Associated Press:

Rick Santorum on Friday proposed amending the Constitution to ban gay marriage and abortion as part of a broad appeal to social conservatives he's wooing in his race for the Republican presidential nomination.

... "We have to have strong families and strong culture to have a free and prosperous and strong America," Santorum said.

While the GOP contest has mainly focused on the struggling economy and efforts to put Americans back to work, Santorum said the debate should not ignore cultural issues.

"If you want to get this economy going... having just a little bit of support for marriage and families and fatherhood would be a huge step toward that," Santorum said.

Trailing in the polls and looking at Iowa as the lynchpin to his strategy, Santorum is highlighting his long-standing positions on social issues in the hope of winning over Iowans. None of his proposals Friday came as a surprise but, when taken together, they represent the bedrock of what would be a deeply conservative Santorum administration.