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Santorum Endorses Romney

Back in their sparring days: Rick Santorum (left) and Mitt Romney during a Feb. 22, 2012, Republican presidential debate in Arizona.
Don Emmert
/
AFP/Getty Images
Back in their sparring days: Rick Santorum (left) and Mitt Romney during a Feb. 22, 2012, Republican presidential debate in Arizona.

Saying that "above all else, we both agree that President Obama must be defeated," Rick Santorum on Monday evening endorsed former Republican rival Mitt Romney's presidential bid.

In an email to supporters, the former Pennsylvania senator said that:

"The primary campaign certainly made it clear that Governor Romney and I have some differences. But there are many significant areas in which we agree: the need for lower taxes, smaller government, and a reduction in out-of-control spending. We certainly agree that abortion is wrong and marriage should be between one man and one woman. I am also comfortable with Governor Romney on foreign policy matters, and we share the belief that we can never allow Iran to possess nuclear weapons. And while I had concerns about Governor Romney making a case as a candidate about fighting against Obamacare, I have no doubt if elected he will work with a Republican Congress to repeal it and replace it with a bottom up, patient, not government, driven system."

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who dropped out of the race for the Republican nomination last week, hasn't issued a statement or made an announcement — but says that as far as he's concerned, he has endorsed Romney as well. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, officially remains in the race.

Our friends at It's All Politics are following the ups and downs of the 2012 campaign.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Mark Memmott is NPR's supervising senior editor for Standards & Practices. In that role, he's a resource for NPR's journalists – helping them raise the right questions as they do their work and uphold the organization's standards.

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