Former GOP Senator and presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Wednesday that he may run for president in 2016.
"I’m certainly leaving the door open for that," Santorum told Newsmax. "I’m making no commitments at this point, but we’re not doing anything inconsistent with running in 2016."
The former Pennsylvania rep had an unexpectedly strong showing in the 2012 primary, winning the Iowa caucuses and contests in Minnesota, Missouri, and Colorado, but dropped out of the campaign in April 2012. He last held elected office in 2007, after getting trounced for a bid for a third term as a Pennsylvania Senator in 2006.
In the Newsmax interview, Santorum took a shot at his old rival Mitt Romney for not being conservative enough. "We have not had a nominee that is ready to go out and articulate a unified vision of what conservatism is, what American’s first principles are about, and why we’re the greatest country in the history of the world. And then we wonder why we don’t win," he said.
Santorum's lack of recent elected experience could put him behind other potential 2016 GOP contenders like Sens. Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Rand Paul (Ky.) and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
"I assure you that when this next Republican primary comes around for president, we will have a strong, principled conservative nominee because that’s where the Republican Party is across America," Santorum said.
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