Straw Poll 2011: Santorum, Paul & Pawlenty speeches

Six Republican presidential candidates gave speeches in Ames at the 2011 Straw Poll. Below is a live blog of the first three speeches.

Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum was the first of the six Republican presidential candidates to speak today in Ames as part of the Straw Poll program.  Santorum’s family came on stage and stood behind him as the backdrop for his speech.  Satorum asked the crowd if any of them had gotten a phone call over the past few days from one of his kids. There were a couple of people in the crowd who responded.

Santorum declared himself the head of “The Little Engine that Could Campaign” and (again) derided the “elite media…in New York and Atlanta” for failing to pay attention to his candidacy.  He said his campaign was “about scratching and clawing” its way into the spotlight.

Santorum suggested a vote for him in the Straw Poll could “strike a blow for the people of the heartland.”

Texas Congressman Ron Paul was the second candidate to speak.  The place erupted with the Paul supporters crammed here into Hilton.  Paul started with his core message. “I’m convinced that liberty and an undetstanding of that can bring us peace and prosperity,” he said.

Paul told a long story about witnessing an abortion while he was a medical student.  “That was rather disturbing,” Paul said. “…We cannot play God and make those decisions. All life is precious.”

Next, Paul turned to his anti-militarism message, saying the country should not fight unwinnable wars.”

“The country is tired of the war and we’re also broke,” Paul said.

A man in the crowd yelled: “Bring ’em home!”

Paul’s advocation of a return to the gold standard got huge applause.

He said the U.S. must defend our borders and forget about the borders in Iraq and Afghanistan, before saying very slowly and emphatically: “It’s time to bring the troops home.”

After a video introduction, former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty came on stage with his family.

“Thank you for being on this journey for taking back our country from Barack Obama,” Pawlenty said.

Pawlenty suggested Obama doesn’t have a clue about what it takes to fix the economy. “He is like a manure spreader in a wind storm.” Pawlenty said. (Pawlenty had tried that line out in Waterloo earlier.)

“Let’s be a nation that puts its trust in God first and foremost,” Pawlenty said, to applause.

“We’re going to send a message here from Iowa today…Mr. President, get the government off our backs,” Pawlenty said, punching each word for emphasis.  Chants of T-Paw erupted from the cheer-squad in front of the stage.

Pawlenty called his competitors “wonderful people” but he said many would say the “same things” …but…just saying the words isn’t enough.”

“…I don’t just talk about it, we did the job (as governor of Minnesota),” he said.

He made the argument the GOP needs to nominate a candidate who can win more than the Bible Belt and southern states, but who can win the Rust Belt.

“I want you to do everything you can in the closing hours of the Straw Poll to give support to my campaign,” Pawlenty said, the only candidate thus far to note that the voting stations are still open.