Rick Santorum Is A 2016 Underdog - And He's Just Fine With That

Rick Santorum loves being the underdog.

Two years after ending up as the runner-up in the 2012 Republican presidential primary, that's exactly where he thinks he'll be if he runs again. The 2016 election is one he's "openly looking at" entering, Santorum told Business Insider.

As he sat in Business Insider's Manhattan offices, the political world was more focused on other, splashier names for president. There was chatter Mitt Romney's possible third run is for real (though Romney himself has flatly denied any intentions to run). An adviser to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) says he's 90% in the race. Sen. Rand Paul's (R-Kentucky) top political strategist says he's just about in - unless his wife says no.

But Santorum, true to his first run, has gone largely under the radar, despite the fact he raised more than $18 million and won 11 states last time around, grabbing more than 4 million votes in the process.

"There's nobody else, at least who's talked about running, that has that under their belt. So I feel like, in many respects, we have a head start vis a vis other candidates," Santorum said. "But at the same time, no one is necessarily putting me at the top of the list of favorites this time. So it's a really interesting dynamic, and we'll see how that all plays out."

There's only one political analyst - Potomac Research's Greg Valliere - that has consistently even put Santorum in the top five among prospective 2016 Republican candidates.

He doesn't necessarily mind it.

"You know," he says, "one of the greatest gifts I've had as a politician is that I've been underestimated and overlooked - throughout my entire career."

Santorum was in New York to promote the recent opening of "One Generation Away," a new film produced by EchoLight Studios, of which he serves as the CEO. On this trip, he brought his teenage daughter, Sarah Marie, and he entered into Business Insider's office with his hands full of shopping bags. The two met up with mogul Donald Trump, which prompted the spree last Thursday.

"She got a goodie bag out of it," Santorum said, taking in a whiff of the perfume his daughter bought.

His studio's goal is to mass produce faith-based films through distribution at churches and other, non-conventional venues. To date, EchoLight has partnered with about 250 churches to distribute its films.

To an extent, the studio's production also reflects one of Santorum's goals - to not give up talking about social issues like gay marriage within the Republican Party. These topics have quickly become lightning rods within the party as more and more polls show Americans embracing a position that runs contrary to social conservatives' position against same-sex marriage.

"Walking away from those things, just because they may not be popular at the moment, is always a big mistake," Santorum said. "You don't walk away from what you know is best ... because it's suddenly not in fashion. You do what you've done in the past, which is weather the storm of the passions of the moment and stay true to what you know is right for the country.

In addition to a focus on social issues that has long been a key part of his platform, Santorum is also starting to tangle with the other likely hopefuls on foreign policy, among other issues. In his interview with Business Insider, Santorum criticized Cruz for comments he made at an event highlighting the persecution of Christians in the Middle East.

And lately, he has been especially critical of Paul's foreign policy, which he describes as similar to that of President Barack Obama. Santorum, instead, aligns himself with a growing number of hawks in the Republican Party - if the United States doesn't take a leading role in world affairs, he says, someone else will. And it won't be to the US' benefit.

"I would agree with him on a lot of things where the government needs to be small," Santorum said. "But not this one."

Paul has been blasted in recent weeks for what critics say have been contrary positions on foreign policy, especially with regard to the extremist group calling itself the Islamic State (also known as ISIS or ISIL).

Santorum echoed this critique and argued ISIS' rapid gains have forced Paul to alter his views on American intervention according to the reality on the ground. They come at it from different perspectives - Paul from an overarching view of limited government and Obama from a view of "internationalism" - but Santorum said their positions have shifted towards a willingness to confront ISIS in much of the same vein.

"I hate to say it, but sometimes, as this president is finding out, realism can get in the way of ideology," Santorum said. "I think the same kind of naivete that the president has articulated is a common thread with Sen. Paul. I think they're very, very similar in how they look at America's role in the world."

For his part, Santorum said he's taking all the steps "consistent with running" - building an organization, raising money, reaching out to get a sense of where support is in and beyond early-primary states. However, he doesn't expect to make a decision until well into 2015 - later than usual, he said, because fewer Republican Party debates will shift the campaign to a later start.

Finding a support base may be tough with a more crowded field, especially if Paul, Cruz, and even Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) work to court the evangelical base Santorum so successfully courted in 2012. The key, Santorum said, will be boosting his coffers. He said his campaign spent just $30,000 on television ads in Iowa in 2012. It was enough for a win then, but he doubts that phenomenon will repeat itself.

"That," Santorum said, "is like a student council race in New York City."

Santorum is confident he's in better shape this time, having already taken the temperature of prospective donors. He is heading to a number of state-party events in Mississippi, Michigan, Iowa, and others. In Iowa later this year, he's also set to sit down with a group of high-profile conservative activists.

"We did a lot with a little," Santorum said of his last run. "But in this case where there will probably be more candidates running with more money, we're going to have to be stronger financially to make this go."