With less than a week to go before the Iowa caucuses, it looks like the “come-from-way-behind Rick Santorum boomlet” I joked …
Articles of Faith
Why the Modern President Can’t Belong to a Church
Correction appended, 12:04pm
The new internet era of politics has changed a lot of things about the way Presidents go about their daily lives. A stray comment captured on tape can instantly ricochet and cause havoc. Post-9/11 security concerns combined with the ability to find detailed information about virtually any location has made …
Why Rick Perry’s New Ads Are Wrong on Religion–And Obama
For a swaggering Texas cowboy, Rick Perry certainly does have a serious victim complex. In two different campaign ads released in Iowa this week, the Texas governor defends his faith from enemies named and unnamed. “I’m not ashamed to talk about my faith,” he says in the first spot. “Some liberals say that faith is a sign of weakness. …
Butterball Jihad: Why Islamophobia Is Still On the March in the GOP
It’s been a while since the GOP presidential candidates have engaged in a good old-fashioned round of Who’s the Biggest Islamophobe. Those party-poopers Jon Huntsman and Mitt Romney usually sit out the game. But in the wake of the Muslim Brotherhood’s strong showing in early voting for Egyptian parliamentary elections, their opponents …
Is the Obama Administration ‘At War’ with Catholics?
While the nation’s Catholic bishops were gathered in Baltimore for their annual meeting this week, Washington Post columnist and former Bush adviser Michael Gerson wrote an op-ed declaring that part of the Obama Administration “is at war with Catholic leaders and Catholic belief.” Echoing the words of New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, …
Why the Religious Right Can’t Seem to Get the Candidate It Wants
Was it just a month ago that religious conservatives were busy trying to stir up concerns about Mormonism and rally evangelicals behind Rick Perry? At the time, it looked like Perry’s slide in the polls could be reversed and his debate performances improved. Since then, however, his support has cratered–and if Perry can come back from …
Why Does Michigan’s Anti-Bullying Bill Protect Religious Tormenters?
As a transplanted Michigander, I’ve always maintained pride in my home state. I’ve only owned American cars. I believed in the Lions even during the really dismal years. I still point to my hand to show people which part of …
How Catholic Conservatives Could Quietly Remake the Republican Presidential Race
Updated 11:07am
As this point in the presidential campaign cycle, those of us in the press corps have typed tens of thousands of words about the influential role of evangelicals in selecting the next Republican nominee. Sure, …
The De Facto Religious Test in Presidential Politics
Officially, the United States has no religious test for elected officials. The prohibition is right there in Article VI, section 3 of the Constitution: “No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office …
Will Evangelicals Doom Romney?
Mitt Romney 2.0 is an impressive candidate. While other Republicans have moved up and down in the polls, he has held the position of frontrunner for most of the past year and a half. Compared with the last presidential race, he’s …
Why Catholic Bishops are Targeting Obama on Religious Freedom
On Wednesday, U.S. Supreme Court Justices heard arguments in Hosanna-Tabor v. EEOC, a case that will give the court its first opportunity to weigh in on an exception that has existed in civil rights law for four decades. The …