Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum went after Herman Cain’s conservative credentials Sunday, attacking the current GOP presidential frontrunner for his statement that he would not pursue a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage as president.
On Meet the Press, Cain said: “I wouldn’t seek a constitutional ban for same-sex marriage, but I am pro traditional marriage.” Instead, Cain said, states “would make up their own minds.”
Santorum, who has long positioned himself as the most conservative candidate on social issues, said that allowing the states to decide was not adequate.
“I have been a long-time advocate for states’ rights,” said Santorum in response. “However, I believe as Abraham Lincoln did — that states don’t have the rights to legalize moral wrongs. Mr. Cain, Congresswoman Bachmann and Governor Perry all believe 50 different definitions of marriage is fine, I strongly disagree and will continue fighting for traditional marriage between one man and woman.”
Santorum has previously gone after Cain’s 9-9-9 tax plan, saying that the plan is not sufficiently conservative.
“Zero-zero-zero is better than 9-9-9,” Santorum has said, touting his own tax plan as superior. (RELATED: Cain admits ‘some people will pay more’ under ‘9-9-9’)
Santorum’s communications director Hogan Gidley tied the attacks together, painting Cain as someone who had falsely seized the conservative mantle.
“First Herman Cain supported TARP, then he pushed a new 9 percent nationwide tax on top of income taxes, and now he’s supporting the redefinition of marriage at the state level,” Gidley said. “The more they learn, the more concerned conservatives become.”