Rick Santorum

Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum is an underdog by nature, scoring huge upsets over long-time incumbents in his runs for the U.S. House and Senate, and is known for his fiery stances on the U.S. invasion of Iraq, intelligent design, gay marriage and euthanasia.

He entered the 2012 presidential race with an announcement on ABC's "Good Morning America" June 6, several months after forming an exploratory committee.

Santorum was born May 10, 1958, in Winchester, Va., to Aldo Santorum and Catherine Keane, although the family later moved to Butler County, Pa., where both parents worked for the Veterans Administration hospital. His father became a licensed psychologist in 1974.

He graduated from high school in 1976 in Mundelein, Ill., where his father transferred within the VA hospital system, and earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Pennsylvania State University in 1980 and an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh in 1981. Five years later, he received a law degree and began practicing as an attorney in Pittsburgh.

During his time at Kirkpatrick & Lockhart, he represented the World Wrestling Federation, arguing that professional wrestling should be exempt from federal anabolic steroid regulations because it was not a sport. Santorum left private practice after being elected to the U.S. House in 1990.

Santorum and his wife, Karen Garver Santorum, have seven children: Elizabeth, Richard Jr., Daniel, Sarah, Peter, Patrick and Isabella. They had a son, Gabe, who was born prematurely in 1996 and lived only two hours.

He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 18th District in 1990 at age 32, scoring a significant upset over seven-term Democrat Doug Walgren. He was re-elected to the seat in 1992.

In 1994, Santorum beat Democratic incumbent Harris Wofford, who was 32 years his senior, for one of Pennsylvania's two U.S. Senate seats. He was re-elected in 2000, but lost in 2006 to Democrat Bob Casey, Jr., by the largest margin of defeat for an imcumbent senator (18 percent) since 1981.

In March 2007, he joined the law firm Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, providing business and strategic counseling services, and served as a Fox News Channel contributor.

He endorsed his now-rival Mitt Romney for the GOP presidential nomination in 2008, criticizing John McCain's pro-life voting record and conservative values. In 2011, he said McCain, who was tortured as a prisoner of war, did not understand how the "enhanced interrogation" process works.

In September, Santorum announced he was replacing Michael Biundo as national political director with Ajay Bruno, a rising conservative political operative.

On the Issues:

Defense -- Santorum refuses to call the war on terrorism the "War on Terror," referring to it instead as a "War With Radical Islam," and was a big proponent of the largely unpopular war in Iraq. He believes the country must focus on Iran as a security threat, particularly its leader, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Energy -- Santorum believes current regulations on oil drilling are at least partly behind the sagging economy, and wants to expand domestic oil exploration and production, including in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge.

Health Care -- He's in favor of repealing Obama's health care law, saying private sector insurance works just fine, and believes in putting a cap on medical liability lawsuits.

Jobs -- Santorum was a vocal opponent of the Wall Street bailouts and stimulus programs enacted by Presidents Bush and Obama, and believes that reducing the tax burden on businesses and individuals is the key to spurring economic growth.

Sources: New York Times, www.ricksantorum.com, Wikipedia