Evangelicals Still Wary Of McCain

New York Times:

Lori Viars, an evangelical activist in Warren County, Ohio, essentially put her life on hold in the fall of 2004 to run a phone bank for President Bush. Her efforts helped the president's ambitious push to turn out evangelicals and win that critical swing state in a close election.

But Ms. Viars, who is among a cluster of socially conservative activists in Ohio being courted by Senator John McCain's campaign through regular e-mail messages, is taking a wait-and-see attitude for now toward Mr. McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee.

"I think a lot of us are in a holding pattern," said Ms. Viars, who added that she wanted to see whom Mr. McCain picked for his running mate.

Ms. Viars's hesitation illustrates what remains one of Mr. McCain's biggest challenges as he faces a general election contest with Senator Barack Obama: a continued wariness toward him among evangelicals and other Christian conservatives, a critical voting bloc for Republicans that could stay home in the fall or at least be decidedly unenthusiastic in their efforts to get out the vote.

To address this, Mr. McCain's campaign has been ramping up its outreach to evangelicals over the last month, preparing a budget and a strategic plan for turning them out in 18 battleground states this fall.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[heal57]

Senator Obama is a true spiritual Christian. He is not a hate monger. Evangelicals that are of sound , independent, minds will possibly vote for him if they weigh everything in the fall. Just look at the Obama's marriage as a key point. It is real, pure, and honest, unlike the McCains [or the Clintons].

Independent for obama '08

[kellygrrrl]

The TRUE Christian will vote for Peace

[musselmanm]

He has become one of the agents of intolerence he has always talked about. Plus he thinks his wife is a C&(t!

[musselmanm]

John McCain has become one of the agents of intolerence that he has always talked about.

[ChicagoBob]

!

I understand exactly.

I am wary of evangelicals. They brought us Bush for God's sake. They could do it again.

!

[Toonadude]

McCain needs to name George "macaca" Allen of Virginia as his VP running mate.
Let's shore up the base and remove all doubt about where it stands.

[washington31]

I hope McSame doesn't turn out to be another Bill Clinton in the Oval Office w/ cigars!!! Once a cheat always a cheat!

[washington31]

McCain realized his pecker needed satisfaction and his wife could not provide it in her fragile state. So, he cheated and cheated and cheated, until he found the perfect mistress he could marry. I know this cannot be excepted by evangelicals!

[Bertha40869]

Herein lies the danger of merging religion and politics. You become a hostage to the interest of the conservative right . They really are no different from the PACs, the lobbyists, and the special interest. When they are compartmentalized and treated as a legitimate political group, they start making demands and hence, start framing the campaign. Thank goodness Obama has never depended on these types of votes, because they are holding McCain total hostage Hanoi style. I don't know though-I've found a lot of the religious right to be worse than military prisoners.

[pfc1369]

Nothing says ignorance like a wary evangelical!

[VOTER]

Note to Evangelicals:

I feel your pain. How can you possibly believe McCain, The Flip-Flopper of Convenience?

You shouldn't. You can't.

He has left us, veterans, too.

AirForceVet/Vietnam

[Toonadude]

McCain is ready to embrace the phlogiston theory and the theory of spontaneous generation. That should cement the evangelical vote for him.

[washington31]

He is ready too, because he wants them to help him win the White House. He does not have the same values they due. What ever happened to, till death do we part marriage vows. He is a serial adulterer!

[BEHM777]

I do not believe a person's religious belief (or unbelief) should have much to do with whether or not they are fit (or unfit) for pubic office. However, the evangelicals are barking up the right tree in regards to McCain. He doesn't genuinely represent their interests--in truth GWBush didn't either, even though GWBush talked the talk.

The so-called Religious Right has done a lot of damage in this country by helping to unnecessarily polarize the electorate with their talk of a culture war and their undying early support of the Iraq War and its perpetrator (perpe-Traitor is what he really is). If they stay on the sideline in 2008, good.

[aliceblue]

Obama is an evangelical.

The United Church of Christ is a union of
Calvinists, Lutherans and Evangelicals.

Obama didn't leave the United Church of
Christ, he only resigned from Trinity.

[Bertha40869]

He is a Christian. Evangelicals push their "religion" (which btw, Jesus hated) off on others Crusaders style, and then call for rebellion for everyone's noncompliance. They are no better than the Islamic extremists.

[washington31]

I am happy that someone else realized this. Obama is Evangelical!!! Thanks for posting this, because alot of people don't know this!

[PatrickforO]

Only four comments showing and the board says six, guys.