This is way too funny!
The exchanges dominated the first day of the Conservative Political Action Conference, an annual gathering of Republican conservatives in Washington.
This year's event offers a chance to hear most of the likely candidates, with the exception of Palin and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee.
Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator, hinted that Palin was not attending for financial reasons – she commands six-figure fees for making speeches but would not be paid by CPAC – and because she was too busy being a mother.
He said: "I have a feeling she has some demands on her time. And a lot of them have financial benefits attached to them. So I'm sure that she's doing what's best for her and her family."
Asked if he would have turned down the CPAC invitation, he said no. "I'm not the mother to all these kids. And I don't have other responsibilities, like she has, other opportunities that she has. Other business opportunities that may be in conflict with what she's been asked to do."
The sniping by Santorum is the second time recently that a Palin rival has criticised her. Another of the potential candidates, Tim Pawlenty, the former governor of Minnesota, said he would not have used a crosshairs image, as Palin had done, to target areas held by Democrats such as Gabrielle Giffords, the Democratic congresswoman shot in Tucson last month.
Palin has a huge following and, as the best-known of the candidates, her rivals know they must eat into her popularity.
Palin, speaking on Fox News, denied she was not attending because she is not being paid or because she was too tied up being a mother. "Just because I'm a mom that does not mean that I didn't want to be there," she said. "I'm the proud mother of five‚ my kids don't hold me back from attending a conference."
She described Santorum as uninformed, adding: "I will not call him the knuckle-dragging Neanderthal. I'll let his wife call him that instead."
Santorum later backtracked, saying he never meant to insult Palin but was just pointing out she is a busy person.
Palin did not attend the CPAC conference last year either, after reportedly falling out with one of its senior officials.
But her non-appearance angered some of the attendees on Thursday, with some seeing it as a snub and others expressing indifference.
Jeff Jackson from Austin, Texas said: "I think it will damage her. She seems kind of flaky – on again, off again."
Her failure to turn up indicated she was not serious about seeking the nomination, he said.
Sarah Palin has sparked a feud with fellow republican Rick Santorum. Photograph: Spencer Weiner/AP
The contest for the Republican presidential nomination has ignited with a feud between potential rivals Rick Santorum and Sarah Palin, who described him as a "knuckle-dragging Neanderthal".The exchanges dominated the first day of the Conservative Political Action Conference, an annual gathering of Republican conservatives in Washington.
This year's event offers a chance to hear most of the likely candidates, with the exception of Palin and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee.
Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator, hinted that Palin was not attending for financial reasons – she commands six-figure fees for making speeches but would not be paid by CPAC – and because she was too busy being a mother.
He said: "I have a feeling she has some demands on her time. And a lot of them have financial benefits attached to them. So I'm sure that she's doing what's best for her and her family."
Asked if he would have turned down the CPAC invitation, he said no. "I'm not the mother to all these kids. And I don't have other responsibilities, like she has, other opportunities that she has. Other business opportunities that may be in conflict with what she's been asked to do."
The sniping by Santorum is the second time recently that a Palin rival has criticised her. Another of the potential candidates, Tim Pawlenty, the former governor of Minnesota, said he would not have used a crosshairs image, as Palin had done, to target areas held by Democrats such as Gabrielle Giffords, the Democratic congresswoman shot in Tucson last month.
Palin has a huge following and, as the best-known of the candidates, her rivals know they must eat into her popularity.
Palin, speaking on Fox News, denied she was not attending because she is not being paid or because she was too tied up being a mother. "Just because I'm a mom that does not mean that I didn't want to be there," she said. "I'm the proud mother of five‚ my kids don't hold me back from attending a conference."
She described Santorum as uninformed, adding: "I will not call him the knuckle-dragging Neanderthal. I'll let his wife call him that instead."
Santorum later backtracked, saying he never meant to insult Palin but was just pointing out she is a busy person.
Palin did not attend the CPAC conference last year either, after reportedly falling out with one of its senior officials.
But her non-appearance angered some of the attendees on Thursday, with some seeing it as a snub and others expressing indifference.
Jeff Jackson from Austin, Texas said: "I think it will damage her. She seems kind of flaky – on again, off again."
Her failure to turn up indicated she was not serious about seeking the nomination, he said.
No comments:
Post a Comment