A smidgen of Mixed Judeo-Christian "Values"/Identity and Politics

By Gary Berg-Cross

Religion continues to play a big part in American elections as noted in Ralph Reed Spins a New Faith, Freedom and Conservative Politics Message . A phrase heard often in battleground states is “Souls to the Polls.” Innocent enough. On the Sunday before election in Cleveland Ohio, R&B singer John Legend joined Democratic public officials from around the county on a makeshift stage to  mitigate the angst of waiting on a 4 block long line for early votes (Kent State radio)

On the Republican side it is a bit deeper mix of religion and politics. Fundamentalist Christians are a key part of the right wing base. HufPo, for example, says that:

Most on the Right would describe themselves as religious, predominately Christian-based religious, one is left to extrapolate that their positions … are mandated by their God and doctrine. Abortion is, of course, off-the-charts wrong on every level, at any time, for any reason; birth control ,

For some time the Romney-Ryan strategy has been to bash Obama over ‘Judeo-Christian’ values.  A good bashing seems to have worked in quieting down the base and helping to overcom their uneasiness with Mitt Romney’s Mormonism  (See faith” voters were seen to have begin to rally behind Romney).  

On election eve Paul Ryan warned evangelical Christians that another 4 years of President Obama would threaten "Judeo-Christian values" whatever that is.  Maybe lower tax for money changers? 

According to the NYTs his remarks came in a conference call with the evangelical Christian Faith and Freedom Coalition, a group founded by that new born conservative Christian strategist Ralph Reed.Yes that Ralph Reed.

Mormons and evangelicals are getting comfie.

Ryan stirred the witches pot by describing Obama’s policies this way:

 It’s a dangerous path. It’s a path that grows government, restricts freedom and liberty and compromises those values, those Judeo-Christian, Western civilization values that made us such a great and exceptional nation in the first place.’

He also broadend the base (think Florida) by appealing to a theologically oriented, Judeo-Christian faith voters which include fundamentalist Jews as well as Christians.  

And there has been activity on that front too, thanks to casino mogul and Jewish fundamentalist Sheldon Adelson & wife who has invested heavily in the Presidential campaign with some $20 million for Newt Gingrich’s failed primary campaign,  and at least $10 million for a super PAC supporting GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney. His rationale? A mix of politics and identity:

"There is now a visceral anti-Israel movement among rank-and-file Democrats, a disturbing development that my parents' generation would not have ignored," he wrote, citing a poll as well as the tumult at the Democratic National Convention this summer over the removal and eventual inclusion of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in the party platform.” (CNN)

The Adelsons also have heaped largess on one particular New Jersey race. It has a religious connection too. According to reports Adelson, CEO of the Las Vegas Sands empire, along  with wife, Miriam,  have given $500,000 to the Patriot Prosperity PAC, an independent super PAC supporting the Republican Rabbi Shmuley Boteach. Boteach  is a TV celebrity, author of “Kosher Sex,” host of the show “Shalom in the Home,” and former spiritual adviser to pop star Michael Jackson. He  is running against eight-term incumbent Democrat Bill Pascrell, Jr. in a newly redrawn 9^th District that includes Paterson.

The Adelsons’ total  support for the Rabbi comes to more than $1 million this year. Pascrell and the Rabbi recently  debated at Temple Sinai in Tenafly NJ. The main topics were an exchange of  views on Israel and the economy. Boteach said taxes were too high under the Democratic administration, crippling job growth.  
We need some religious sponsored trickle down apparently.

Images

1. Ryan and Reed: http://article.wn.com/view/2012/08/11/Paul_Ryan_firebrand_from_Wisconsin_has_built_reputation_on_f/
2. Sheldon Adelson: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/05/adelson-makes-his-case-for-backing-gop/
3. Shmuley faces off with Hitch: http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2010/09/christopher-hitchens-still-doesnt-believe-in-the-afterlife

Ralph Reed Spins a New Faith, Freedom and Conservative Politics Message

By Gary Berg-Cross

You don’t have to be an historian to know that politics and religion intertwine. A good example is the case of Ralph Reed, corrupt former lobbyist, and now chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition (FFC). Actually the FFC is a Reed creation which one supposes is designed to rehabilitate his image from various past scandals. Just a while ago Reed was damaged goods in mainstream Republican circles, but the increased radicalization and historical numbness of a significant number of the populace seems to have allowed him to ease back into the scene under cover of religious activity.

Reed rose national awareness in 1989 as the 1st executive director of Pat Robertson’s Christian Coalition (CC). He rode that early fundamentalist-politico train through the 90s and became, as the picture says, "The Right Hand of God.". Then the FEC had found that the CC group had earlier violated federal campaign finance laws Fed prosecutors were investigating allegations of CC financial misconduct in the Bush 92 re-election effort. Reed jumped off the damaged religio-political train and became a lobbyist. In 1999, Jack Abramoff hired Reed. Soon the Abramoff casino scandal  sideline Reed for a number of years, although he escaped jail. But in the popular mind his hand of God image was replaced by one of casino dealings (see picture below).

But with a change in the culture and a FFC cover Reed is back with brave in your face talk such as:

"We’re not just playing around. We’re not shadowboxing…We are playing for keeps. We’re playing for the most valuable prize in the history of the human race and that’s the United States of America and we are not going to lose."

Reed has always had friends in the Christian fundamentalist sector, but connections to political conservatives. He brags of having cell phone numbers of 44 million conservative and Republican voters. That means something to Pols like Willard Romney who said recently:

“Ralph Reed is doing a great job here with the Faith & Freedom Coalition. This is going to make a big impact across America and I appreciate the work you are doing here.”

People wondered if a Mormon could win over fundamentalists. You can read about the effort - Faith voters begin to rally behind Romney

The FFC conservative group work is to turn itself into a national organization with a key role in the Republican takeover of the American government in the 2012 election and as Ralph says “Beyond.” Leveraging the T-party is one vision. On the FFC website you can read about things like the conservative teavangelical movement and 5 Reasons Teavangelicals matter. This is a vision for that un-separated American religio-state. One can already hear the faith-based arguments:

“We’re up against a president who’s trying to destroy faith by imposing a secular government and arguing that secular bureaucrats have greater moral authority than religious leaders,” 

That wasn’t Reed talking but his Georgia friend Newt Gingrich, the former U.S. House speaker.

One hopes that people will turn away from Reed the way they did with the rehabbed Gingrich, when they get a closer look at the deeper corruption under the facade. Of course Reed and others are now well financed and it may be hard to get a counter message across over the noise and emotion.

Picture Credits:

Hand of God (Time) http://www.religiousdouchebags.com/2011/10/ralph-reed-of-faith-and-freedom.html

Reed Casino Dancer: http://mark1marti2.wordpress.com/tag/marvin-liebman/

Cartoon on Relgio-politics Mix: http://thepoliticalcarnival.net/tag/christian-evangelists/