[I wrote this letter to the editor last Monday evening, but since it hasn't yet been run, I'm assuming it won't be. However the argument I make is still very relevant, regardless of if you've read the letter to which I refer.]

In response to Monday’s “Don’t Confuse Incumbents” letter, Mr. Giammaria has his facts wrong on Senator Santorum.

Saying that the Senator doesn’t fight for the “little guy” is a nice liberal catchphrase, but it’s unfounded. Santorum has been improving economic growth by working to bring PA employment to a 16-year high (AP 7/25/06). Thanks to Santorum’s efforts, hourly wages also increased 3.8% from April 2005 (Bloomberg 5/5/06), and he continues to support raising the national minimum wage. Santorum also fights for small businesses, farmers, and all workers in the state of Pennsylvania by voting against the Senate amnesty bill. Let’s not forget that he also fought to keep Pennsylvania’s military bases open, securing hundreds of jobs in the state.

And for the record, he did vote to raise the minimum wage, as well as extending relief to the death tax, with bill HR 5970—a bill that Senate Democrats voted against.

The Senator continues to fight for the “little guy” by trying to reform Social Security. He passed the “Social Security Guarantee Act” which keeps seniors’ Social Security safe from reform. The Senator promoted creating personal Social Security accounts, which would help college kids--like myself--as well as younger generations of workers from losing their retirement savings in a broken system! And of course, the Senator’s pro-life, pro-family legislation (PBA Ban Act, Project Safe Childhood Act, Schools Safe Act, etc.) has helped the littlest folks of all: infants and the unborn.

If you take a look at Rick’s record, you’ll see that he has continuously fought for the oldest in Pennsylvania all the way to the youngest.

Michael T. Rubino
Monaca