Santorum Doesn't Fall For Gregory's Bait On Banning Working Mothers From His Administration

On today's Meet The Press, "moderator" David Gregory gave a good preview of how the MSM/Obama industrial complex will try to cariacture and demonize Rick Santorum should he become the Republican presidential candidate.

Gregory asked Santorum whether, if elected president, he would only permit single women without children to work in his administration.  That's right: Gregory was actually wondering whether Santorum would prohibit mothers from serving.  Santorum didn't rise to Gregory's absurd bait, giving a smiling and good-natured response to the effect all women would be welcome in a Santorum administration.  Video after the jump.

Watch Gregory try and fail to get under Santorum's skin with his ridiculous inquiry which among other things presumed Santorum might engage in illegal discrimination.

The antecedent for Gregory's question was an earlier exchange in which he had cited a passage from a Santorum book accusing radical feminists of belittling stay-at-home mothers.

Consider that Gregory's formulation of "only single women without children need apply" is an echo of the prejudiced phraseology of the past, in which employers would advertise: "only [whites, Christians, etc.] need apply."  So Gregory was seeking to associate Santorum with that sorry past.

Note how Santorum, confronted with Gregory's absurd and antagonistic question,  keeps a smile on his face and offers a good-natured repy.
 

DAVID GREGORY: Let me ask you one more question about women.  If you are President of the United States, and women want to work in your administration. Do single women without women only need apply?  Are you going to respect the decision of women to come work for you if that's the choice they make, or would they be somehow held by radical feminists?

RICK SANTORUM: Well, I think if you go back and look at the people who have worked for me you'd find single women, we have married women, you've got all sorts of folks. You know, those are decisions I affirm. If women want to come into the workforce, great.  If they don't, that's great.  You know, we're going to look at the best-qualified people and there will be plenty of working moms who will be in our administration and be adding greatly to the conservative cause I believe in.