Santorum and intelligent design

Backing away as fast as he can from his prior support of teaching "intelligent design" in schools (read those polls much, Rick?), Senator Santorum again weighed in on the Dover school board controversy. Notwithstanding the facts that in 2002 he specifically endorsed teaching intelligent design in school, that in a 2004 POST-GAZETTE editorial he "commended" Dover for adopting the policy, and that he sits on the board of the Thomas More Law Center, which defended Dover's school board in court, Santorum stated on Dec. 22 that he was "troubled" by the fact that school-board members were motivated by religion in their actions. Say what?

He got what he was probably looking for—the American Family Association now warns its members that they can't trust Santorum's conservative credentials. Come on. Look, he blamed Boston's liberals for the priests-abusing-children scandal:

''When the culture is sick, every element in it becomes infected. While it is no excuse for this scandal, it is no surprise that Boston, a seat of academic, political, and cultural liberalism in America, lies at the center of the storm."

So I don't think he's going to lose the sympathies of the red-meat conservatives. But I suspect he's hoping that moderates HEAR that the American Family Association rejected him.