November 28, 2005
Santorum's New Web Ad
In a new web-only ad released nearly a year before next November's election, Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) vows to protect Social Security for workers at the cusp of retirement but does not mention his support for personal retirement accounts that most Dems and many GOPers believe would fundamentally undermine the entitlement.
The ad includes visuals of a twirling young ballerina and several happy families. It can seen at RollCall.com and on PoliticsPA.com, sites frequented by Washington insiders and by politically precocious voters in Pennsylvania.
Santorum's campaign spokeswoman, Virginia Davis, said that the campaign did not produce the ad to test how Santorum's principles on Social Security would be interpreted by the media and by PA voters.
"Pennsylvania has one of the oldest population in the country," Davis said. "Seniors are nervous about their retirement benefits. We wanted to highlight the Senator's efforts on this issue."
The ad's narrator touts Santorum's recently-introduced bill to guarantee that workers born after 1950 get full benefits when they retire. The ad ignores his preference to reform the system by allowing workers to invest a portion of their Social Security taxes.
Said Davis, "He believes that it's important seniors to know that their Social Security benefits are guaranteed. And it's an important first step to talking about broader reform."
"It's too important an issue to ignore simply because it's unpopular. He wanted to highlight his efforts on this specific issue," she said.
Like other Democratic office-holders and candidates, Casey has yet to say how he would shore up Social Security's finances. His advisers count on voters remembering Santorum's role in pushing for personal accounts.
"The Santorum bill isn't worth the paper it's printed on," said Larry Smar, Casey's campaign spokesman. "It's not backed by a single penny."
The ad was produced by Santorum media consultant John Brabender. [MARC AMBINDER]
It's called the Social Security Guarantee Act.
And what it would do is simple.
For the first time in history, it would guarantee, by law, that seniors’ Social Security benefits can never be reduced. Never.
Never.
It also guarantees an annual cost of living increase will also be there, helping make retirement a time of joy, not fear.
A bill to provide for the issuance of certificates to Social Security beneficiaries who are born before 1950 guaranteeing their right to receive Social Security benefits under title II of the Social Security Act in full with an accurate annual cost-of-living adjustment.
Who wrote and is leading the fight for this historic legislation that is destined to touch so many Pennsylvanians' lives?
It was our senator, Rick Santorum.
He's touched lives.
He's touched hearts, and most of all he's making a difference all across Pennsylvania.
Posted at 02:06 PM
Comments
Rick Santorum's (R-Wal-Mart) hostility toward middle-class families knows no boundaries and goes much deeper than his support for personal retirement accounts. With Wal-Mart money in his campaign warchest and a corporate jet at his disposal, Rick Santorum is leading the charge for repealing the estate tax for billionaries like the Walton Family. To pay for this billionarie tax cut, Santorum supports cutting education and home heating programs that benefit Pennsylvania residents.
Rick Santorum - He talks family values, but pushes the Wal-Mart agenda.
BK06 | 11.28.05 03:34 PM
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Rick certainly has touched the lives of Pennsylvanian's! He's made people of that state embarrased to say he's their Senator...
This "guarantee" issue, aside from being normal political pap, goes way back to Santorum's gaff years ago, when he mentioned, in the waning days of the cycle, that he was in favor of raising the retirement age. It nearly blew the election for him...and he ain't ever gonna mention SS in those terms again.
However, it'll be too bad if Casey let's this go unresponded to, as, from where I sit, Santorum just opened the door wide. A year ago, Santorum was dancing around the state selling the Prez's plan for private accounts like a hawker at a county fair; now he won't even appear on the same stage with Bush!
Ultimately, of course, any web ad is simply one of two things; singing to the choir or playing to the press in hopes of garnering some free media. This smary bit of treacle isn't likely to do much of anything, other than to spur diabetic shock in a few people....
Piltdown Man | 11.29.05 07:56 AM
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Jeremy Jones | 12.07.05 01:59 AM
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I think that Mr. Santorum is right on some of the issues he talks about. I think he should protect the Social Security for the people who are about to retire.
Jason | 01.19.06 09:21 PM
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