Ozier Muhammad/The New York Times

Rick Santorum declared himself thankful for placing second in Michigan’s primary Tuesday, saying that he “came into the backyard of one of my opponents” and did well where no one expected him to.

Mr. Santorum talked for about 20 minutes without acknowledging directly that he failed to win the Michigan primary and barely mentioned the name of his chief rival, Mitt Romney.

Instead, he quickly sought to return to the message of small government and help for manufacturing that had dominated his campaign before he began talking about social issues in the past week.

“It’s getting harder for people to make ends meet because we have a government that is crushing us every single day,” Mr. Santorum said.

He pledged an energy policy that expands oil drilling and criticized President Obama as a leader who always says “no” to the efforts of Americans to produce energy.

“We need a president who says yes to the American people on energy production,” Mr. Santorum said.

With an eye on the Ohio primary that is coming up in a week, Mr. Santorum renewed his pledge to take the corporate tax on manufacturing to zero — an issue that could play well in the Rust Belt state.

He also vowed to repeal Mr. Obama’s health care plan. It was then that he mentioned Mr. Romney by name, saying that Republicans need a candidate who will provide a contrast with the president.

“Not Romneycare or Obamacare,” he said, but “you care, because that’s what we believe in in America.”