title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Welch learned clarinet in his childhood, switching to guitar in his early teens. His interests were jazz, rhythm and blues, and rock music. He was accepted into Georgetown University, but instead moved to Paris, planning to attend the Sorbonne. Welch told "People" in a 1979 interview that, in Paris, "I mostly smoked hash with bearded guys five years older" and spent most of his time "sitting in the Deux Magots café". He returned to Southern California, where he briefly studied French at the University of California, Los Angeles but did not complete a degree.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In 1964, Welch joined the Los Angeles-based vocal group The Seven Souls as a guitarist. The Seven Souls lost a battle of the bands competition, the prize being a contract with Epic Records, to Sly and the Family Stone. The Seven Souls' 1967 single "I'm No Stranger" made no impact at the time of its release, despite subsequent issue in France and Italy. Its B-side, "I Still Love You", has since become a Northern Soul anthem, with original copies selling up to £400. The Seven Souls broke up in 1969.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Welch subsequently returned to Paris and started a trio, Head West, which was not a success. He later told "People" that his time in Paris (1969-1971) was "living on rice and beans and sleeping on the floor."


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In 1971, Welch auditioned for Fleetwood Mac at Benifold, their retreat in England. The band had recently lost one of its front-line members, guitarist Jeremy Spencer, and were looking for a replacement. Judy Wong, a friend and part-time secretary for the band, recommended her high school friend Welch. The band had a few meetings with Welch and decided to hire him, despite not having previously played with him, after listening to some of his songs on tape. Welch was assigned rhythm guitar, backing up lead guitarist Danny Kirwan. Welch also lived in the band's communal home, 'Benifold', located in Hampshire.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Using mobile equipment borrowed from The Rolling Stones, the band recorded material for three albums at Benifold: "Bare Trees", "Penguin" and "Mystery to Me". The band's first album to feature Christine McVie and Welch, "Future Games", was recorded at Advision Studios in London (as is cited on the back of the album jacket). The next album, "Bare Trees", was mostly recorded at De Lane Lea Studios in Wembley, London.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In September 1971 the band released "Future Games", with the title song written by Welch. This album was different from anything the band had done previously. In 1972, six months after the release of "Future Games", the band released "Bare Trees", which featured Welch's "Sentimental Lady". This song was a big hit for Welch five years later when he re-recorded it for his solo album "French Kiss." Christine McVie also sang on the remake, and was a producer of the song.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: The band was comfortable playing in the studio, but tours started to be problematic. Kirwan developed an alcohol dependency, and by 1972 was becoming alienated from Welch and the rest of the band. Welch had enormous respect for Kirwan's talents as a guitarist, singer and songwriter — he later described Kirwan as "a brilliant musician" — and in the sixteen months he and Kirwan were together in Fleetwood Mac, they had a productive musical partnership. But Mick Fleetwood recalled, "They were very different as people and as musicians". On a personal level there was friction between them, and Welch, an outgoing Californian, found Kirwan to be withdrawn, insecure and difficult to communicate with. He also suspected that Kirwan did not appreciate his musical style. "I think Danny thought I was too clever a player ... too jazzy, too many weird notes. I don't feel he loved my stuff to death."


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In 1999 Welch said Kirwan had been "a talented, gifted musician, almost equal to Pete Green in his beautiful guitar playing and faultless string bends," but commented in a later interview: "Danny wasn't a very lighthearted person, to say the least. He probably shouldn't have been drinking as much as he did, even at his young age. He was always very intense about his work, as I was, but he didn't seem to ever be able to distance himself from it and laugh about it."


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Before a concert on a US tour in August 1972, a backstage argument between a drunken Kirwan and Welch resulted in Kirwan smashing his guitar, trashing the dressing room and refusing to go on stage. Having reportedly smashed his head bloody on a wall, Kirwan watched the band struggle through the set without him, with Welch trying to cover his guitar parts. Welch remembered, "I was extremely pissed off, and the set seemed to drag on forever." The band fired Kirwan, and the artistic direction of Fleetwood Mac was left in the hands of Welch and Christine McVie. Fleetwood said later that the pressure had become too much for Kirwan, and he had suffered a breakdown.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Over the next three albums Fleetwood Mac released, they constantly changed line-ups around the core of Mick Fleetwood, the McVies and Welch. Kirwan was replaced by Savoy Brown lead singer Dave Walker and Bob Weston on lead guitar. Both Walker and Weston played on "Penguin". Released in January 1973, the album reached No. 49 on the Billboard Top 200 album chart in the United States. This album contained songs "Bright Fire" and "Revelations" by Welch.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: "Mystery to Me" contained Welch's song "Hypnotized", which earned significant FM radio airplay in the United States. However, as a result of an aborted tour, "Mystery to Me" only reached No. 67 in the States.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: By late 1973, internal stresses caused by line-up changes, touring, the deterioration of the McVies' marriage (exacerbated by John's alcoholism), and an affair between Weston and Fleetwood's wife, Jenny Boyd, were debilitating to the band. Weston was sacked and the band quit a tour of the US.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: The band's manager, Clifford Davis, and Fleetwood had an argument over that tour, because of the trouble the band had with Weston they were in no shape to continue the tour. And Davis remarking "We are going to play that tour even if I have to assemble a band myself and have them perform as 'Fleetwood Mac'" at which Fleetwood agreed "That is not a bad idea." And so the both of them assembled a new band and had them rehearse for the tour.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: During this limbo, Welch stayed in Los Angeles and connected with entertainment attorneys. Welch believed the band was being neglected by Warner Bros.—the parent of their label, Reprise Records—and convinced the band to move to Los Angeles. Rock promoter Bill Graham wrote a letter to Warner Bros. to convince them that the "real" Fleetwood Mac were in fact Fleetwood, Welch and the McVies. While this did not end the legal battle, the band was able to record as Fleetwood Mac again.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Instead of getting another manager, Fleetwood Mac decided to manage themselves. After the courts ruled that the "Fleetwood Mac" name belonged to Fleetwood and John McVie, the two band members set up their own band management company, Seedy Management.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: It took until the early 2000s before Fleetwood was summoned to court, and Davis and Gantry's names were cleared of all blame.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In 1974, Welch was the only guitar player in the band. Warner Bros. made a new deal with Fleetwood Mac, releasing the album "Heroes Are Hard to Find" on Reprise in September 1974. The album became the band's first to reach the Top 40 in the United States, peaking at No. 34 on the "Billboard" chart. The subsequent tour would be Welch's last with Fleetwood Mac.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Welch was suffering with personal and professional issues: his marriage was failing, and he felt he had exhausted his creativity with the band. Later, he explained that he felt estranged from John and Christine McVie, yet close to Fleetwood, with whom, he asserted, he was running the band in 1974. Welch resigned from Fleetwood Mac in December 1974 and was replaced by Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Of the Fleetwood Mac albums on which Welch appeared, American album sales totaled 500,000 units shipped between 1971 and 2000 for "Future Games"; 1 million units of "Bare Trees" between 1972 and 1988; and 500,000 units of "Mystery to Me" between 1973 and 1976, when it was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Welch's relationship with his former band remained amicable in the years following his departure. During the height of their respective popularity in the late 1970s, Welch would frequently open for Fleetwood Mac and he would sit in as lead vocalist on "Hypnotized". Mick Fleetwood managed Welch's career into the 1980s.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: The Buckingham–Nicks version of Fleetwood Mac achieved superstar status with the albums "Fleetwood Mac" (1975) and "Rumours" (1977), both reaching No. 1 in the US. "Rumours" shipped 40 million units worldwide and remains one of the most successful albums ever released.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: By the 1990s, Welch's once diplomatic relationship with Fleetwood Mac had become acrimonious. In 1994, Welch sued Fleetwood, the McVies, band attorney Michael Shapiro and Warner Bros. Records for breach of contract related to underpayment of royalties. Previously, in 1978, Welch and the band had signed a contract with Warner Bros. agreeing to an equal share of all royalties from their Fleetwood Mac albums. Welch alleged that the members later made new deals with Warner Bros. for higher royalty rates, and neither Fleetwood nor the McVies had informed Welch, thus cheating him out of equal royalties. The lawsuit was settled in 1996.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: When Fleetwood Mac was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998, original band members Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Mick Fleetwood, and John McVie were named to the Hall, as were Christine McVie, Lindsey Buckingham, and Stevie Nicks. Welch, who anchored the band for several years and five albums, was not. Welch felt the recent legal battle with the band soured the committee to include him. "My era was the bridge era," Welch told the Cleveland newspaper the "Plain Dealer" in 1998. "It was a transition. But it was an important period in the history of the band. Mick Fleetwood dedicated a whole chapter of his biography to my era of the band and credited me with 'saving Fleetwood Mac'. Now they want to write me out of the history of the group. It hurts... Mick and I co-managed the group for years. I'm the one who brought the band to Los Angeles from England, which put them in the position of hooking up with Lindsey and Stevie. I saw the band through a whole period where they barely survived, literally."


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In a 2003 online question-and-answer session on the Fleetwood Mac fan site The Penguin, Welch revised his opinion about the exclusion. He had recently visited Fleetwood Mac backstage after a show, and he reconnected with Mick Fleetwood. Welch no longer blamed the band for his exclusion. He instead blamed the Hall's committee and its industry insiders (such as Ahmet Ertegun and Jann Wenner), stating they did not like his style of music. He still maintained that the lawsuit was a factor, as it prevented him from contacting Mick Fleetwood, and they were still estranged at the time of the induction.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In 1975, Welch formed the short-lived hard rock power trio Paris with ex-Jethro Tull bassist Glenn Cornick and former Nazz drummer Thom Mooney. Paris released two commercially unsuccessful albums: "Paris" and "Big Towne, 2061". Hunt Sales later replaced Mooney until the group disbanded.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In a 1979 interview with "People", Welch said that the two Paris albums were "ill-conceived." The band's lack of success drained Welch's finances, until he had only $8,000 left.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In September 1977, Welch released his first solo album, "French Kiss," a mainstream pop collection featuring contributions from Fleetwood, Buckingham and Christine McVie. The album was certified platinum by the RIAA, peaking at No. 12 on the "Billboard" chart in 1978. It yielded three hit singles: a revamped version of "Sentimental Lady" produced by Buckingham and McVie (#8), "Ebony Eyes" (#14; featuring Juice Newton on backing vocals) and "Hot Love, Cold World" (#31).


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Welch followed up "French Kiss" with two albums in 1979. In February, "Three Hearts", an album that replicated the rock/disco fusion of "French Kiss", peaked at No. 20 (earning a RIAA gold certification) and spawned the hit "Precious Love" (#19), while the follow-up single "Church" (#73) also charted. His second effort that year, November's "The Other One", saw Bob's first solo recordings without the help of any Fleetwood Mac members. This album reached No. 105 on the charts, though no singles on this record charted. Notable songs include "Rebel Rouser" and "Don't Let Me Fall". From 1980 to 1981, he hosted "Hollywood Heartbeat", an early music video program. His subsequent solo albums into the early 1980s ("Man Overboard," "Bob Welch," and "Eye Contact") were not successful and his career declined.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: In 1999, Welch released an experimental jazz/loop-based album, "Bob Welch Looks at Bop". He followed this up in 2003 with "His Fleetwood Mac Years and Beyond", which contained new recordings of songs he originally recorded with Fleetwood Mac, as well as some solo hits. In 2006, he released "His Fleetwood Mac Years and Beyond 2", which mixed a half-dozen new compositions, along with a similar number of his Mac/solo remakes. He released more CDs with Fuel Records in 2008, 2010, and 2011.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Welch appeared as an avatar named BobWelch Magic in 2008, performing solo acoustic favorites and hits live for 30 minutes, in a show with Von Johin (musician/publisher Mike Lawson) and Cypress Rosewood (musician Tony Gerber) in the virtual world of Second Life, streaming live into the Gibson Island virtual stage from Lawson's studio.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: During the mid-1980s (following the release of "Eye Contact"), Welch took to partying with Guns N' Roses, who were rehearsing in his garage. He became addicted to cocaine and heroin, and was hospitalized for detox in spring of 1985. Welch reflected on that era as "being a very bad boy, very decadent, very cynical, VERY stoned. It was not a good time."


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: The day he was released from detox, he was introduced to Wendy Armistead by Taryn Power (Tyrone Power's daughter) and Tony Sales at The Central (now The Viper Room). Welch and Armistead were married in December 1985 and moved to Phoenix, Arizona, to maintain Welch's sobriety. Welch abstained from all illegal drugs for the rest of his life.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: While in Phoenix, they formed a short-lived group called Avenue M. The group went on tour and recorded one song for a greatest hits compilation. They later moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and remained married until his death.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Welch had undergone spinal surgery three months prior to his death. Despite the surgery, doctors told him his prognosis for recovery was poor, and he would eventually become an invalid. He was still in considerable pain, despite taking the medication pregabalin (Lyrica) for six weeks.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: On June 7, 2012, around 6:00 a.m., Welch died by suicide, shooting himself in his Nashville home where his wife Wendy discovered his body. He left a nine-page suicide note and love letter for Wendy. He was 66 years old.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: Wendy died on November 28, 2016, from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart disease, also aged 66.


title: Bob Welch (musician)

text: An exhibit chronicling Bob Welch's career opened at The Musicians Hall of Fame at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee on August 27, 2018. Despite the lawsuit over a decade earlier, Fleetwood wrote a tribute for the exhibit. Bob and Wendy Welch's estate has endowed a scholarship to support Belmont School of Music students.


title: Charmian Carr

text: Charmian Carr (born Charmian Anne Farnon; December 27, 1942 – September 17, 2016) was an American actress best known for her role as Liesl, the eldest von Trapp daughter in the 1965 film version of "The Sound of Music".


title: Charmian Carr

text: Carr was born Charmian Anne Farnon in Chicago, Illinois, the second child of vaudeville actress Rita Oehmen and musician Brian Farnon. The couple divorced in 1957. She had two sisters, both actresses (Shannon Farnon and Darleen Carr). Her family moved to Los Angeles when she was 10. While a student at San Fernando High School, graduating in 1960, Carr was a cheerleader and played basketball and volleyball. "She had never had a singing lesson and had never tried to act" before she was signed to be in "The Sound of Music".


title: Charmian Carr

text: Carr was attending San Fernando Valley State College, studying speech therapy and philosophy, and working for a doctor, when her mother arranged for her to audition for a role in "The Sound of Music". Rita Farnon had not asked Charmian if she wanted to audition for the part, but Charmian was sure her mother would consider getting a part in a film more important than earning a college degree.


title: Charmian Carr

text: In a newspaper article published November 9, 1964, Carr related the story behind the tryout as follows:


title: Charmian Carr

text: Director Robert Wise thought Farnon was too long a surname paired with Charmian. After he had given her a list of single syllable surnames, she chose Carr. She won the role of Liesl over Geraldine Chaplin, Kim Darby, Patty Duke, Shelley Fabares, Teri Garr, Mia Farrow and Lesley Ann Warren. The film was on the whole a very happy experience for her. However, during the filming of her dance scene with Rolf in the gazebo, the costumers had forgotten to put no-slip pads on her shoes. She slid through a window of the gazebo, and she "had to complete the scene in agony."


title: Charmian Carr

text: In 1965, Carr worked with Van Johnson on a pilot for a television program, "Take Her, She's Mine". Carr then appeared in "Evening Primrose", a one-hour musical written by Stephen Sondheim, which aired on "ABC Stage 67" in 1966. The following year, she married a dentist, Jay Brent, and left show business; they divorced in 1991. She and Jay had two daughters, Jennifer and Emily. Later she became the grandmother of Emma and Derek.


title: Charmian Carr

text: Carr owned an interior design firm, Charmian Carr Designs, in Encino, California, and wrote two books, "Forever Liesl" and "Letters to Liesl". She reunited with many of her co-stars from "The Sound of Music" on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in October 2010 to celebrate the film's 45th anniversary. In 2014, Carr recorded "Edelweiss" with the great-grandchildren of the von Trapps on the album "Dream a Little Dream" by the von Trapps and Pink Martini.


title: Charmian Carr

text: Carr died in Los Angeles on September 17, 2016, from complications related to frontotemporal dementia at the age of 73.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: Mario Van Peebles (born January 15, 1957) is an American film director and actor best known for directing and starring in "New Jack City" in 1991 and "" in 2016. He is the son of actor and filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles, whom he portrayed in the 2003 biopic "Baadasssss!", which he also co-wrote and directed.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: Mario Van Peebles was born in Mexico City, Mexico, the son of writer, director, actor and musician Melvin Van Peebles and Maria Marx.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: He majored in economics at Columbia College, the undergraduate division of Columbia University. He was invited to speak as the Class Day Speaker as part of the annual commencement exercises in 2021.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1971, he appeared in the film "Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song", Melvin Van Peebles directed and played the lead role and Mario played his father's character as a child. The film became a hit and a historical American film, because it was widely credited with showing Hollywood that a viable black audience existed and thus influenced the creation of the Blaxploitation genre. That year, Mario acted in a TV movie called "Crosscurrent".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: He appeared in the action film "Exterminator 2" (1984), as the main villain against its protagonist, played by Robert Ginty. When the production wrapped, the producers were unhappy and wanted a re-shoot. They replaced the original director, but the main star was no longer available so they made Van Peebles' character more central.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1985, he landed his first leading role in the film "Rappin'" as Rappin' John Hood, an ex-convict who attempts to save his neighborhood from developers and hoodlums.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1985 he played in the comedy "Delivery Boys", was one of the central characters in the action drama "South Bronx Heroes", and acted in the dramatic TV film "Children of the Night" and one episode of the "Cosby Show".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1986, he acted in the urban action film "3:15", the comedy "Last Resort", the TV film "D.C. Cops", four episodes of "L.A. Law", and the Clint Eastwood military film "Heartbreak Ridge" based on the United States Marine Corps.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1987, he played in the sport film "Hotshot", the TV film "The Facts of Life Down Under", and "", the fourth installment of the "Jaws" franchise.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1988, Van Peebles played the lead in the short-lived detective show "Sonny Spoon". The show ran for two brief seasons, both of which aired in 1988 before the series was canceled. The show would mark his directorial debut, for which he tackled the task for one episode. That same year, he also acted in the TV film "The Child Saver".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1989, he directed for the show "Top of the Hill", three episodes of "21 Jump Street", two of which he acted in, and an episode of the TV series "Wiseguy".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: He also acted in one episode of "American Playwrights Theater: The One-Acts", and the film "Identity Crisis" directed by his father.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: At the beginning of the 1990s he performed in the TV film "Blue Bayou" and one episode of "In Living Color".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: Van Peebles directed "Malcolm Takes a Shot", a 1991 "CBS Schoolbreak Special" about an aspiring high-school basketball star whose obstacles include epilepsy and his own arrogance. Van Peebles appeared in the special in a cameo appearance as the main character's doctor. He was nominated for a DGA Award by the Directors Guild of America for "Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Shows".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: He made his feature film directorial debut in 1991 with the black gangster film "New Jack City", in which he also co-stars. Other lead actors are Wesley Snipes, Ice-T and Judd Nelson. "New Jack City" was produced with an estimated $8,000,000 budget.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 17, 1991, before being released nationally on March 8, 1991. Well received by critics, it grossed $7,039,622 during its opening weekend, and was the highest grossing independent film of 1991, grossing a total of $47,624,253 domestically.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1993, he starred in and directed the black Western "Posse", featuring a large ensemble cast including Woody Strode, Billy Zane, Tiny Lister, Tone Lōc, Big Daddy Kane, Robert Hooks, and many more. The film tells the story of a posse of black soldiers and one ostracized white soldier, who are all betrayed by a corrupt colonel.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1994, he collaborated twice with actor Christopher Lambert; they played the side by side leads in the action film "Gunmen", and he was the main villain in "", the third installment of the "Highlander" film series. He also acted in a film called "In the Living Years".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1995, he directed and co-starred in "Panther" based on a screenplay adapted by his father, Melvin Van Peebles, from his novel of the same name portraying the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, tracing the organization from its founding through its decline in a compressed timeframe. Creative license is taken but the general trajectory of the Party and its experiences is factual. At the Locarno International Film Festival it won the prize of the Ecumenical Jury, a Silver Leopard, and was nominated for a Golden Leopard. At the Political Film Society it was nominated for a PFS Award.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1996, he acted in one episode of "Living Single" and one episode of HBO's "Strangers". He also played the lead in the science fiction action film "Solo". His directorial release that year was "Gang in Blue", in which he stars and co-directs with his father who also has a role in the film. It's about a black police officer who discovers a cell of white supremacist vigilantes within his department.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1997, he acted in one episode of "X-Files", and in the films "Stag", "Riot", and "Los Locos", the first American film directed by Jean-Marc Vallée.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 1998, he directed and starred in "Love Kills", a comedy about a masseur who gets mixed up in the family plots at the mansion of a recently deceased Beverly Hills millionaire. He also appeared in the mini series "Mama Flora's Family", "Valentine's Day", and "Killers in the House".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2000, Van Peebles acted in one episode of "Martial Law" and 20 episodes of "Rude Awakening", he also appeared in the films"Sally Hemings: An American Scandal" and "Blowback".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2001, he starred in a film called "Guardian", and co-starred in the Michael Mann film "Ali" for which he received a nomination for "Outstanding Supporting Actor" at the NAACP Image Awards.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2002, he acted in "10,000 Black Men Named George", two episodes of "Robbery Homicide Division ", and the TV movie "Fiona".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2003, he acted in the film "The Hebrew Hammer", "44 Minutes: The North Hollywood Shoot-Out", "Gang of Roses", and "The Street Lawyer".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: His 2003 docudrama "Baadasssss!", also known as "How to Get the Man's Foot Outta Your Ass", opened at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film describes the making of his father's seminal film, "Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song". Mario directed the film as well as portraying his father in the lead role. The film was critically acclaimed and garnered numerous awards and nominations in the film festival circuits: it won "Best Feature Film" 2004 Philadelphia Film Festival and was nominated for Best Feature 2004 Gijón International Film Festival. At the 2005 Black Reel Awards, he was nominated for Best Actor, won Best Director, won Best Screenplay, and was nominated for Best Film, and the actress Joy Bryant was nominated Best Supporting Actress. Additionally, Van Peebles received three nominations at 2005 Independent Spirit Awards, and two nominations at 2005 NAACP Image Awards.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2004, he was a lead in the TV film "Crown Heights" and acted in one episode of "Soul Food". In 2005, he acted in "". In 2006, he directed and co-starred in the film "Hard Luck", starring Wesley Snipes as the lead, and Cybill Shepherd was also in it. Snipes plays Lucky, a down on his luck former criminal and drug dealer whose post prison trials and tribulations take him on a wild adventure. In 2007, he acted in an episode of "Law & Order" and the film "Sharpshooter". That year, he returned to directing for television starting with three episodes of "Damages", in which he also had recurring role until 2009.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2008, he acted in his father's film "Confessionsofa Ex-Doofus-ItchyFooted Mutha" and 43 episodes of the soap opera "All My Children". He returned to "Law & Order" as a director for three episodes. In 2009, Van Peebles and his family starred in the reality TV show "Mario's Green House". He also acted in the film "A Letter to Dad".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2010, he acted in two films "Multiple Sarcasms" and "". He directed one episode of "Lost", the documentary "Fair Game?", and the film "Redemption Road".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2011, he directed the sport drama "All Things Fall Apart" starring rapper/actor 50 cent in the title role playing a football player who suffers from a deadly disease; Van Peebles also played a role in this feature. Other acting credits that year were the films "Tied to a Chair" and "5th & Alameda", on TV, two episodes of "Hellcats" and two episodes of "The Game", and he started to direct for the TV series "Boss" directing five episodes until 2012.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2012, he wrote, directed, and acted in ""We the Party"", a comedy set in an ethnically diverse Los Angeles high school. The film focuses on five friends as they deal with romance, money, prom, college, sex, bullies, Facebook, fitting in, standing out, and finding themselves. Also that year, he acted in one episode of "The Finder" and the feature film "American Warship".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2013, he directed one episode "", one episode of "Monday Mornings", one episode of "Zero Hour", and an episode of "Nashville" and in 2014 he directed two additional episodes of "Nashville" as well as acting in one, in 2015, he reprised his role with another director.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2014, Van Peebles wrote, directed, and acted in "Red Sky", an action/thriller film starring Cam Gigandet, Shane West, and Rachael Leigh Cook. He also directed three episodes of "Once Upon a Time", and that year, he acted in two other films "Mantervention" and "".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2015, he directed one episode of "The Last Ship", one episode of "Chicago P.D.", and two episodes of "Empire".


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2016, he directed the film "", based largely on the true story of the loss of the ship in the closing stages of the Second World War and starring Nicolas Cage, Tom Sizemore, and Thomas Jane.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2017, he directed two additional episodes of "Being Mary Jane" and one episode of "Hand of God". He also acted in the feature "For Justice" and in four episodes of "Bloodline", one of which he also directed, and he directed an additional episode his character didn't appear in. That year, he created and produced the TV series "Superstition," directed eight episodes, and acted in ten, and in some of them he performed both roles.


title: Mario Van Peebles

text: In 2014 Van Peebles filmed a public service video supporting the District of Columbia statehood movement. His advocacy is part of DC Shadow Senator Paul Strauss’ “51 Stars" campaign which aims to enlist 51 celebrities to endorse making Washington, DC the 51st state.


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Yannick Denis Bisson (born May 16, 1969) is a Canadian film and television actor and director best known to international audiences for playing Detective William Murdoch on the series "Murdoch Mysteries".


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Bisson was born in Montreal, Quebec, and is of French and English ancestry. He moved to Toronto, Ontario, as a teenager and his acting career began when he was still in high school. His father, noting his son's interest in acting, encouraged him to reply to a newspaper advertisement seeking "child actors".


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Bisson's first major role was in the 1984 CBC movie of the week "Hockey Night", alongside Megan Follows and Rick Moranis. He starred in the Canadian television series "Learning the Ropes" from 1988 through 1989. From 1994 through 1997, he starred in the syndicated action series "High Tide", co-starring Rick Springfield. He moved back from Los Angeles to Vancouver, British Columbia in 1998 when he was cast as the lead in CBC'S "Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy". From 2000 though 2004, he had a recurring role as attorney Brian Tedrow on the Showtime drama "Soul Food".


title: Yannick Bisson

text: He starred as FBI agent Jack Hudson in the PAX TV series "" and in the short-lived CBC drama "Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy".


title: Yannick Bisson

text: He appeared on "Falcon Beach" in season two as well as in several Lifetime cable movies, such as "Crazy for Christmas" and "I do (but I don't)", and the Disney Channel movie "Genius". Bisson was a guest star on "Flashpoint" and starred in the television movies "Brothers by Choice" and "Keshan". He appeared as Jon in all of the "Roxy Hunter" movies to date. Bisson is featured in a series of commercials for CIBC. He starred in the 2001 TV movie "Loves Music, Loves to Dance" based on the book by Mary Higgins Clark. He provided the voice of Ferdie in the children's animated series "Maxie's World".


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Bisson plays the lead in the CBC Television drama series "Murdoch Mysteries" and made his directorial debut with the show's fourth-season episode "Buffalo Shuffle".


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Starting on December 30, 2013, Bisson starred as a preschool teacher in "The Adventures of Napkin Man" on CBC Television.


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Bisson was awarded the Fan's Choice Award at the 2016 Canadian Screen Awards on March 13, 2016. "Murdoch Mysteries" has been awarded several Canadian Screen Award Golden Screen Awards in 2017, 2018 and 2020.


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Bisson played as Martin Bartell, in Hallmark Channel's "Aurora Teagarden Mysteries". He is introduced in "Three Bedrooms, One Corpse" as a CIA agent Keshan who moves to town, falls in love with Teagarden, and later dates her. Bisson left the series in 2018.


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Bisson is married to Chantal Craig, a former fitness instructor who currently works as a television content creator and writer.


title: Yannick Bisson

text: The couple met in high school and married in 1990. They have three daughters: Brianna, Dominique and Mikaela. Craig made guest appearances on two of Bisson's television series, "" and "Murdoch Mysteries". Their daughter played "Penny Renton" in an episode of "Murdoch Mysteries" entitled "Love and Human Remains." Dominique Bisson had a part as Gloria Abercrombie in an episode of "Murdoch Mysteries", season 2, entitled "Snakes and Ladders". Craig is now known as Shantelle Bisson, a producer, author, parenting expert and regular contributor to "Zoomer Magazine". She is the owner of Shantilly's Place, a marina in Kawartha Lakes, Ontario.


title: Yannick Bisson

text: Yannick Bisson is also an avid bicyclist and bicycle collector. He formerly worked as a builder between acting jobs to support his family.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Richard John Santorum ( ; born May 10, 1958) is an American politician, attorney, and political commentator. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2007 and was the Senate's third-ranking Republican from 2001 to 2007. Santorum ran for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, finishing second to Mitt Romney. In January 2017, he became a CNN senior political commentator. However, he was terminated from his contract with CNN in May 2021 due to comments he made about Native Americans a few weeks prior which were deemed "dismissive".


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum was elected to the United States Senate from Pennsylvania in 1994. He served two terms until losing his 2006 reelection bid. A Roman Catholic, Santorum is a social conservative who opposes abortion and same-sex marriage and embraced a cultural warrior image during his Senate tenure. While serving as a senator, Santorum authored the Santorum Amendment, which would have promoted the teaching of intelligent design. He was a leading sponsor of the 2003 federal law known as the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In the years following his departure from the Senate, Santorum has worked as a consultant, private practice lawyer, and news contributor. He ran for the Republican nomination in the 2012 U.S. presidential election. Before suspending his campaign on April 10, 2012, Santorum exceeded expectations by winning 11 primaries and caucuses and receiving nearly four million votes, making him the runner-up to eventual nominee Mitt Romney. Santorum ran for president again in 2016, but ended his campaign in February 2016 after a poor showing in the Iowa caucuses.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Richard John Santorum was born in Winchester, Virginia. He is the middle of the three children of Aldo Santorum (1923–2011), a clinical psychologist who immigrated to the United States at age seven from Riva, Trentino, Italy, and Catherine (Dughi) Santorum (1918–2019), an administrative nurse who was of Italian and Irish ancestry.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum grew up in Berkeley County, West Virginia, and Butler County, Pennsylvania. In West Virginia, his family lived in an apartment provided by the Veterans Administration. Santorum attended elementary school at Butler Catholic School and then went on to Butler Senior High School. He was nicknamed "Rooster", supposedly for both a cowlick strand of hair and an assertive nature, particularly on important political issues. After his parents transferred to the Naval Station Great Lakes in northern Illinois, Santorum attended the Roman Catholic Carmel High School in Mundelein, Illinois, for one year, graduating in 1976.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum attended Pennsylvania State University for his undergraduate studies, serving as chairman of the university's College Republicans chapter and graduating with a B.A. degree with honors in political science in 1980. While at Penn State, Santorum joined the Tau Epsilon Phi fraternity. He then completed a one-year M.B.A. program at the University of Pittsburgh's Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business, graduating in 1981. In 1986, Santorum received a J.D. degree with honors from Dickinson School of Law.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum first became actively involved in politics in the 1970s through volunteering for Senator John Heinz, a Republican from Pennsylvania. Additionally, while in law school, Santorum was an administrative assistant to Republican state senator Doyle Corman, serving as Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Senate Local Government Committee from 1981 to 1984, then Executive Director of the Senate Transportation Committee.


title: Rick Santorum

text: After graduating, Santorum was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar and practiced law for four years at the Pittsburgh law firm Kirkpatrick & Lockhart, a firm known for raising political candidates and lobbyists (later named K&L Gates). As an associate, he successfully lobbied on behalf of the World Wrestling Federation to deregulate professional wrestling, arguing that it should be exempt from federal anabolic steroid regulations because it was entertainment, not a sport. Santorum left his private law practice in 1990 after his election to the House of Representatives.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Having been groomed by Kirkpatrick & Lockhart, Santorum decided Democratic congressman Doug Walgren was vulnerable, and took up residence in Walgren's district. Needing money and political support, he courted GOP activist and major donor Elsie Hillman, the chair of the state Republican Party.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 1990, at age 32, Santorum was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives to represent Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district, located in the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. He scored a significant upset in the heavily Democratic district, defeating seven-term Democratic incumbent Doug Walgren by a 51%–49% margin. During his campaign Santorum repeatedly criticized Walgren for living outside the district for most of the year. Although the 18th District was redrawn for the 1992 elections, and the new district had a 3:1 ratio of registered Democrats to Republicans, Santorum still won reelection with 61% of the vote.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 1993, Santorum was one of 17 House Republicans who sided with most Democrats to support legislation that prohibited employers from permanently replacing striking employees. He also joined a minority of Republicans to vote against the North American Free Trade Agreement that year. As a member of the Gang of Seven, Santorum was involved in exposing members of Congress involved in the House banking scandal.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum served in the United States Senate representing Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2007. From 2001 until 2007, he was the Senate's third-ranking Republican. He was first elected to the Senate during the 1994 Republican takeover, narrowly defeating incumbent Democrat Harris Wofford, 49% to 47%. The theme of Santorum's 1994 campaign signs was "Join the Fight!" During the race, he was considered an underdog, as his opponent was 32 years his senior. He was reelected in 2000, defeating U.S. Congressman Ron Klink by a 52–46% margin. In his reelection bid of 2006, he lost to Democrat Bob Casey, Jr. by a 59–41% margin.


title: Rick Santorum

text: After his election to the Senate in 1994, Santorum sought to "practice what [he] preached" and hired five people for his staff who were on welfare, food stamps, or other government aid.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 1996, Santorum served as Chairman of the Republican Party Task Force on Welfare Reform, and contributed to legislation that became the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act. Santorum was an author and the floor manager of the bill. In 1996, Santorum endorsed moderate Republican Arlen Specter in his short-lived campaign for president. Reporters have observed that though Santorum and Specter differed on social policy, Specter provided him with key political staff for his successful run in 1994.


title: Rick Santorum

text: The National Taxpayers Union, a fiscal conservative organization, gave Santorum an "A−" score for his votes on fiscal issues, meaning that he was one of "the strongest supporters of responsible tax and spending policies" during his tenure, and ranked fifth in the group's rankings out of 50 senators who served at the same time.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2002, Santorum was a co-sponsor of that year's attempt to pass the Workplace Religious Freedom Act (WRFA). The bill had first been introduced in the Senate by Senator John Kerry (D-MA) in 1996, having been introduced in the House by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) in 1994. Although Santorum was in the Senate at the time, he was not a sponsor of the bill when it was introduced in 1996, or when it was reintroduced in 1997 and 1999. Once signed on as a co-sponsor, Santorum remained so throughout his tenure in the Senate.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum founded the Congressional Working Group on Religious Freedom in 2003. The group included members of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, and met monthly to address issues such as the Workplace Religious Freedom Act, tax-exempt status for churches, the CARE act, international religious freedom, and antisemitism.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum added to the 2001 No Child Left Behind bill a provision that would have provided more freedom to schools in teaching about the origins of life, including the teaching of the pseudoscience of intelligent design alongside evolution. The bill, with the Santorum Amendment included, passed the Senate 91–8 and was hailed as a victory by intelligent design promoters, but before it became law, scientific and educational groups successfully urged its conference committee to strike the Santorum Amendment from the final version. Intelligent design supporters in Congress then preserved the language of the Santorum Amendment in the conference committee report of the bill's legislative history. The Discovery Institute and other intelligent design proponents point to this report as "a clear endorsement by Congress of the importance of teaching a variety of scientific views about the theory of evolution."


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2002, Santorum called intelligent design "a legitimate scientific theory that should be taught in science classes", but by 2005 he had adopted the Teach the Controversy approach. He told National Public Radio, "I'm not comfortable with intelligent design being taught in the science classroom. What we should be teaching are the problems and holes ... in the theory of evolution." Later that year, Santorum resigned from the advisory board of the Christian-rights Thomas More Law Center after the Center's lawyers lost a case representing a school board that had required the teaching of intelligent design. Santorum, who had previously supported the school board's policy, indicated he had not realized that certain members of the board had been motivated by religious beliefs. Santorum critics said he was backtracking from his earlier position because he was facing a tough reelection fight in 2006. When asked in November 2011 about his views on evolution, Santorum stated that he believes that evolution occurred on a tiny, micro level.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum introduced the National Weather Service Duties Act of 2005, which aimed to prohibit the National Weather Service from releasing weather data to the public without charge where private-sector entities perform the same function commercially. The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association was organizing a lobbying effort in opposition to the legislation, but it never passed committee. The motivations for the bill were controversial, as employees of AccuWeather, a commercial weather company based in Pennsylvania, donated $10,500 to Santorum and his PAC. The liberal advocacy group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington cited the bill as one of several reasons for listing Santorum as one of its "most corrupt politicians". In support of the bill, Santorum criticized the National Weather Service in September 2005, saying its evacuation warnings for Hurricane Katrina were "insufficient".


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum supports the War on Terror and shares the views of neoconservatives and the Bush Doctrine in regard to foreign policy. He felt the War in Iraq was justified and in 2006 declared that weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) had been found in Iraq. Santorum made the declaration regarding WMDs based in part on declassified portions of the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command. The report stated that coalition forces had recovered approximately 500 weapons munitions that contain degraded or vacant mustard or sarin nerve agent casings. The specific weapons he referred to were chemical munitions dating back to the Iran–Iraq War that were buried in the early 1990s. The report stated that while agents had degraded to an unknown degree, they remained dangerous and possibly lethal. Officials of the Department of Defense, CIA intelligence analysts, and the White House have all explicitly stated that these expired casings were not part of the WMDs threat that the Iraq War was launched to contain.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum has said the war on terror can be won and is optimistic about U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan in the long term. He has defended the treatment of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, including waterboarding, and stated that John McCain, who opposes the practice, "doesn't understand how enhanced interrogation works." Santorum called the War in Afghanistan "a very winnable operation" in 2012, dismissing efforts for withdrawal by 2014. He similarly criticized President Obama's foreign policy, saying he was "not focused on trying to win the war" in Afghanistan, and said he was against any withdrawal in Iraq in 2012, saying, "We want victory."


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum supports U.S. political intervention and economic sanctions against state sponsors of terrorism. He views "Islamic fascism" in Iran as the center of the "world's conflict", and his geopolitical strategy for peace involves the United States promoting "a strong Lebanon, a strong Israel, and a strong Iraq." He sponsored the Syria Accountability Act of 2003 to require Syria to cease all activity with Lebanon and end all support for terrorism. In 2005, Santorum sponsored the Iran Freedom and Support Act, which appropriated $10 million aimed at regime change in Iran. The Act passed with overwhelming support. Santorum voted against the Lautenberg amendment, which would have closed the loophole that allows companies like Halliburton to do business with Iran through their foreign affiliates. Santorum reflected on his last year in the Senate as one spent talking a lot about Iran and was characterized by "The Atlantic Wire" as an "extreme hawk" in his approach to Iran. Santorum stated that Iran was the creator of Hezbollah and the driving force of Hamas. He said Iran was at the center of "much of the world's conflict" but he was opposed to direct military action against the country in 2006. Santorum was one of only two senators who voted against confirming Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense. He said his objection was to Gates's support for talking with Iran and Syria, because it would be an error to talk with radical Islamists.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum became chairman of the Senate Republican Conference in 2000, the party's third-ranking leadership position in the Senate. In that role, he directed Senate Republicans' communications operations and was a frequent party spokesperson. He was the youngest member of the Senate leadership and the first Pennsylvanian to hold such a prominent position since Senator Hugh Scott was Republican leader in the 1970s. In addition, Santorum served on the Senate Agriculture Committee; the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs; the Senate Special Committee on Aging; and the Senate Finance Committee, of which he was the chairman of the Subcommittee on Social Security and Family Policy. He also sat at the candy desk for ten years.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In January 2005, Santorum announced his intention to run for Senate Republican Whip, the second-highest post in the Republican caucus after the 2006 election, saying he expected the incumbent whip, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, to run for Senate Republican leader to succeed Bill Frist of Tennessee, who was planning to retire. As a result of Santorum's loss in the 2006 election, this plan was never realized.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Beginning in 1995, Republicans leaders such as Tom DeLay and Grover Norquist initiated an order to place Republicans in lobbying firm jobs and exclude Democrats. In addition, the initiative pressured lobbying firms to contribute to Republican campaigns by withholding access to lawmakers from firms that did not comply. The initiative became politically toxic for Republicans when the Jack Abramoff scandal broke in late 2004. Although some sources indicate that Santorum played a key role in the K Street Project, he has denied any involvement. In November 2005, several months after the indictments of Abramoff and DeLay, Santorum told the "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette", "The K Street project is purely to make sure we have qualified applicants for positions that are in town. From my perspective, it's a good government thing." A few months later, however, Santorum emphatically denied any connection with either the K Street Project or Norquist, saying: "I had absolutely nothing to do—never met, never talked, never coordinated, never did anything—with Grover Norquist and the quote K Street Project." In January 2012, "The Washington Post"'s "Fact Checker" concluded that "we can't prove definitively whether or not Santorum collaborated on the K Street Project", saying that it "depend[ed] on how you define the initiative".


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2006, Santorum sought reelection to a third Senate term. He ran unopposed in the Republican Party. His seat was considered among the most vulnerable for Republicans and was a prime target of the Democratic Party in the 2006 elections. George W. Bush had a 38% approval rating in Pennsylvania in 2006. Mary Isenhour, a Democratic strategist, reflected on Santorum's campaign and his connection to the unpopular president, "In 2006, we were doubly blessed—we could run against George W. Bush and Rick Santorum". Santorum chose to campaign alongside George W. Bush and called him a "terrific president", hurting his popularity. Also problematic was Santorum's 2004 endorsement of his Republican Senate colleague Arlen Specter over conservative Congressman Pat Toomey in the primary for Pennsylvania's other Senate seat. Many socially and fiscally conservative Republicans considered the endorsement a betrayal of their cause.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum's opponent was Democratic State Treasurer Bob Casey, Jr., the son of popular former governor Robert Casey, Sr. Casey was well known for his opposition to abortion, negating one of Santorum's key issues. For most of the campaign, Santorum trailed Casey by 15 points or more in polls. Green Party candidate Carl Romanelli failed to gain ballot access in the race, further hurting Santorum's chances. Reportedly, several of Santorum's supporters had funded and petitioned for Romanelli to siphon away Democrats from Casey.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum was mired in controversy and spent much of his time on the campaign defending his past statements and positions. He faced criticism from Casey and others for several statements in his book "It Takes a Family", including his denunciation of 1960s "radical feminism", which he said had made it "socially affirming to work outside the home" at the expense of child care. In the book, Santorum also compared pro-choice Americans to "German Nazis." John Brabender, an adviser to Santorum's Senate and presidential races, reflected back on the book's controversies and said Santorum was warned that sections could bring political damage, and Santorum was not willing to change much of it simply to gain moderate supporters. In addition, a past article Santorum wrote to "The Catholic Online" in which he linked liberalism and moral relativism in American society, particularly within seminaries, to the Roman Catholic Church sex abuse scandal resurfaced in 2005. He wrote, "It is no surprise that Boston, a seat of academic, political and cultural liberalism in America, lies at the center of the storm." His remarks were heavily criticized, especially in Massachusetts, and he was asked for an explanation. Santorum did not retract his statement and defended his premise that it was "no surprise that the center of the Catholic Church abuse took place in very liberal, or perhaps the nation's most liberal area, Boston." Casey also raised the question of Santorum's association with the K Street Project.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum said he spent "maybe a month a year" at his Pennsylvania home, raising allegations of hypocrisy as he had denounced his former opponent Doug Walgren for living away from his House district. Critics also complained that Pennsylvania taxpayers were paying 80% of the tuition for five of Santorum's children to attend an online "cyber school"—a benefit available only to Pennsylvania residents—when all his children lived in Virginia. The Penn Hills School District, which covered the tuition costs for the cyber school through local taxes, unsuccessfully filed a complaint against Santorum for reimbursement in 2005, but won reimbursement from the state in September 2006 in the amount of $55,000. In response, Santorum asked county officials to remove the homestead tax exemption from his Penn Hills property, saying he was entitled to it but chose not to take it because of the political dispute. Since 2006, Santorum has been home-schooling his seven children. Santorum responded to the dispute saying that his children should not be implicated in the "politics of personal destruction". One of his children appeared in a 2006 reelection campaign ad, saying, "My dad's opponents have criticized him for moving us to Washington so we could be with him more."


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum ran a television ad suggesting that Casey's supporters had been under investigation for various crimes. The negative ad backfired, as "The Scranton Times-Tribune" found that all but a few of Casey's contributors donated when he was running for other offices, and none were investigated for anything. In fact, two of the persons cited in Santorum's campaign ad actually contributed to Santorum in 2006, and one died in 2004. Santorum's campaign countered that those donations were not kept and had been donated to educational institutions.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Toward the end of his campaign, Santorum shifted his theme to the threat of radical Islam. In October 2006 he gave a "Gathering Storm" speech, invoking British Prime Minister Winston Churchill's description of Europe prior to World War II. As evidence that Islamists were waging a more-than-300-year-old crusade against the Western world, Santorum pointed to September 11, 1683, the date of the Battle of Vienna. Casey responded, "No one believes terrorists are going to be more likely to attack us because I defeat Rick Santorum." Noting that he had been "even more hawkish" during this time period than President Bush, Santorum later said, "Maybe that wasn't the smartest political strategy, spending the last few months running purely on national security".


title: Rick Santorum

text: A heated debate between the candidates occurred on October 11, 2006. Bill Toland of the "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette" described both candidates' performances during the debate as "unstatesmanlike".


title: Rick Santorum

text: In the November 7, 2006, election, Santorum lost by over 700,000 votes, receiving 41% of the vote to Casey's 59%. This was the largest margin of defeat for a sitting senator in the 2006 cycle, and the largest margin of defeat for an incumbent senator since 1980.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In January 2007, Santorum joined the Ethics and Public Policy Center, a D.C.-based conservative think tank, as director of its America's Enemies Program focusing on foreign threats to the United States, including Islamic fascism, Venezuela, North Korea and Russia. In February 2007, he signed a deal to become a contributor on the Fox News Channel, offering commentary on politics and public policy. In March 2007 he joined Eckert Seamans, where he primarily practiced law in the firm's Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., offices, providing business and strategic counseling services to the firm's clients. In 2007, he joined the Board of Directors of Universal Health Services, a hospital management company based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. He also began writing an op-ed column, "The Elephant in the Room", for "The Philadelphia Inquirer".


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum earned $1.3 million in 2010 and the first half of 2011. The largest portion of his earnings—$332,000—came from his work as a consultant for industry interest groups, including Consol Energy and American Continental Group. Santorum also earned $395,414 in corporate director's fees and stock options from Universal Health Services and $217,385 in income from the Ethics and Public Policy Center. In 2010 he was paid $23,000 by "The Philadelphia Inquirer" for his work as a columnist.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In January 2017, Santorum became a CNN senior political commentator. In April 2021, he claimed at an April 23 Young America's Foundation event that "There isn't much Native American culture in American culture. We came here and created a blank slate. We birthed a Nation. From nothing. I mean there was nothing here." Santorum's comments, which were described as racist, led to calls for CNN to terminate his contract, which the network did days later.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Before the 2006 election, Santorum was frequently mentioned as a possible 2008 presidential candidate. Such speculation faded when, during the 2006 campaign and in light of unimpressive poll numbers in his Senate race, he declared that, if reelected, he would serve a full term. After he lost, Santorum once again ruled out a presidential run.


title: Rick Santorum

text: On February 1, 2008, Santorum said he would vote for Mitt Romney in the 2008 Republican presidential primary. Santorum criticized John McCain, questioning his anti-abortion voting record and conservative values. Santorum later said he endorsed Romney because he saw him as the "best chance to stop John McCain", whom he considered too moderate. In September 2008, Santorum expressed support for McCain as the nominee, citing McCain's choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate as a step in the right direction.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum was mentioned as a candidate for governor of Pennsylvania in 2010. At one point, he was said to have "quietly but efficiently put his fingerprints on a wide array of conservative causes in the state." Santorum declined to seek the gubernatorial nomination and instead endorsed eventual winner Tom Corbett.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In the fall of 2009, Santorum gave a speech at the University of Dubuque on the economy, fueling speculation that he would run for president in 2012. Santorum later recalled, "It got a lot of buzz on the Internet, so I thought, 'Wow, maybe there's some interest'". He decided to campaign after multiple conversations with his wife, who was not enthusiastic at first.


title: Rick Santorum

text: On September 11, 2009, Santorum spoke to Catholic leaders in Orlando, Florida, saying that the 2012 presidential elections were going to be "a real opportunity for success." He then scheduled various appearances in Iowa with political nonprofit organizations.


title: Rick Santorum

text: On January 15, 2010, Santorum sent an email and letter to supporters of his political action committee, saying, "I'm convinced that conservatives need a candidate who will not only stand up for our views, but who can articulate a conservative vision for our country's future". He continued, "And right now, I just don't see anyone stepping up to the plate. I have no great burning desire to be president, but I have a burning desire to have a different president of the United States". He formed a presidential exploratory committee on April 13, 2011. Santorum also mentioned his grandfather's historical encounter with Italian fascism as an inspiration for his presidential campaign.


title: Rick Santorum

text: He formally announced his run for the Republican presidential nomination on ABC's "Good Morning America" on June 6, 2011, saying he was "in it to win." He initially lagged in the polls but gained as other conservative candidates slumped. By the weekend before the Iowa caucuses, polls showed him in the top three along with Romney and Ron Paul. The "Des Moines Register" also noted that the momentum was with Santorum. In the closest finish in the history of the Iowa caucuses, the count on the night put Romney as winner by a margin of eight votes, but the final result announced two weeks later showed that Santorum had won by 34 votes. Santorum later focused on the states holding votes on February 7, a strategy that paid off, as he won all three. Santorum surged in polls taken shortly after, ranking first in some and a close second in others. In the March 13 primaries, Santorum narrowly won both Mississippi and Alabama and followed up with a victory in Louisiana on March 24.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Following the hospitalization of his daughter Bella and losses in Wisconsin, Maryland, and the District of Columbia, Santorum announced the suspension of his campaign on April 10, 2012, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. He had won 11 state primaries and nearly 4 million votes, more than any other candidate except Romney. Santorum topped Romney in polls for a brief period. Upon the conclusion of Santorum's run, Romney called him "an important voice" in the GOP.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum received a prime time speaking slot at the 2012 Republican National Convention. He was originally slated to speak early in the evening, but convention organizers moved him to 9 pm with the other highly anticipated speakers of the evening, Ann Romney and convention keynote Chris Christie. Santorum spoke of the American dream his immigrant grandfather worked to give his family and said Obama was turning the dream into a nightmare. He talked about his experiences on the presidential campaign trail, speaking with emotion about his daughter Bella and meeting disabled people and their families. He emphasized the importance of strengthening marriage and the family. He also condemned Obama's actions on the welfare reform law, of which he was one of the chief proponents in Congress, and his actions on education, including school choice and student loans. Santorum concluded his speech to a standing ovation, saying,


title: Rick Santorum

text: In June 2012, Santorum launched Patriot Voices, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit with a mission to "mobilize conservatives around this country who are committed to promoting faith, family, freedom and opportunity" in support of causes and candidates across the country. Santorum supported U.S. Senate candidates Ted Cruz in Texas and Richard Mourdock in Indiana in their respective Republican primaries; both won. In the general elections, Patriot Voices endorsed eight U.S. Senate candidates and four House candidates. In Iowa's 2012 retention elections Santorum lent support to the "NO Wiggins" effort to oust Iowa Supreme Court Justice David Wiggins, who they say promulgated a personal political agenda in the court. They have also been vocal in opposition to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which they say threatens parental rights and U.S. sovereignty.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In August 2021 Santorum became a Senior Advisor to the Convention of States Project of Citizens for Self-Governance. "As Senior Advisor, Rick is counseling us on strategy, will serve as a public voice for the surging Convention of States movement, and will focus his incredible energy on restoring our nation and returning the proper balance to our republic," said Mark Meckler, head of the Convention of States Project.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In June 2013, Santorum became Chairman and CEO of EchoLight Studios, a Dallas-based Christian movie company. Santorum has produced the Christmas-themed movie "The Christmas Candle" and the religious liberty film "One Generation Away".


title: Rick Santorum

text: Appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press" on August 4, 2013, Santorum said, "I'm open to looking into a presidential race in 2016." He outlined plans for a potential 2016 run in an interview with "The Washington Post", and officially announced his candidacy on May 27, 2015. After performing poorly in the Iowa caucuses, Santorum ended his campaign on February 3, 2016, and endorsed Florida senator Marco Rubio. After Rubio suspended his campaign, Santorum endorsed Donald Trump.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In May 2021, Santorum stated that America was founded by white Europeans and that prior to their arrival, America was populated by nothing more than a handful of primitive warring Native American tribes. He was dropped from CNN over these remarks, with some responses referring to them as "classic white supremacist rhetoric" and being "dangerous manipulation". In response, Santorum said he had “misspoke” and denied that he was “trying to dismiss [the genocide of] Native Americans”.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In his 2005 book "It Takes a Family", Santorum advocated a society oriented toward "family values" and centered on monogamous, heterosexual relationships, marriage, and child raising. He opposes both same-sex marriage and civil unions, saying the American public and their elected officials should decide on these "incredibly important moral issues" rather than the Supreme Court.


title: Rick Santorum

text: During a 2003 interview, Santorum expressed opposition to same-sex marriage, said he favors having laws against polygamy, sodomy (between same sex or opposite sex couples), and other actions "antithetical to a healthy, stable, traditional family", and likened homosexuality to bestiality and child sexual abuse. The remarks drew a retaliatory response from many, including author, journalist, and LGBT community activist Dan Savage, who launched a contest to coin a "santorum" neologism among the readers of his blog. The website Savage set up for the campaign became one of the top search results for Santorum's surname, creating a situation that commentators dubbed "Santorum's Google problem". Santorum has characterized the campaign as a "type of vulgarity" spread on the Internet. In September 2011, Santorum unsuccessfully requested that Google remove the content from its search engine index. In 2015, during an interview on "The Rachel Maddow Show", he expressed regret for making the "man-on-dog" statement, which he described as "flippant," but added: "[T]he substance of what I said... I stand by that."


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2011, during his bid for the Republican nomination in the upcoming presidential election, Santorum attended a Republican primary debate held two days after the official end of the Clinton-era "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that effectively banned gays and lesbians from open service in the United States Armed Forces and fielded a question from Stephen Snyder-Hill, a gay soldier then serving in Iraq, about the progress made by gay soldiers in the military. The soldier was booed by some in the audience, and Santorum said his administration would reinstate the ban on gay soldiers in the military. Santorum was roundly criticized for not supporting the soldier, and he later asserted he had not heard the booing from the stage.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2015, Santorum signed an online pledge vowing not to respect any law, including any decision by the United States Supreme Court, conferring legal recognition on same-sex marriage. The pledge states, in part: "A decision purporting to redefine marriage flies in the face of the Constitution and is contrary to the natural created order. As people of faith we pledge obedience to our Creator when the State directly conflicts with higher law." In April 2015, Santorum stated on Hugh Hewitt's radio program that he would not attend a same-sex wedding, saying: "as a person of my faith, that would be something that would be a violation of my faith."


title: Rick Santorum

text: A Republican convention in South Carolina in 2015, Santorum responded to a question about Caitlyn Jenner by saying: "if [Jenner] says he's a woman, then he's a woman. My responsibility as a human being is to love and accept everybody. Not to criticize people for who they are." Due to Santorum's consistent opposition to same-sex marriage, his apparent acceptance of Jenner's transition surprised some. Some people criticized Santorum for continuing to use the male pronoun in reference to Jenner. Santorum declined to take a position on whether transgender people should be allowed to use restrooms of the gender of their choice, saying only that he believed the federal government should leave the issue to local authorities. Santorum later clarified his statement, writing that he "meant to express empathy", and "not a change in public policy."


title: Rick Santorum

text: Although he was raised in a nominally Catholic household, Santorum's faith began to deepen when he met his future wife, Karen. By his account, conversations with her father, Kenneth Garver, a staunch Catholic and abortion opponent, solidified his understanding and opposition to abortion. He and his wife have since become increasingly religious. Santorum now considers himself a devout Catholic and acknowledges his faith as the source of his politics and worldview. He attends Mass almost daily and organized a Catholic study group for lawmakers while in Congress.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum proudly calls himself a culture warrior and true Christian conservative. In so positioning himself, he has garnered popularity among Protestant evangelicals, but his support among Catholics is not as robust. Santorum's emphasis on his "Christian roots" was especially favored by evangelicals in the Midwest and Southern states during the 2012 primaries, although he lost the Republican Catholic vote in most states to Romney. Exit polls found only 42% of those Catholics and less than a third of Protestant evangelicals knew Santorum was Catholic. After Santorum won Protestant-majority states Alabama and Mississippi but lost in heavily Catholic Puerto Rico, "The Huffington Post" said he "seemed exasperated by the trend" and said his base support came from "people who take their faith seriously", not necessarily fellow Catholics.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum has written for Catholic publications and frequently comments on political issues from a religious standpoint. He has said, "I don't believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute. The First Amendment means the free exercise of religion and that means bringing people and their faith into the public square." In an interview with the "National Catholic Reporter", Santorum said that the distinction between private religious conviction and public responsibility, espoused by President John F. Kennedy, had caused "great harm in America". He said: "All of us have heard people say, 'I privately am against abortion, homosexual marriage, stem cell research, cloning. But who am I to decide that it's not right for somebody else?' It sounds good, but it is the corruption of freedom of conscience." He told a group of college students in 2008 that the United States had been founded on "Judeo-Christian" ethics, and now "it is a shambles, it is gone from the world of Christianity as I see it."


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum has said he values faith over politics and considers politicians' faith significant. He questioned whether Barack Obama truly has a religion, alleging that he may have chosen Christianity as a politically expedient platform for power. Santorum has said that "if the president says he's a Christian, he's a Christian" but has stated that Obama's agenda is based on a "phony theology", not the Bible. In an interview with Glenn Beck, Santorum said Obama's desire for greater higher education rates nationwide was a veiled attempt at "indoctrination", saying that "62 percent of kids who go into college with a faith commitment leave without it." Santorum declined to provide a source for that figure. He believes colleges reinforce secular relativism and antagonize religiosity, particularly Christianity, and lists young people's support for abortion, gay marriage, and pornography as "symptoms" of indoctrination.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum has consistently held socially conservative views and has advocated "compassionate conservatism". He has a more mixed record on fiscal issues. As a member of Congress, he voted for the Bush tax cuts, favored a balanced budget amendment and sought to curb entitlements, playing a key role in enacting welfare cuts. He has been criticized for supporting costly federal programs in education and transportation and for using earmarks to fund Pennsylvania projects. He says he regrets many of his votes for such programs and opposes earmarks. He has also specifically disavowed his 2003 support for the unfunded Medicare prescription drug benefit and his vote for the No Child Left Behind Act.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2003, he was described by the "Pennsylvania Report" as having a "confrontational, partisan, 'in your face' style of politics and government." "I just don't take the pledge. I take the bullets", Santorum said. "I stand out in front and I lead to make sure the voices of those who do not have a voice are out in front and being included in the national debate."


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum considered himself pro-choice on abortion throughout his early life but adopted an anti-abortion position by 1990 when he ran for Congress. He has become known for his staunch opposition to abortion. In 2015, he said, "'I do not "believe" life begins at conception. I "know" life begins at conception. This is not a matter of debate. It's not a matter of faith ... Every child at the moment of conception is both living—that embryo is metabolizing—and it is ... genetically completely human"'. During a 2016 presidential debate, Santorum said, "'Twice in my life we were counseled to have an abortion—once with our son Gabriel and one with our little girl, Bella ... Neither time did Karen (Santorum's wife) and I even think about [an abortion], because we know life begins at conception'".


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 1996, Santorum led the unsuccessful attempt to override President Bill Clinton's veto of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 1995, He also sponsored a similar bill in 1999. Santorum was a lead sponsor of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, which was signed into law by President George W. Bush in November 2003 and upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States in the 2007 decision "Gonzales v. Carhart".


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum has condemned the term "middle class" as "Marxism talk" used by liberals, maintaining that the United States has no social classes. At an August 2013 GOP fundraiser in Rock Rapids, Iowa, he said, "Don't use the term the other side uses... [t]he middle class... Since when in America do we have classes? Since when in America are people stuck in areas or defined places called a class? That's Marxism talk... When Republicans get up and talk about middle class, we're buying into their rhetoric of dividing America. Stop it. There's no class in America. Call them on it."


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum has said he does not believe a "right to privacy" is part of the Constitution. He has criticized the Supreme Court decision in "Griswold v. Connecticut" (1965), which held that the Constitution guaranteed that right and overturned a law prohibiting the sale of contraceptives to married couples. Santorum has asserted that the right to privacy set forth in "Griswold" was a "jurisprudential novelty [that] quickly become a constitutional wrecking ball" and eventually led the Court to recognize a constitutional right to abortion in "Roe v. Wade" (1973). In critiquing "Griswold", Santorum emphasized that he did not support laws banning contraceptives. Santorum has, however, described contraception as "a license to do things in [the] sexual realm that [are] counter to how things are supposed to be."


title: Rick Santorum

text: In March 2005, Santorum expressed misgivings about the death penalty in light of wrongly convicted individuals who were sentenced to death. He went on to say, "I agree with the Pope that in the civilized world... the application of the death penalty should be limited. I would definitely agree with that. I would certainly suggest there probably should be some further limits on what we use it for." In January 2012, Santorum said that "when there is certainty, that's the case that capital punishment can be used" but that "if there is not certainty, under the law, it shouldn't be used."


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum used cannabis in college, but later said, "Even during that time, I knew that what I was doing was wrong." He is against the legalization of cannabis and believes that the federal law against it should be enforced in Colorado. He has voted in favor of increasing penalties for drug trafficking and possession and for increased spending on drug control.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum rejects the overwhelming scientific consensus on climate change, which states that global warming is harmful and primarily human-caused, calling it "junk science". He has claimed that global warming is a "beautifully concocted scheme" by the political left and "an excuse for more government control of your life."


title: Rick Santorum

text: In reaction to Pope Francis's encyclical "Laudato si'", which acknowledges man-made climate change and calls for swift and unified global policies to phase out fossil fuels, Santorum said in 2015: "The Church has gotten it wrong a few times on science, and I think we probably are better off leaving science to the scientists and focusing on what we're good at, which is theology and morality."


title: Rick Santorum

text: He has stated a policy of "drill everywhere" for oil and that there is "enough oil, coal and natural gas to last for centuries".


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2012, Santorum said that half of all euthanizations in the Netherlands are involuntary, that Dutch hospitals euthanize elderly patients for financial reasons, and that 10% of all deaths in the Netherlands are the result of involuntary euthanizations. Santorum's statements were called "bogus" by FactCheck.org, and Glenn Kessler, fact-checker for "The Washington Post", said there was no evidence to support them. Santorum's comments were met with a significant backlash in the Netherlands and were heavily criticized worldwide.


title: Rick Santorum

text: As U.S. representative from Pennsylvania, in each year from 1992 through 1994 Santorum received a grade of B, and as U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania he received grades of A from 1995 through 1997, B+ in 1998 and 1999, B in 2000, A from 2001 through 2004, B in 2005, and B+ in 2006 from the National Taxpayers Union, a conservative taxpayers advocacy organization.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum, who received nearly $116,000 from the gun lobby from 1990 to 2017, has consistently supported gun rights. Santorum is an advocate of the right to bear arms. He is also a defender of gun manufacturers, and voted for the 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (Bill S 397), which prevents civil suits from being brought against gun manufacturers for criminal acts perpetrated with their weapons. On March 25, 2018, in response to the "March for Our Lives", Santorum told CNN that rather than marching the students should "take CPR classes" instead of "looking to someone else to solve their problems." "Columbia Journalism Review" called the comment "asinine on its face," but said that, even so, the response from doctors, journalists and students about the "stupid" comment was excessive.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2015, Santorum called for more restrictions on family-based immigration after warning of a "flood of legal—not illegal—immigrants to our country", which he blamed for depressing the median income of American workers.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 2006, Santorum opposed the Senate's immigration reform proposal, saying the U.S. should simply act to enforce currently existing laws. He has openly stated his opposition to amnesty for illegal immigrants. He supports the construction of a barrier along the U.S.–Mexican border, an increase in the number of border patrol agents, and the stationing of National Guard troops along the border. He also believes that illegal immigrants should be deported immediately when they commit crimes and that undocumented immigrants should not receive benefits from the government. He believes English should be established as the national language in the United States. Santorum cites his own family's history (his father immigrated to the U.S. from Italy) as proof of how to immigrate "the right way".


title: Rick Santorum

text: At the 2015 Iowa Freedom Summit, Santorum said the volume of legal immigration into the United States is also too high, and stated that the number of immigrants lawfully entering the country was "affecting American workers" by taking jobs and lowering wages. Santorum claimed that all "net new jobs" created in the United States economy since 2000 have gone to immigrants (both legal and illegal). At the Iowa Freedom Summit, Santorum said: "We need an immigration policy that puts American workers first."


title: Rick Santorum

text: In June 2011, Santorum said he would continue to "fight very strongly against libertarian influence within the Republican Party and the conservative movement." In an interview with NPR in the summer of 2005, Santorum discussed what he called the "libertarianish right", saying "they have this idea that people should be left alone, be able to do whatever they want to do. Government should keep our taxes down and keep our regulation low and that we shouldn't get involved in the bedroom, we shouldn't get involved in cultural issues, you know, people should do whatever they want. Well, that is not how traditional conservatives view the world, and I think most conservatives understand that individuals can't go it alone."


title: Rick Santorum

text: During his 2016 presidential campaign, Santorum came out in support of an increase in the federal minimum wage. In September 2015, he said, "'Republicans are losing elections because we aren't talking about [workers], all we want to talk about is what happened to business, there are people that work in those businesses.'"


title: Rick Santorum

text: On his website, Santorum said that the "Obama Administration has turned a blind eye" to pornography, but promised the situation would "change under a Santorum Administration." According to "USA Today", some conservatives believe Santorum's opposition to pornography could "hurt the party politically." On March 23, 2012, Santorum wrote on his campaign website that there is "a wealth of research" demonstrating that pornography causes "profound brain changes" and widespread negative effects on children and adults, including violence to women. Researchers say that there is no such evidence of brain changes, although pornography's harmfulness "is still in dispute."


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum defended his assertions by saying that "the Obama Department of Justice seems to favor pornographers over children and families", and that the department's failure to prosecute the porn industry "proves his point." He then said that Obama has not put a priority on tackling the porn industry, "putting children at risk as a result of that." In a position paper circulated in March 2012, Santorum said he would order his attorney general to "vigorously enforce" existing laws that "prohibit distribution of hardcore (obscene) pornography on the Internet, on cable/satellite TV, on hotel/motel TV, in retail shops and through the mail or by common carrier."


title: Rick Santorum

text: While in Congress, Santorum supported efforts to fight global HIV/AIDS, provide assistance to orphans and vulnerable children in developing countries, combat genocide in Sudan, and offer third world debt relief. In 2006, rock musician and humanitarian Bono said of Santorum, "he has been a defender of the most vulnerable." On the domestic front, Santorum supported home ownership tax credits, savings accounts for children, rewarding savings by low-income families, funding autism research, fighting tuberculosis, and providing housing for people with HIV/AIDS. He supported increased funding for Social Services Block Grants and organizations like Healthy Start and the Children's Aid Society, and financing community health centers.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum supported partial privatization of Social Security, and following President Bush's reelection, he held forums across Pennsylvania on the topic.


title: Rick Santorum

text: The Cato Institute's Center for Trade Policy Studies identified Santorum, during his U.S. Senate tenure, as having a mostly pro-free trade and mostly anti-subsidies voting record.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum met his future wife, Karen Garver (born 1960), while she was a neo-natal nurse studying law at the University of Pittsburgh and he was recruiting summer interns for Kirkpatrick & Lockhart. They married in 1990 and have seven living children.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In 1996, the Santorums' son Gabriel was born prematurely after 20 weeks of pregnancy and died in the hospital two hours later. Karen wrote that she and Rick slept with Gabriel's body between them in the hospital that night and brought his body home the following day so that their other children could see him. The Santorums' four eldest children appeared with their parents on "Piers Morgan Tonight" in January 2012. Elizabeth, who was five at the time of Gabriel's death, said she was glad to have seen him, and that he holds a place in her heart.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum traveled, in 2002, to Rome to speak at a centenary celebration of the birth of Saint Josemaría Escrivá, founder of Opus Dei. He and his wife were invested as Knight and Dame of Magistral Grace of the Knights of Malta in a ceremony at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York on November 12, 2004.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum's net worth has been estimated between $880,000 and $3 million, which is mainly held as five rental properties around Penn State University, two personal homes in Great Falls and Penn Hills, and some IRAs. In 1997, Santorum purchased a three-bedroom house in the Pittsburgh suburb of Penn Hills. In 2001, he bought a $640,000 house in Leesburg, Virginia, sold it in 2007 for $850,000, and purchased a $2 million home in Great Falls, Virginia.


title: Rick Santorum

text: According to "The Washington Post", Santorum has paid $50,000 per year out of pocket for medical expenses not covered by insurance for his daughter Isabella. The Santorums once paid $25,000 to have Isabella airlifted from a Virginia hospital to a children's hospital in Philadelphia.


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum has written four books: "It Takes a Family: Conservatism and the Common Good" (2005); "American Patriots: Answering the Call to Freedom" (2012); "Blue Collar Conservatives: Recommitting to an America That Works" (2014); and "Bella's Gift: How One Little Girl Transformed Our Family and Inspired a Nation" (2015). In addition to Santorum's books, a collection of his speeches as a U.S. senator was published and released by Monument Press in 2005 under the title "Rick Santorum: A Senator Speaks Out on Life, Freedom, and Responsibility".


title: Rick Santorum

text: Santorum also wrote a foreword to William A. Dembski's 2006 "Darwin's Nemesis: Phillip Johnson and the Intelligent Design Movement" and a 2006 autobiography.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In "It Takes a Family", Santorum argues that the traditional family is the foundation of society. Santorum criticizes alike laissez-faire conservatives and liberal proponents of social welfare for promoting a radical view of autonomy. In particular, he criticizes the "bigs" – "big government, big media, big entertainment, big universities." The book became a "New York Times" bestseller.


title: Rick Santorum

text: "American Patriots" tells the stories of 25 lesser-known Americans from the American Revolution. Santorum writes, "Most Americans know something about our Founding Fathers and their role in creating the government of the United States. However, most know little about the day-to-day battles fought by Americans of all backgrounds that paved the way for the high ideals of our founders to be put into practice." He also writes, "Today we are facing a threat to the very foundation our founders laid. That threat does not come from an alien force but from those who are willing and determined to abandon the concept of God-given rights. Like the royalty during the Revolution, today's elites wish to return to the pre-Revolutionary paradigm in which they, through governmental force, allocate rights and responsibilities."


title: Rick Santorum

text: "Blue Collar Conservatives" departs from traditional Republican orthodoxy and says that the Republican Party must appeal to blue collar Americans. He says, "As many as six million blue collar voters stayed home from the polls, and there's good reason to believe that a large majority of them would have voted Republican if they had voted." Santorum puts forward a recipe for Republican success in which Republicans advocate for workers and not just corporations. He says that many middle class workers who have been forced into part-time jobs at big box stores or even into public assistance programs are amenable to the GOP's message if it is presented in relatable terms. He tackles education, saying the current system of government-run schools is a "relic of the late 19th century" and that children should not be pressured into going to college when a job or vocational training would be a better option. He criticizes libertarian influence in the Republican Party, saying, "There are some in my party who have taken the ideal of individualism to such an extreme that they have forgotten the obligation to look out for our fellow man." He says the GOP should be less quick to dismiss concerns over decreasing social and economic mobility, saying that large businesses and stocks are strong, while life has become "a trickle" for workers. He questions rich compensation of business executives, and says that while he supports free trade, Republicans need to look at its impact on the average person and consider whether existing laws are fair.


title: Rick Santorum

text: In January 2015, Santorum announced "Bella's Gift: How One Little Girl Transformed Our Family and Inspired a Nation", a book about his daughter Bella, who lives with a rare genetic condition called Trisomy 18. The book is authored by Santorum and his wife, Karen Santorum, and co-authored by their daughter, Elizabeth Santorum. It was released February 10, 2015.


title: The Pink Panther (2006 film)

text: The Pink Panther is a 2006 American comedy-mystery film and a reboot of "The Pink Panther" franchise, marking the tenth installment in the series. It is also the first "Pink Panther" film to be released since "Son of the Pink Panther" released in 1993. In this film, Inspector Jacques Clouseau is assigned to solve the murder of a famous football coach and the theft of the famous Pink Panther diamond. The film was directed by Shawn Levy, stars Steve Martin as Clouseau and also co-stars Kevin Kline, Jean Reno, Emily Mortimer, and Beyoncé Knowles.


title: The Pink Panther (2006 film)

text: The film received mostly negative reviews but was a commercial success, earning $164million worldwide. "The Pink Panther" was released theatrically on February 10, 2006, and was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 13, 2006. A sequel was released on February 6, 2009.


title: The Pink Panther (2006 film)

text: At a football match between France and China, France coach Yves Gluant arrives wearing the priceless Pink Panther diamond ring and embraces his girlfriend, pop star Xania. After France wins in sudden death, Gluant is killed by a poison dart, with the Pink Panther nowhere to be found.


title: The Pink Panther (2006 film)

text: Eager to win the "Légion d'honneur", Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus promotes clumsy policeman and village idiot Jacques Clouseau to the rank of inspector and assigns him to the case. While Clouseau draws the media's attention, Dreyfus assembles a secret team to actually crack the case and assigns Gendarme Gilbert Ponton to keep an eye on Clouseau. Clouseau befriends Ponton and falls in love with secretary Nicole Durant.


title: The Pink Panther (2006 film)

text: Although Clouseau makes little progress in the case, due to his clumsiness, he still discovers that many people hated Gluant and even wanted to kill him. Bizu, a France player who blamed Gluant for "stealing away" Xania, is the prime murder suspect until he is shot in the head in the team's locker room. While gathering information at a casino, Clouseau meets MI6 006 agent Nigel Boswell, who foils a robbery while wearing Clouseau's trench coat; Clouseau mistakenly receives credit and is nominated for the "Légion d'honneur".


title: The Pink Panther (2006 film)

text: After following Xania to New York City, Ponton insists she is a suspect because Gluant cheated on her, but Clouseau believes she is innocent, though her actions cause him to believe she knows more than she is letting on. The poison that killed Gluant is found to have been derived from Chinese herbs, leading Dreyfus to conclude that the killer is a Chinese envoy named Dr. Pang, whom Gluant had several dealings with. Dreyfus has Clouseau's bag swapped for one full of weapons at the airport, and Clouseau is arrested (primarily due to his inability to say "hamburger" correctly, having attempted to smuggle some onto the flight back) and vilified by the press on his return to France. Dreyfus demotes Clouseau and plots to publicly arrest Dr. Pang at the Presidential Ball, where Xania will perform.


title: The Pink Panther (2006 film)

text: Clouseau sees an article online about his arrest and deduces that Gluant and Bizu were killed by the same person. Realizing that Xania will be the killer's next target, Clouseau, Ponton and Nicole hurry to the Élysée Palace and sneak into the Presidential Ball. While Dreyfus errantly arrests Dr. Pang, Clouseau and Ponton save Xania's life by capturing her would-be assassin: Yuri, the France team's trainer. Jealous and feeling overlooked for the team's success, Yuri used his mandated knowledge of Chinese herbs to kill Gluant by jabbing the poison dart into his neck during their celebration. He later killed Bizu, who long suspected that Yuri might try to kill Gluant and attempted to blackmail him, by using his Russian army training to target the player's occipital lobe, and then targeted Xania for ignoring him and dating Gluant.


title: The Pink Panther (2006 film)

text: Clouseau reveals that the Pink Panther was not stolen but instead sewn into the lining of Xania's purse; the photograph of Clouseau's arrest showed an X-ray of the purse at airport security. Xania confesses that Gluant gave her the diamond as an engagement ring just before the France-China match, but after his murder, she was worried that the public would assume she was responsible if she came forward with the ring. Clouseau concludes that Xania is the ring's rightful owner, and Yuri is taken into custody.