Santorum Cites the Francis Effect as Paradigm of New Evangelization for Conservative Politics

Former Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) is widely known as a traditionally oriented Catholic. Thus it was surprising when the former (and future) GOP Presidential candidate cited Pope Francis at CPAC as an example of spreading "The Good News" for conservatives who work the American political fields. 

Since Pope Francis was chosen by the College of Cardinals a year ago, the secular mainstream media has had a platontic love affair with the New World pontiff, projecting their perceptions that Pope Francis will change Catholic disciplines and doctrines to please progressives on things like married priests, contraception, abortion and same sex MARRIAGE.  Senator Santorum keenly discerns that Pope Francis is engaged in the New Evangelization.  

Pope Francis "selfie" with faithful at St. Peter's Basilica

Pope Francis has a much more pastoral style than his predecessor, Pope (emeritus) Benedict XVI, but he has not changed a single policy.  Even the 265 page Apostolic Exhortation "Evangelii Gaudium" which supposedly slammed "trickle down economics" was not much different than Pope Benedict XVI's 2009 Encyclical "Caritas in Veritate", but the press paid more attention because they saw what they wanted to see from the new Holy See.

Senator Santorum rightly points out that conservatives should not be proselytzing Christianity.  But reintroducing bedrock principles in more engaging and inviting framework can better spread the conservative Good News.  For example, Santorum cited the 2012 GOP Convention in Tampa where there was a parade of business owners on the podium to refute Mr. Obama's exclamation "You didn't build that".   Santorum lamented that among the personal examples, there was not one waitress or little person testifying how individual entrepreneurship created their jobs and their livelihoods. 

Senator Senatorum is clearly positioning himself for another run for the Republican Presidential nomination.  He organized Patriot Voices as a vehicle for inspiring and engaging patriotic Americans to educate the public on our Founders.   At CPAC, Patriot Voices hosted Our Sacred Honor (2012),  a documentary film  by Citizens United featuring Senator Santorum, that explored the origins of our rights stemming from documents from our Founding Fathers.   This sort of documentary is a noble educational effort but it does not reach out to apathetic audiences as a conservative  New Evangelization ought to do.

Another way which Santorum has tried to change culture is through his own faith based film studio Echolight.  Unfortunately, the power of prayer could not save the studio's first film "The Christmas Candle". The timeless holiday film for the entire family only grossed $1.6 million in two weeks of release. It was critically panned as being a throwback TV movie genre film which was stiff and hollow. The marketing mistake may have been using a theatrical release strategy thinking that strong box office would proliferate the message.  Echolight's next release is a western film "The Redemption of Henry Myers" which will premiere on the Hallmark Movie Channel on March 23rd.  

Santorum's remarks at CPAC show that his niche for the 2016 race will revisit the blue collar conservative theme as well as appealing to traditional values voters.  The blue collar conservative might be trying to reach Reagan Democrats a generation after the initial appeal.   Considering the precipitous decline in manufacturing jobs in the nation, this demographic alone would not be enough, especially to win the GOP nomination.

The other angle which Santorum's proto-presidential campaign seems to be targeting is traditional values voters.   This year's CPAC had a noticeable lack of organized appeal to the religious right, with no pro-life panels being held.  The problem with Santorum's strategy is he is not the only one tilling the value voters' field.  If  former Governor Mike Huckabee (R-AR) suspends his successful Fox News Channel show for another run at the White House, the Baptist minister will also appeal to this demographic.  Moreover, if Dr. Ben Carson succumbs to the "Run Ben Run" draft efforts, Carson's candidacy would also be competing for this evangelical audience.

If Santorum and conservatives really heed the example of "Frankie goes to the Vatican", they need to outreach to unevangelized ideological audiences with messages which appeal to them which (re) introduce bedrock conservative principles.  Hallmark Channel styled films will not expand the base,  putting blue collar conservatives et ali.  front and center might but there has to continued and substantive outreach.   Outreach is one strategy but capitalizing on social media is key in contemporary campaigning.  Returning to the "You Didn't Build That" controversy, answering with a pop infused message in a timely manner (rapid response) through alternative media platforms likely would have been more effective.

And Pope Francis still has his honeymoon with the mainstream media.  When they stop projecting their progressive desires on the new Pope and figure out that the New Evangelization invites people to bedrock beliefs, the giddy gaggle of coverage will end.  A message for "The Good News" of conservative politics will get no such honeymoon with either the Lamestream Media or the comfortable Cocktail Party elites who do not want to rock the boat in the District of Calamity. 

Bridge-gate Ballyhoo

Bridge-gate burst into the public eye last week as emails from high level staffer of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) were exposed indicating that four days worth of lane closures which snarled the George Washington Bridge were intentional.  Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Kelly sent a snarky text message intimating:  "Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee". It has been speculated that the four days of lane closures which snarled the world's busiest suspension bridge was intended as a as punishment to Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich (D-Fort Lee), a Democrat who did not make a cross party endorsement of Christie in is wildly successful 2013 re-election effort.  

For his part, Governor Christie conducted a grueling 102 minute press conference in which he insisted that he did not know about the intentional nature of the traffic jam.  Moreover he fired Kelly along with his longtime friend and political aide Bill Stepien because of their involvement. 

Despite Christie's unequivocal denial of prior knowledge and his swift action at disciplining wrongdoers, the Bridge-gate ballyhoo dominated the headlines for over a week, and inspired comedians to do funny satires such as Jimmy Fallons filique with Bruce Springsteen of  the unoffical New Jersey anthem "Born to Run".

While there is no doubt that the story was newsworthy, as credible accusations of the use of public office for personal revenge is a serious charge, it seems like Bridge-gate is overblown as well as overwrought.

Firstly, consider the coverage.   As Newsbusters reported, in less than 24 hours, the big three broadcast networks devoted 34 minutes 28 seconds to "Bridge-gate".  This is 17 times more coverage than the Lamestream Media broadcast about the Obama Administration's alleged use of the IRS targeting Tea Party groups for excessive scrutiny over eight months.   The coverage may also have been intensified because of its proximity to New York.  Journalists often become much more  interested when it is affecting their home turf rather than in  "flyover" country.

Secondly, consider the target.  Governor Christie has been generally considered an early front-running for the 2016 Republican Presidential nomination.   Pre-Bridge-gate polls showed Christie leading presumed Democrat front-runner former First Lady/Senator (D-NY)/ and Obama Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.  A week after the Bridge-gate scandal broke, Chuck Todd gleefully reported on MSNBC that while polling indicated that Gov. Christie was just as popular in his home state  as ever, Christie was trailing Ms. Clinton by 17 points in a head to head match-up. The Bridge-gate ballyhoo certainly seems like agenda journalism to tarnish a charismatic "enemy" front-runner of the liberal press.

Thirdly, consider the timing.  While there had been some questions about the George Washington Bridge traffic jam for months, it is worth noting when Bridge-gate really broke.  The national media had been agog at excerpts from former Obama Secretary of Defense Robert Gates' memoirs which sensationally recounted that President Obama and then Secretary of State Clinton admitted in front of Gates that they both opposed the troop surge for the War in Afghanistan in 2007 for political reasons.  This made Ms. Clinton look bad as a calculating politician without principle who was willing to risk American security for personal political gain.  Then came Bridge-gate and nary a word about Ms. Clinton's conniving was mentioned.

A related issue to the convenient timing of Bridge-gate knocking Clinton's calculating campaign stance against the Afghanistan troop surge is how the e-mails came to light.  Although the The Record of Bergen County is in New Jersey, it is highly unlikely that a regional newspaper has an extensive investigative team to dig up this treasure trove text.  As a political junkie, it sounds more like opposition research resulting in a "dirty trick", but that's just speculation

Bridge-gate also seems overwrought.  It took nearly a year for the Department of Justice to investigate the IRS Tea Party targeting, only to have an Obama campaign contributor named who quickly determined that no crimes had been committed.  What about the Executive Branch investigations of "the Fast and Furious" government sanctioned gun-running to Mexico?  How has the Obama Administration been doing in investigating the bungle in Benghazi where four Americans, including the US Ambassador, were killed in Libya on September 11th, 2012? Yet within 24 hours of the Bridge-gate breaking in the national press, Attorney General Eric Holder's Department of Justice announced that it was investigating Bridge-gate for potential violations of federal law.  

As a former chief law enforcer, Fox News host Judge Jeanine Pirro is incensed by US Attorney Paul Fishman trumpeting this Bridge-gate probe as the federal modus operandi is neither to confirm nor deny investigations so as not to appear unobjective or partisan that tarnishes a potential indictment. But when partisan politics uses law-fare under the color of pursuing justice, seemingly anything goes.

While conservatives may not have favored Governor Christie to win the GOP Presidential nomination in 2016, his chances of success may well have been diminished by the politics of personal destruction with a complicit media acting as a progressive echo chamber.  The feeding frenzy of tenuous charges and threat of lawsuits seems to mirror tactics used against former Governor Sarah Palin (R-AK) who resigned from office in 2010 and did not run for president in 2012, and suddenly all of those scandals vanished.

Low information voters may be lured into believing where there is smoke there is fire, even if it is blue smoke and mirrors.   Governor Christie's emphatic denials about involvement leave no wiggle room-- if he knew, then the fat lady sings ending his hopes for higher office.  But those who take time to keep informed on current events should see the trend in law-fare, smearing front-runners and the actual use of public offices for partisan pursuits.