Rick Santorum

Rick Santorum, a Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, established and directs EPPC's Program to Protect America's Freedom. He is writing a book on the "gathering storm" of the 21st century -- the challenges posed by radical Islamic fascism and its growing alliances around the world.

Mr. Santorum served as United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2007 and as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1991 to 1995. As a United States Senator, he was a champion of efforts to counter the threat of radical Islam, to protect victims of religious persecution, and to promote democracy and religious liberty around the world. He founded the Congressional Working Group on Religious Freedom and spearheaded the passage of several key pieces of legislation, including the landmark welfare reform bill, the American Community Renewal Act, a ban on partial-birth abortion, the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act, the Combating Autism Act, the Farmland Preservation Act, the Abandoned Mine Lands Reform Act, the Multi-Employer Pension Reform Act, the Global Aids Authorization Act, Health Savings Accounts, the Syria Accountability Act, and the Iran Freedom Support Act. From 2001 to 2007, he served as Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, where he directed the communications operations of Senate Republicans and was the third-ranking member of the Republican leadership.

Mr. Santorum is the author of It Takes a Family: Conservatism and the Common Good (ISI 2005).

Mr. Santorum received his undergraduate degree from Penn State University, his M.B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh, and his J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law. He and his wife Karen are the parents of six children.