(Windsor Heights, Iowa) -- Former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum is defending his anti-abortion record after some robo-calls accused him of being a "pro-life fraud." The anonymous calls went out in Iowa ahead of Santorum's speech to the Iowa Christian Alliance. They criticized him for his 2004 endorsement of Senator Arlen Specter, who supports abortion rights. In an address to the Iowa group this week, Santorum said that, in retrospect, his endorsement of Specter was wrong. But, he adds, he did it for "pro-life reasons." "I had lots of reasons not to support Arlen Specter. Trust me, it wasn't just the abortion issue," he says. "But the reason I did was because he gave us a promise as chairman of the Judiciary Committee -- as we had a one-vote majority in the Senate -- to support two Supreme Court picks the president was going to have after 2004 -- Justice Roberts and Justice Alito." Santorum has been testing the waters for a possible presidential run in 2012.

(State College) -- The weekend forecast is calling for plenty of rainfall across the midstate. While it's not expected to lead to any flooding in the region, the National Weater Service in State College says heavy rains could impact other areas of the commonwealth. Meteorologist Kevin Fitzgerald says melting snow and rain in the Laurel Highlands to the west and the Poconos to the northeast could lead to rising water levels on rivers, streams and creeks. He says even areas without significant snow cover are potentially at-risk. "Especially eastern Pennsylvania, that area by the weekend looks like the target for the heaviest rain," he says. "If we're talking an inch-and-a-half, two inches or more of rain, that's probably going to cause some flooding of the smaller streams and creeks." Fitzgerald says those who live close to waterways should keep up-to-date on the latest forecasts, in case flood watches or warnings are issued.

(Harrisburg) -- Two of the state's largest unions hope a new partnership will strengthen their lobbying and recruitment efforts. The Pennsylvania AFL-CIO and the Pennsylvania State Education Assocation have signed a solidarity agreement. State AFL-CIO President Bill George says the result will be joint efforts on several fronts. "We think coming together gives us an opportunity to show a lot of power politically, legislatively, economically and education-wise to enhance the quality of life for all workers, whether they're union or not," he says. Under the terms of the agreement, the PSEA and its affiliates can join regional- and state-level umbrella organizations of the AFL-CIO. The document between the two unions is similar to one signed by their national counterparts in 2006.

(Philadelphia) -- Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster will begin a search for a new president, now that John Fry has accepted the same post at Drexel University. Fry served nearly eight years at F&M and will replace the late Constantine Papadakis at the Philadelphia school, which serves about 22,000 students. Papadakis, who led Drexel through a period of tremendous growth, died last Aprill of complications from lung cancer during his 14th year as president. Fry says he hopes to keep his predecessor's legacy alive. "What he did was forge an entirely new direction for an already great insititution," hse says. "I don't think about filling Daki's shoes, the metaphor is to take the big baton that he created and grab it and try to keep the pace up, if not gain a little bit of ground in addition." Fry says at Drexel, he will focus on strengthening the school's endowment, expanding its research enterprise and creating more global outreach opportunities. He officially takes his post as president on August 1. F&M is a liberal arts college that has about 2,100 students.