LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - "I want to help Mitt Romney get elected president," Santorum said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I'll be happy to help him and advise him if he wants my advice as president. But, no, my objective right now is to serve my family and provide for them. I've got two kids in college."

CNN host Candy Crowley pointed out to Santorum that his response did not sound like "a flat no," the former Pennsylvania senator countered: "Yes, it's -- it's pretty much a flat no.

"I mean, it's not because I don't want to help Governor Romney [and] I don't want to be a part of him having a successful presidency. It's just, for me, it's a matter of my priorities and my time of being a husband and father and I sort of have to take care -- I have to take care -- of them."

Santorum had criticized his former Republican rival earlier tin the interview for not coming down harder on President Obama's decision to halt the deportation of as many as 800,000 young illegal immigrants.

"He's trying to walk the line," Santorum said of Romney. "He's trying to walk a line as not to sound like he's hostile to Latinos -- swing voters -- and in very important states. But at the same time, I think you need to hammer the president on this now habitual abuse of power."

Santorum suspended his presidential campaign in April after his three-year-old daughter Bella was released from her second trip to the hospital. Bella suffers from a rare and often fatal disorder called Trisomy 18.

"This was a time for prayer and thought over this past weekend," Santorum said in a speech. "Just like it was when we decided to get into this race... we were very concerned about our role of being the best parents we possibly could to our kids," Santorum said of the kitchen-table discussion with his family before he launched his campaign.

Santorum said he balanced his desire to be a good father with his desire to do something positive for the country. He mentioned Bella and her condition as one of the reasons he joined the race -- to look out for Americans like her, who he said are "left behind."

"While this presidential campaign is over for me, we are going to continue fighting for those voices," Santorum told the crowd.

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