Updated 2:58 p.m. U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum Promotes His Foreign Policy Expertise
U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum touted his foreign policy experience during Thursday’s first general session at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference. The Virginia native has served on the U.S. Armed Services Committee.
Santorum said he knows the United States is “war weary” but insisted it time to take a solid stand against ISIS.
“We have been not acting. We have been doing a public relations war with ISIS, not a real war trying to defeat them,” Santorum said.
He added that U.S. military forces should be expanded to assist Kurdish Peshmerga Forces and the Jordanians.
Santorum also spent considerable time talking about the state of the nation’s economy, saying everyone needs an opportunity to succeed.
Santorum plans to announce his bid for presidency May 27 at a factory in Pennsylvania.
Updated 2:01 p.m.: Gov. Scott Walker speaks about moving America forward
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker took the stage Thursday afternoon at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference in Oklahoma City. He boasted about his state’s 4.4 percent unemployment rate, saying conservative policies have the power to “move the country forward.”
“In our nation’s capitol with the right leadership, we can move America,” Walker said.
He called for an end to the U.S. crude oil export ban and championed an “all of the above energy policy.”
Walker has not formally announced he is running for the Republican presidential nomination. He polled highly though at the Conservation Political Action Conference.
Walker won 21.4 percent of the votes cast in February. He came in second place to Sen. Rand Paul.
Walker finished his 25 minute speech at the Cox Convention Center alluding to the fact he may announce a bid in June or July.
“Part of the reason I’m even thinking about what I’m thinking about, and we haven't announced anything yet, I think going forward, we need someone who can fight and win and win the battles we need to move the country forward with common sense conservative reforms. That's what we need to move America forward," Walker said.
Original Post
Several GOP leaders are headed to Oklahoma City this week for the Southern Republican Leadership Conference. Many of the attendees are 2016 presidential hopefuls.
Senator Marco Rubio, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush are just some of the politicians scheduled to attend the conference downtown.
The three-day event includes discussions about the nation's energy options, the direction the Republican Party is headed and how the politicians can better engage minority voters.
The Southern Republican Leadership Conference is taking place at the same time many political leaders are announcing bids for the presidency, and the Oklahoma GOP calls the event "a kick-off for the road to the White House."
The conference runs Thursday through Saturday at the Cox Convention Center and will end with a 2016 straw poll.
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