Evan McMorris-Santoro February 25, 2012, 12:13 PM

TROY, MICHIGAN — At an Americans For Prosperity-sponsored tea party rally here Saturday, Rick Santorum trumpeted his connections to the working class by attacking President Obama’s plan to make college more accessible to Americans.

“President Obama wants everybody in America to go to college,” Santorum said. “What a snob!”

The crowd laughed and applauded wildly. But the last time Santorum ran for public office — his ill-fated 2006 Senate reelection campaign — he was right there with Obama, running on his promise to make college more accessible to all Pennsylvanians.

Here’s a link to Santorum’s 2006 Senate campaign website, as stored on Archive.org. Right there in black and white is his “Commitment to Higher Education.”

From the text:

“In addition to Rick’s support of ensuring that primary and secondary schools in Pennsylvania are equipped for success, he is equally committed to ensuring the every Pennsylvanian has access to higher education,” the site reads. “Rick Santorum has supported legislative solutions that provide loans, grants, and tax incentives to make higher education more accessible and affordable.”

Here’s a screengrab:

Here in Troy today, Santorum’s take on the importance of making college more affordable was a little different.

“There are good, decent men and women who work hard every day and put their skills to the test that aren’t taught by some liberal college professor,” Santorum said. “That’s why [Obama] wants you to go to college. He wants to remake you in his image.”

“I want to create jobs so people can remake their children into their image, not his,” Santorum added.

Here’s video from today:

2012, 2012 presidential primaries, Michigan, Michigan Primary, Michigan primary, Rick Santorum