The last time we saw former Sen. Rick Santorum (R), his 16-year congressional career was coming to an abrupt and embarrassing end. Bob Casey Jr. beat him statewide by 18 points, 59% to 41%, giving the conservative more time to work with Fox News, and work on Hollywood movie projects.
It appears, however, that the politician who made the “man on dog” comparison famous isn’t quite done with public service. Santorum was expected to run for president in 2008, though an embarrassing defeat made that impossible, but now he’s eyeing a gubernatorial race in 2010.
Say it slowly: Gov. Rick Santorum. Interesting concept, isn’t it?
The former Pennsylvania GOP senator, trounced in his re-election bid last year by seldom-seen Democrat Bob Casey Jr., apparently has grown weary of beating the drums about the ongoing terrorist threat as a senior fellow with the Washington-based Ethics and Public Policy Center.
The American Spectator reported last week that Santorum is seriously mulling a run for governor in 2010, when the race will be wide open. Term limits will force current Gov. Ed Rendell from seeking a third term.
Said one unnamed political adviser in The Spectator item: “Rick is a politician. He loves the competition and the process of running. He’s getting back in and he’s young enough that a gubernatorial run would set him up for greater opportunities politically down the road.”
He’s like a character in a bad horror movie that just won’t go away.
