Rich Lowry, Jonah Goldberg, Peggy Noonan, even Rush Limbaugh.
When did they all start sounding so much like the New York Times editorial board?
It is painfully obvious that faith is not something that makes them comfortable. How dare this Huckabee character (who spent much of his adult life in the ministry) talk about faith?
To anyone who has been paying attention, Huckabee has a LOT more to say than only his faith, although that shouldn't be a problem. Since when is it off-base to ask what a candidate believes, and how it affects them? On this, the elite of the GOP are singing a song woefully off-key. You'd think they would notice when the polls keep showing how many people disagree with them. It has never been more apparent that they don't consider themselves leaders of a popular movement, but elites bound on re-shaping the public in their image.
The fact is that Mormonism is seen as a sect by most Christians (at least, those who don't hold to a flimsy, evolving definition of what Christianity is). No matter how loudly Romney's backers shout that Mormons are Christians just like the rest of you ignorant hicks (and what's your problem, anyway?), we are smarter than they think. We know that Mormonism is an entirely different religion, no more like Christianity than Islam or Judaism. Now, that doesn't mean we couldn't vote for Romney, it just means that those proclaiming him the Messiah of the GOP are starting off with a strike against them. How could the most important thing to at LEAST a quarter of the base be deemed irrelevant? There is no surer recipe for disaster than to make evangelicals into slaves of the GOP. Most of us are smarter than that, and we'll just take our votes and efforts and determination elsewhere or stay home. We have seen what the Democrats have done to blacks over the years, and we won't fall for it. Sorry.
I am in no way saying there are not legitimate criticisms to be made of Mr. Huckabee. But it sounds as though it is merely who he is that is not acceptable to these elites, and nothing will change that. When did we suddenly accept the narrative of the drive-by media? It is a foregone conclusion that someone who is a man of the people, who is not a career politician or rich, who has a brilliant gift for communicating (not that our current president doesn't... oh wait, nevermind), over a decade of executive experience, and serious crossover appeal to moderates in the other party, has no chance of getting the nomination. Sorry, it would be nice, but he's not one of US, say the leaders.
My reply? That's nice. Shut up. Isn't there a self-serving cocktail party in Washington for like-minded persons you should be attending?
Huckabee '08.
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2 comments:
What are Evangelicals doing? Stop the hate. Stop the anti-Mormonism. It is rampant among your people. Huckabee is only surging because there are more bigots among Evangelicals than we previously thought.
Are you not ashamed, is this America or Germany circa 1930's?
Watch this before you vote:
http://www.articlevithemovie.com/trailer.php
When I say, they are starting with a strike against them, I mean that Christians believe what they believe and any attempt to lecture us for doing so will not be taken kindly.
Again, if insinuations of bigotry hadn't been made repeatedly, Mormon theology wouldn't even be up for discussion; I would rather it wasn't. However, it is not "bigoted" to hold to one's religion. The insistence you hear coming from me is not insistence that Mormons are wrong; it is outrage at conservative elitists who are throwing evangelicals to the dogs by not sticking up for us and agreeing that we are bigots. It is as though every time we have been called bigots for agreeing with conservative views, we are defended, but now that we say that Mormonism is a religion apart from what we believe, we are bigots! How is this?
Answer: They are only interested in us when we agree with their views.
As to supporting governor Huckabee, it's because he is a visionary and a remarkably effective communicator. They don't see it, for whatever reason, and that's their right, but when they attribute our disagreement to bigotry rather than principle, it stings.
Again, I am NOT a bigot: I have Mormon friends, who live an enviably moral life in many cases. To an outsider, I know they can't look much different than evangelical Christians. But their beliefs are radically different, much more so than say, the difference between Protestants and Catholics. This is ok! It's America! I am not bashing them in any way! I am saying, I disagree (and it isn't just me!) with what they term to be Christianity.
By his or her own admission, a devout Mormon would have to hold that all Evangelicals are not actually Christians. It's mutual. Evangelicals and Mormons can come together on so many issues, and we'd probably rather not discuss our differences as much as our commonalities. I am all in favor of this, but not at the price of abandoning my own faith or being labeled a bigot. I don't think it would be unreasonable to say this.
I wish no harm in any way to anyone of the Mormon faith; I would personally stand up against any bigotry against them or of anyone of any faith; I respect and frankly am somewhat envious of the family values and moral cohesiveness of the Latter-Day Saints in America; and I would be the first one to vote for a Mormon for President if he or she was the strongest choice. The simple fact is, in the case of Mitt Romney, that this is not the case.
As a pro-life, anti-gay marriage conservative, why wouldn't it make sense to support Mike Huckabee, who has held to his beliefs about the family his whole life, over someone who has changed them multiple times (Romney), doesn't hold them (Giuliani), is not passionate about them (McCain), or is a poor messenger of them (Thompson)??
And I don't think that makes this Germany in the 1930s. I think the rules are: First one to call the other person a Nazi loses the argument.
God bless you, and have a nice day, whoever you are.
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