The Fate of Rick

DURING a televised debate in Pittsburgh on Oct. 12, Republican senator Rick Santorum and his Democratic challenger Bob Casey Jr. stood so close together that it almost looked like they were holding a joint press conference. Yet they quarreled from the get-go. Early on, Santorum leaned toward Casey, pointed at the camera, and ordered the Democrat to look into it and answer a question. Casey refused, telling Santorum that he was “desperate” and “hyperventilating.” Santorum became visibly agitated with his opponent: “I don’t know how you can say so many words and say nothing.” At times, Casey appeared unnerved, and the senator never let up. “Stop talking, Rick. I’ve got a point to make,” Casey complained at one point. “It would be the first one today,” snapped Santorum.

A longtime aide to Santorum commented that he had never seen the senator so aggressive in a debate-and, given Santorum’s reputation as a scrappy partisan, that’s saying a lot. Yet it may also be a symptom of Santorum’s embroilment in the race of his life: For more than a year, polls have shown Casey holding a sizeable lead over the incumbent. A Zogby survey in early October showed Casey, who is Pennsylvania’s state treasurer, ahead by 12 points. Although some signs suggest Santorum is starting to close this wide gap-a poll in the Allentown Morning Call on Oct. 10 had him down by just 5 points-the senator is clearly frustrated by his struggle to overtake a Democrat he doesn’t respect. Casey “has no knowledge of federal issues,” Santorum told me the morning after the debate.

About the Author

John J. Miller

John J. Miller, a former national correspondent for National Review, is the director of the Dow Journalism Program at Hillsdale College. He is the author of A Gift of Freedom: How the John M. Olin Foundation Changed America.

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DURING a televised debate in Pittsburgh on Oct. 12, Republican senator Rick Santorum and his Democratic challenger Bob Casey Jr. stood so close together that it almost looked like they were holding a joint press conference. Yet they quarreled from the get-go. Early on, Santorum leaned toward Casey, pointed at the camera, and ordered the Democrat to look into it and answer a question. Casey refused, telling Santorum that he was “desperate” and “hyperventilating.” Santorum became visibly agitated with his opponent: “I don’t know how you can say so many words and say nothing.” At times, Casey appeared unnerved, and the senator never let up. “Stop talking, Rick. I’ve got a point to make,” Casey complained at one point. “It would be the first one today,” snapped Santorum.

A longtime aide to Santorum commented that he had never seen the senator so aggressive in a debate-and, given Santorum’s reputation as a scrappy partisan, that’s saying a lot. Yet it may also be a symptom of Santorum’s embroilment in the race of his life: For more than a year, polls have shown Casey holding a sizeable lead over the incumbent. A Zogby survey in early October showed Casey, who is Pennsylvania’s state treasurer, ahead by 12 points. Although some signs suggest Santorum is starting to close this wide gap-a poll in the Allentown Morning Call on Oct. 10 had him down by just 5 points-the senator is clearly frustrated by his struggle to overtake a Democrat he doesn’t respect. Casey “has no knowledge of federal issues,” Santorum told me the morning after the debate.

About the Author

John J. Miller

John J. Miller, a former national correspondent for National Review, is the director of the Dow Journalism Program at Hillsdale College. He is the author of A Gift of Freedom: How the John M. Olin Foundation Changed America.