In the course of Rick Santorum’s stump speech against Mitt Romney — casting his rival as a a moderate whose policies were insufficiently distinguishable from President Obama’s — the candidate made a potentially eyebrow-raising (but possibly accidental) turn of phrase.

The New York Times reports on Santorum’s campaign swing:

As he traveled across South Carolina on Thursday, Mr. Santorum urged voters to dismiss the conventional wisdom that Mitt Romney has an upper hand in the nominating contest. He said the party can win back the White House only by offering a “clear contrast” with President Obama.

“We need contrasts,” Mr. Santorum said, “not just a paler shade of what we have.”