Former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA), who has been exploring a run for president, is set to officially announce his candidacy on June 6 in his old stomping grounds of southwestern Pennsylvania.
“This location is significant because when Sen. Santorum’s grandfather left fascist Italy, he came to this country for America’s freedom and the opportunity our nation afforded him,” a source told NBC News.
Santorum has been campaigning heavily in the key early primary and caucus states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, so that an announcement isn’t happening in any of those places seems notable.
It is also interesting to point out that Santorum lost in southwestern Pennsylvania in 2006, when he was defeated for re-election by a statewide margin of 59%-41%.