He Said What? That's Crazy!

Sound bytes from a few of the Republican presidential hopefuls have been in ample supply lately. Fresh off of the campaign trail, quotes are flying around that leave GOP leadership with hand prints on their foreheads and a bitter aftertaste of feet. Former US Senator Rick Santorum announced Monday that he will be seeking the GOP nomination for president, and in this address he said this about the brave soldiers who fought on D-Day in 1944, "Those Americans risked everything so they could make that decision on their health care plan." This, of course, is coming in defense of Rep. Ryan’s budget which effectively ends Medicare. This strange statement by Santorum has brought about a great deal of conversation. Exactly what he meant to accomplish though this obscure linkage of two seemingly unrelated ideas is unclear, but he’s not alone. Herman Cain, a fellow Republican running for president also had a foot-in-mouth moment while discussing his own credentials for the nation’s highest office. While commenting on his apparent lack of foreign policy experience, he said, “Uh, does the current president have any? How’s that working out for you?” Are you scratching your head too now? We are. In this two part conundrum, Mr. Cain likened himself to the foreign policy experience of President Obama and then immediately accused him of being under qualified. Needless to say, Mr. Cain ought to reconsider his position and begin to more carefully craft his message. President Obama has been very successful in foreign relations, beginning in 2009, when he led the global response to the financial and economic crisis, and most recently with the ratification of New START Treaty between the US and Russia. Merely weeks into the official GOP campaign season, their candidates have begun stumbling over their own words and making all but the right kind of headlines.