Santorum Refuses To Tell Crazed Obama Hater The President Did Not Try To Nuke South Carolina

It’s one thing to oppose the President and his policies, but it’s un-American to allow crazed lies and rabid hate to stand without denouncing it.

Rick Santorum is no statesman.

During the heated 2008 race for the White House, Republican U.S. Senator John McCain was presented with a challenging Obama opponent audience member in an open forum. The older woman insisted then-Senator Barack Obama was not an American. “I can’t trust Obama. I have read about him, and he’s not, he’s not. He’s an Arab,” the woman cried. 

McCain, on camera, with less than one month to go before the election, after the September financial crash that ultimately would ensure Obama the presidency, shook his head, took the microphone from his Tea Party lies embracing supporter, and responded.

“No ma’am,” McCain said repeatedly.

“He’s a decent, family man, citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues, and that’s what this campaign is all about.”

That’s what a statesman does.

Love or hate McCain and his policies, he deserves praise for that important moment.

Politico reports audience members later booed McCain, and “yelled ‘liar,’ and ‘terrorist,’ referring to Obama.

Fast forward about seven and a half years, McCain is the one who stayed in the Senate, Obama won the White House, twice, as he amusingly reminded congress during his State of the Union address this January, and another (likely) presidential candidate encounters another older anti-Obama audience member, one even more crazed with Tea Party lies and hate.

Former Republican U.S. Senator Rick Santorum was presented with an opportunity to be a statesman this past weekend at the South Carolina National Security Action Summit. He failed.

“Why is the Congress rolling over and letting this Communist dictator destroy my country?,” the older woman, a retired schoolteacher, demanded to know. “Y’all know what he is, and I know what he is. I want him out of the White House. He’s not a citizen. He could have been removed a long time ago.”

“Larry Klayman’s got the judge to say that the executive amnesty is illegal. Everything he does is illegal. He’s trying to destroy the United States. The Congress knows this. What kind of games is the Congress of the United States playing with the citizens of the United States?”

“Y’all need to work for us, not the lobbyists that pay your salaries. Get on board, let’s stop all of this, let’s save America. What’s going to stop — Senator Santorum, where do we go from here? Ted [Cruz, perhaps?] told me I’ve got to wait until the next election. I don’t the country will be around for the next election. Obama tried to blow up a nuke in Charleston a few months ago, and the three admirals and generals — he’s totally destroyed our military, he’s fired all the generals and all the admirals who said they wouldn’t fire on the American people.”

Of course, not one single word of that Obama hatred is factual.

Santorum easily could have done what John McCain did and respectfully explain to the woman she is mistaken.

He could have told her and the audience that President Obama did not try to nuke South Carolina, and did not fire all the generals and all the admirals who said they wouldn’t fire on the American people.

Oh, and that Pres. Obama is in fact a citizen.

How does former Senator Santorum respond?

He corrects her faulty perception that he is still a U.S. Senator, then says, “as you mentioned, the word tyrant comes to mind.”

Complete and utter statesmanship failure.

This is what cowardice looks like. This is not how a leader acts.

Watch:

 

Image by Gage Skidmore via Flickr and a CC license
Hat tip: Gawker
Transcript: Bloomberg