On Monday night, Santorum joined former Soviet dissident, author and Israeli Knesset member Natan Sharansky in a discussion titled "Religious Freedom, Democracy and the Middle East" sponsored by the Middle East Forum. The event was held in the auditorium of the Haverford School on the Main Line, a bastion of Republican support.

Santorum is the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference and of the Congressional Working Group on Religious Freedom and some observant Jews are supporting him. The crowd consisted of a couple of hundred Jews mixed with Santorum supporters and others interested in Israeli affairs.

Kevin Kelly, head of the Philadelphia Federation of Young Republicans, said he came out to see Sharansky, a human-rights activist and Likud.

"I read his book, The Case for Democracy, and I think it should be required reading for every high school student in America," said Kelly. "Sen. Santorum understands our unique relationship with Israel and a great deal of Jewish Americans have been voting Democratic for a number of years and I think they will realize that their true friends are the Republicans."

Kelly added that one of his group's goals is to get Casey to debate Santorum.

"Obviously, Sen. Santorum has a greater handle on all the issues, which is why Casey is ducking the debate," he said. "We want to impress upon [Casey] that if you are going to be a senator, you better have some ideas."

Casey's office did not return phone calls for comment by press time.

Also at the event was Scott Feigelstein,>the director of the Pennsylvania/Southern New Jersey regional office of the Republican Jewish Coalition, a 25,000-member issues advocacy organization that serves as a liaison between the Jewish community and key Republican decision makers.

"Sen. Santorum has a long track record of support for a strong U.S./Israel relationship," said Feigelstein, "and that has, in turn, garnered him a lot of support in the Jewish community, both in the observant community and across the board. He has been a leader on a number of serious issues including the Syria Accountability Act, the Iran Accountability Act and combating anti-Semitism."

But how do people of non-Christian religions, like those in the audience, react to a devout Christian politician like Santorum?

"I have heard concerns from some people in the Jewish community that the senator is trying to impose his world view, based on his deep-seated faith, on others," said Feigelstein, "while some who are comfortable in their skin and their own religious beliefs are not threatened by someone who has faith-born political policies and ideas."

Santorum expressed concern that President George W. Bush's decision to seek a dialogue with Iran is a sign of weakness. Last week, the Senate rejected a Santorum-proposed amendment that proscribed the president's position and, instead, voted to support Bush's initiative to negotiate with Iran on nuclear issues. Since Bush's approval ratings are so low, the perception is that Santorum is distancing himself from the top Republican during his campaigning.

Trying to appeal to the president's supporters and detractors both, Santorum talked of his conversations with Bush. He said he told the president that the "war on terror" was not motivating the public anymore and that he should concentrate his rhetoric on Iran rather than on Osama bin Laden.

"All people see is a grainy image on a video of a man who hides in a cave," said Santorum.

With results of a poll conducted by Quinnipiac University released Tuesday showing Santorum trailing Casey, 34 to 52 percent, Santorum has increased his fundraising efforts.

Last week, Republican über-lawyer David Girard-diCarlo hosted a pricey breakfast fundraiser at a Villanova estate featuring special guest Laura Bush. Girard-diCarlo said more than $625,000 was raised.

While Casey has Democratic strategist James Carville helping out, Santorum has engaged Carville's wife, former Republican presidential adviser Mary Matalin. Matalin appeared at a women's outreach breakfast where she introduced the campaign's new text-messaging initiative. Using cell phones, Web sites, podcasts, Web ads and blogs, Matalin hopes to disseminate Santorum's message to a vast network of voters.