Puerto Rico governor: Romney understands history better than Santorum

Puerto Rico's Gov. Luis Fortuno (R) on Friday responded to GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum's recent comments on the use of English in the U.S. territory, suggesting that Santorum might not have spent enough time understanding the island group's history.

"We're not a separate country. Gov. [Mitt] Romney has shown respect for our heritage and our history, understands it better," he said on CNN.

Santorum earlier this week caused controversy over his comments in Puerto Rico, saying it "needs to be a bilingual country, not just a Spanish-speaking country."

Fortuno, who endorsed Mitt Romney in January, credited Romney for understanding border-security needs relating to Puerto Rico, and suggested he has taken more time than other candidates to understand the needs and culture of the U.S. territory. 

"We actually speak both languages; actually both English and Spanish have been our official languages for over 100 years," he said. "We want to preserve both."

Santorum also said that Puerto Rico needs to speak more English "in order for it to integrate into American society."

Fortuno said the people of Puerto Rico are already a contributing segment of American society. 

"We have actually contributed men, women to every single war our nation has fought since 1917," he said.

Puerto Rico holds a primary vote on Sunday, although Puerto Ricans cannot vote in U.S. presidential elections.

---