Former United States Senator Rick Santorum was in Council Bluffs, Iowa today at a noon luncheon hosted by the Pottawattamie Republican Party. During the question and answer portion of the event, Santorum was asked to comment about a story that appeared in the Washington Post regarding the Republican National Committee spending $1,946.25 at Voyeur, a West Hollywood nightclub that is known for its bondage and S & M performances.

On its website, Voyeur describes itself as, “A destination for provocative revelry that combines eroticism and nightlife exclusivity. An alluring ambience designed with elegance and comfort while maintaining underground vitality”

Santorum’s face filled with disgust as he listened to the question. “There is no excuse for people’s contributions to the RNC to go to pay for this behavior,” Santorum said. “Frankly, I’m disgusted by it,” he added.

Santorum went on to criticize RNC Chairman Michael Steele, saying, “As a leader, you set the tone for your organization. If somebody who worked for my organization did something like this, they would be out of a job.” Santorum added, “It’s not just that this happened, it’s that someone saw this reimbursement and then approved of it. Chairman Steele might not have had personal knowledge about this sort of activity, but if that’s the case, there is an absence of leadership at the RNC.”

Even before this latest RNC scandal, Republican insiders were beginning to view Steele as a liability. In a poll of Republican insiders conducted by the National Journal Online two weeks ago, 71 percent of respondents admitted that Steele is a liability.

Santorum’s visit to Iowa is his third in the last six months. Thirty people attended his Council Bluffs event, a surprising turnout considering that there was not much notice or publicity in advance of the event. The crowd that turned out today for lunch is larger than some presidential candidates generate in the lead-up to the Iowa caucuses.

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