraud."
Santorum, a 51-year-old Roman Catholic, talks about his beliefs now, and for the second time recently he's talking about them in Iowa, where the state's caucuses lead off the presidential nominating process.
Evangelicals are a large and influential constituency in the Iowa Republican Party, and their support was key to former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee's surprising caucus win in 2008. If Santorum opts to seek the Republican nomination, his success in Iowa will be largely in the hands of people like these packed into the church.
Eighty-three percent of Huckabee's supporters in the 2008 Iowa caucuses identified themselves as born-again Christian or evangelical, according to a voter survey conducted for The Associated Press and TV networks. Huckabee won 46 percent of evangelical backing in the caucuses.
In accordance with evangelical precepts, Santorum confessed his failures.
"As I grew, I recognized the blind spots," Santorum said. "It will give you some insights on the blessings that God will give you if you follow his call."
Santorum told the crowd he's proud to have become a leader in the pro-life cause, and he urged them to pour their energy into this year's election to change the nation's direction.
He said there will be plenty of opposition, but he says he's grown to welcome attacks he gets for his ultraconservative views on abortion. In a book, he has compared abortion rights to slaveholder rights.
"I'm used to being attacked for being pro-life," said Santorum. "That's what happens when you stand up."
Santorum argued that liberals have already launched attacks on religious and social conservatives.
"There's the attacks on faith and the family," said Santorum. "Someone speaks to the pulpit and it's labeled hate speech."
He told the activists that such criticism only motivates religious conservatives to work harder.
"Thanks be to God that it is us. That America needs people like us," he said.
The caucuses are still nearly two years away, but Santorum is one of many potential GOP presidential candidates to make stops in Iowa. Huckabee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin also have made their way to the state, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney plans to visit Iowa soon.
Even before the 2012 caucus campaign, evangelicals are gearing up for a heated election in Iowa, with a three-way GOP gubernatorial primary in June for the right to oppose Democratic Gov. Chet Culver.
Veteran evangelical organizer Ralph Reed, the former head of the Christian Coalition, told the activists that they need to imitate the organizational success of Barack Obama's presidential campaign.
That effort was known for keeping in constant touch with supporters through e-mails and its Web site, an effort that kept them engaged and motivated. Republicans have done that elsewhere and had success winning governor races in Virginia and New Jersey, Reed said.
Reed announced Wednesday that he won't be in the hunt himself. He told supporters through Twitter and his Web site that he would not seek the Republican nomination for Georgia's 7th congressional district. He said he thinks he can best advance conservative principles through his Century Strategies consulting firm and Faith and Freedom Coalition.
"Iowa is a critically important state for changing the direction of the country in 2010," Reed said. "Are you ready to make history in Iowa in 2010?"
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Iowa Christian Alliance: http://www.iowachristian.com/
