Brownback Can’t Make Up His Mind

As we noted last week, Sen. Sam Brownback was busy trying to strike a moderate pose, telling an audience in Iowa:

"The political discourse automatically goes to the most difficult issues, and then we can't talk about them," said Brownback, in Iowa for the first time since announcing his bid on Jan. 20.

"I'd rather work on a core set of issues that we can agree on.”

His newfound commitment to working on issues with bipartisan support was apparently short-lived, because just as few days later he was in South Carolina, throwing red meat to a conservative audience:

During a stop in South Carolina on Friday, Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback said he wanted to end abortion, pleasing conservatives who dominate the Republican base in this early primary voting state.

"I will commit to helping end abortion in America," Brownback said, responding to a question from a local minister who protests abortions almost daily at the South Carolina Statehouse.

Brownback told a gathering of about 240 people, who were treated to a $12-a-plate lunch, that he also supported a ban on gay marriage and tax credits that encourage traditional marriage.