October 19, 2007


Romney's day of reckoning



This is an important day in Mitt Romney's quest for the Republican presidential nomination. Today, he appears before the Values Voter Summit in Washington, a gathering of Christian conservative leaders who have labored successfully over the past two decades to marry religious beliefs to a national political agenda. Conservative Christians are at the core of the Republican nominating constituency, and they have fundamental questions about Romney.
First,of course,is about his Mormonism. Formally established in 1830, Mormonism considers itself "the only true and living church on the face of the earth." To many Christians, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is a cult with a heretical understanding of Scripture and doctrine. Mormons reject the unified Trinity, for example, and teach that God and Adam were one and the same. In Mormon teaching, the Garden of Eden was in America, specifically in Jackson County, Mo., and when Jesus returns to earth (soon), Jackson County is where he will come.
Romney endeavors manfully to argue that his religion is philosophically identical to other Judeo-Christian faiths, but it is a tough sell. Other critical Mormon principles, divinely ordained from a never-ending string of revelations from God, included plural marriage (no longer officially endorsed), and that blacks are subhuman, "beasts of the field," placed on earth as the living representatives of Satan. It was not until the 1970s that political pressure forced the Mormon church to allow blacks into the ministry. Women remain second-class citizens, and those who question that orthodoxy are often excommunicated, denying them everlasting life.
Romney has done everything he can to define Mormonism as mainstream Christian, "a quintessentially American faith," insisting that he accepts Jesus Christ as his personal savior, which itself butts against LDS teaching. He also insists that questioning his religion borders on bigotry. However, polls now indicate that 29 percent of Americans and a much higher proportion of fundamentalist Christians say they would not vote for an LDS member for president.
Romney faces another hurdle with the Values Summit leaders, along with the rest of us: his "authenticity" problem, namely that he will say anything to be elected and believes nothing, especially on abortion and gay rights.
Romney's first foray into politics was a 1994 U.S. Senate race against Edward Kennedy. Because abortion is banned in the Mormon religion and Massachusetts is a pro-choice state, the first question in the candidates' Boston debate was to Romney, on abortion. I was the moderator in that debate. This is what I heard Romney say: "Abortion should be safe and legal. I sustain and support Roe v. Wade, and the right of a woman to make that choice." Kennedy, who noted Romney's earlier waffling on that issue, rejoined, "My opponent is not pro-choice, he is multiple choice." No longer. Romney has transformed himself into a social conservative who opposes abortion and favors repeal of Roe v. Wade.
As governor in Massachusetts, he dedicated himself to "full equality for America's gay and lesbian citizens." That changed when Massachusetts became the first state to sanction gay marriages, and Romney discovered his presidential ambitions. He is now a champion of traditional marriage and was a top donor and fundraiser for a statewide same-sex marriage ban in South Carolina. That state, dominated as it is by evangelical Christian voters, will be an early test of whether he can get over the Mormonism and authenticity hurdles.
Romney also opposes the use of stem cells and federal funding for stem cell research. Richard Cohen, who writes knowledgeably about chronic diseases, considers this Romney's most telling policy concession to the Christian right. He notes, "Romney's wife, Ann, has multiple sclerosis, a neurodegenerative disease that could be helped by stem cells. And Mitt comes out against it. Need I say more?"
Is it too much to ask that Romney honestly address the beliefs and policies of the Mormon church, or is it enough just to say that we are electing a commander in chief, not a theologian in chief? Religion has been deeply infused into American politics, thus we are now governed by a born-again Christian who thinks himself an instrument of God and sees the world in terms of good and evil.
So we need to know all we can about the next president and I hope the Values Summit folks hold Romney's feet to the fire.

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Proud Supporter Of: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Gun carrying, Pro-choice Blue Dog Democrat and damn proud of it!

Damn Smurf.... Why don't you just assign readin assignments, lol.

Is there going to be a final exam?

Most of the negative stuff the news people have brought up about the Mormons is outdated info from the 1800's and is not necessarily the doctrine practiced by today's Mormons.

Well, I read it all. Well, most of it. Well, some of it. OK OK OK. I only read the first few lines. Im so ashamed.

Hey but I heard on the news that Romney has put like $17 million of his own money into the campaign.