(AP2010)
Jim Bob Duggar prayed for months before he came to his decision: he was going to support Rick Santorum's presidential candidacy in Iowa.
“We have been praying about who to support and narrowing it down and decided Rick is the one to get behind because he has a proven record at lowering taxes, supporting less government and he is the author of the bill banning partial birth abortion,” Duggar, the patriarch of the family featured on the hit reality series "19 and Counting," told Fox411.com on Tuesday.
Early Wednesday morning, the Duggars' prayers were answered, as Santorum came out of nowhere to virtually tie front-runner Mitt Romney, coming in second by a mere eight votes in the GOP Iowa Caucuses with 25 percent of the final tally.
“We brought 12 of our 19 children and my mom Mary and my sister and we have been doing everything from standing on the street corner to trying to convince people one on one that Rick Santorum is the family values candidate,” Duggar told Fox411.com. “We got here at 1 am Monday morning and got a little sleep and then headed out on the campaign trail and I have to say that I see Rick Santorum really connected with the great people here in Iowa.”
The reality television had hoped that he and his family could use their celebrity to shine a spotlight on Santorum and to try to help clear up some of the confusion amongst Republican voters.
“There have been so many candidates over the past few months who have risen to the top and dropped off and they had all kinds of baggage in their closet, and I think that has caused a lot of confusion,” Duggar said. “We are coming to Iowa to let people know that if you are looking for a family values candidate this is your man. He supports traditional marriage, he is pro life, pro gun and someone we can whole-heartedly get behind.”
Last week when the singer Kelly Clarkson tweeted her support to Santorum contender Ron Paul, who came in third in the Iowa GOP Caucuses with 22 percent of the vote, some fans reacted badly on Twitter and said they would no longer support the singer. On the upside, the singer’s sales spiked as Ron Paul fans rushed out to support Clarkson.
Duggar says he and his family are unconcerned any backlash from fans because of their political views.
“Our show is a show that shows our faith and it is our daily lives and politics is a big part of our life and these values are part of our life,” Duggar said. “Our viewers may not agree with some of our take on the issues, but they respect our boldness in supporting them.”
After Santorum's success in Iowa, the Duggar clan is looking ahead to more Santorum stumping as the campaign moves to the first primary states. After heading back to their home in Arkansas, the Duggars plan to meet up with Santorum again down the road.
“Some of our family may head to South Carolina," Duggar said. "Our boys wrote on the side of our bus, ‘Rick Santorum for President,’ so it already looks like a traveling campaign wagon.”
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