Except that Santorum himself uses this "loss" quite politically.
So, he's made it fair game. If you find it disgusting that its a political football then blame him.
Loss -> Politican Gain -> Blame for using it as a benefit.
People should be careful, because it seems that this argument is used by both sides of the partisan debates in the US. Not that I don't agree that he seemed to make political gains from the action (or that he tried to), but it's important to not say what you'd despise if it was used against you.