Dems Launch Christian Radio Ad Blitz On Climate Change

A coalition of Democrats and faith advocates is launching a new ad blitz on Christian radio to promote congressional action on climate change.

Reps. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.) and Tom Perriello (D-Va.) will join religious and military leaders on Tuesday in unveiling the campaign that includes ads on Christian radio stations in at least eight states, with a focus on members of Congress who may waver on climate change legislation as negotiations are taking place on Capitol Hill.

The campaign is one the first salvos of the American Values Network, a new religious Democratic organization spearheaded by Burns Strider, the veteran operative who led faith outreach for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.

"We're trying to push Southern and Midwestern Democrats to let them know the faith community and people from national security angle really think it's important that we pass this legislation," said Kristin Williams, a spokeswoman for Faith In Public Life, in an interview with the Huffington Post. Williams said a priority is making sure that climate change legislation "supports those most vulnerable" and "making sure that in the climate bill there's money for helping people adapt."

The coalition is bolstered by the results of a soon-to-be-released national poll showing that a majority of Americans, including Evangelicals and Catholics, believes "dealing with climate change now will create new jobs and help avoid more serious economic problems in the future" and that "climate change is adversely affecting the poorest communities in the world and that addressing global poverty would increase U.S. security," according to a release.

The push reflects the broadening appeal of green initiatives among faith and military groups. Last week Gen. Wesley Clark (Ret.), who sits on the VoteVets advisory board, touted a new ad campaign led by MoveOn.org and labor and environmental groups to support the passage of climate change legislation, which Clark called a "no brainer" in a conference call with reporters. "Oil profits do find their way to terrorists," Clark said.

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Comments

[luziannagirl]

11:09 AM on 05/13/2009

Man, if I were a leader of those Christian denominations/groups which WISELY don't rail against the authority of government, democracy, reality and all of science, and try via force of law to cram their doctrine down the rest of our throats, I would be frantically trying to distance myself and my group from the Religious Right. I'd be taking out full-page ads and buying prime time, saying stuff like "United Methodists are NOT science-deniers, hate-mongers, and Apolcolypse-Hasteners".

So, Real Men (and Women) of Jesus, non-wacked-out End Times Evangelicals, Compassionate Christians, Where in Heaven's name are you!!!?

Step up and defend yourselves, because not only is your country being attacked from within, but your image is being trashed!

[LooktotheLeft]

09:49 AM on 05/06/2009

Funny, I grew up in a time when the word "a*theist" was most associated with "c*ommunism" with the underlying premise that both were closely aligned....and mutually e*vil. It didn't help that fringe, w*hacko, opportunists like Madalyn Murray O'Hara became the traveling poster person for atheism. This was the 50's and 60's. Now, in 2009, some polls still show that voters would just as soon elect a white s*upremacist as they would an a*theist. Yep, the a*theist is pretty much rock bottom in terms of favorability. And I don't see that changing in my lifetime...at least not in the U.S. Christians get bent like nothing I've ever seen before when they feel they're being labeled. Welcome to my world...the world of the non-believer (faith...and things of faith) who'd just as soon be beaten over the head w/ a hammer than define himself, to others, as an atheist...at the risk of ostricization, alienation, contempt, etc. So, christians...don't give me your lectures on labels and labeling. You only THINK you can be empathetic to the life of a non-believer...only because deep, deep down, you still hold out that hope that me, and others like me, are "convertible". It kinda reminds me of the 70's "enlightened" liberal who hung out Harlem for a couple days so he/she could go back to his/her college campus and say he/she understood life in the ghetto.

[Flahdagal]

10:26 AM on 05/06/2009

".only because deep, deep down, you still hold out that hope that me, and others like me, are "convertible". "

Nope. Your path is your path, dude, and I'm glad you have a great looking dog walking it with you. I'm honestly sorry that my beliefs have ever caused you pain of any kind. You can come back at me with another answer of "bull*hit", but it's true, regardless.

[LooktotheLeft]

11:09 AM on 05/06/2009

Cool. Thanks

[kjstjohn]

11:32 AM on 05/06/2009

Naah. My husband is an atheist. It is an honorable choice.

[LooktotheLeft]

12:03 PM on 05/06/2009

Thanks. Honorable to you...but absolutely dishonorable to most Americans. You know, I had to hold my right hand and lie in order to join the military nearly 30 years ago, with which I served meritoriously, and highly decorated, for 21 years?

[henrypapillon]

09:32 AM on 05/06/2009

Hopefully we can get enough Christians on either side so that we can get the pastors out of the politics business.

[kjstjohn]

12:04 PM on 05/06/2009

Can't disagree with the general goal of getting pastors out of politics. The country was well-served by MLK getting into politcs and there have been instances where pastors SHOULD have been involved in politics (Nazi Germany) but, in general, politicized pastors cheapen both religion and politics.

[CitizenoftheRepublic]

03:32 PM on 05/06/2009

Tax them and they will disappear like their prophets!

[tomasedison]

09:10 AM on 05/06/2009

Without their Christians, the republithugs have absolutely nothing....not one solution for any of the problems our country is facing.

[Imzadi]

09:35 AM on 05/06/2009

I think tax cuts do not rely on religion... /sarcasm off

[jerryfromcalifornia]

09:59 AM on 05/06/2009

No but religion relys on tax cuts and exemptions.

[LooktotheLeft]

08:49 AM on 05/06/2009

Funny, I grew up in a time when the word "atheist" was most associated with "communism" with the underlying premise that both were closely aligned....and mutually evil. It didn't help that fringe, whacko, opportunists like Madalyn Murray O'Hara became the traveling poster person for atheism. This was the 50's and 60's. Now, in 2009, some polls still show that voters would just as soon elect a white supremacist as they would an atheist. Yep, the atheist is pretty much rock bottom in terms of favorability. And I don't see that changing in my lifetime...at least not in the U.S. Christians get bent like nothing I've ever seen before when they feel they're being labeled. Welcome to my world...the world of the non-believer (faith...and things of faith) who'd just as soon be beaten over the head w/ a hammer than decribe his or herself, to others, as an atheist...at the risk of ostricization, alienation, contempt, job loss, bodily injury, etc. So, christians...don't give me your lectures on labels and labeling. You only THINK you can be empathetic to the life of a non-believer...only because deep, deep down, you still hold out that hope that me, and others like me, are "convertible". Admit it. It kinda reminds me of the 70's "enlightened" liberal who hung out in Harlem for a couple days so he/she could go back to his/her college campus and say he/she understood life in the ghetto.

[LooktotheLeft]

07:12 AM on 05/06/2009

I love it when the commenters here start with "I'm a Christian"...as if we need a qualifier. Believe me, we know it. It seaps from your pores.

[kjstjohn]

07:48 AM on 05/06/2009

There are a lot of us Christians who really do believe that your journey through life is yours. We wish you well whatever path you choose and do not wish to divert or convert you.

Many of us believe that the Bible was written by fallible men. Many of us believe that Hell exists on earth and not in an afterlife to come. Many of us are agnostic about the existence of an afterlife in Heaven. Many of us believe that accepting gays and gay marriage is part of our duty to love ourselves and/or to love our neighbor as ourselves.

Many of us are sympathetic to the view that religion has created more human misery than it has resolved.

There is probably more common ground than you think between you and many liberal Christians. For example, I think your dog is adorable.

[LooktotheLeft]

08:14 AM on 05/06/2009

His bark is worse than his bite...just ask my neighbors....or ask him, and he'll go "ahhwoooooooooooo".

[ElTommo]

04:47 PM on 05/06/2009

You may just be one of my favorite Christians evar.

[jesthefaxman]

10:36 PM on 05/05/2009

good luck with that

[applescruff]

09:51 PM on 05/05/2009

Beware Democrats. Look what mixing Religion and politics did for the Republican Party and the Christian Church. It made them seem equally as intolerable,hypocritical and ridicules in the eyes of intelligent people and initiated a rot that is proving hurtful to both.

[TheThinkerCometh]

10:33 PM on 05/05/2009

Well, unlike the GOP, the Democratic party isn't letting evangelicals in to rewrite our party platform, we're merely reaching out to this demographic. I was at a Howard Dean lecture a month ago and he said that public outreach and being sympathetic to the needs of the people helped push the Democratic party back into the majority.

[jeanrenoir]

11:37 PM on 05/05/2009

Totally true. I'm an agnostic, but I detest agnostic and atheistic bigots. Christianity is a lot profounder in a range of ways than trendy "Buddhism." If only as a myth system preaching the value of self-sacrificing love, instead of our country's usual narcissism, Christianity is a potentially valuable source of moral wisdom. It's absurd, bigoted, and simply stupid, to equate the inspiration of St. Augustine, Dante, Michelangelo, Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, and Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky with moronic shysters like Rev. Hagee and Jerry Falwell. Obama's the perfect role model for a new tolerance and humility towards others among LIBERALS. It's good for the country, and good for recovering, snobbish liberal bigots' souls.

[LooktotheLeft]

07:22 AM on 05/06/2009

"Well, unlike the GOP, the Democratic party isn't letting evangelicals in to rewrite our party platform, we're merely reaching out to this demographic".....not yet. Give em time.

[Tericruz]

11:20 PM on 05/05/2009

my thoughts exactly!

[larmarch5]

08:00 PM on 05/05/2009

Christians who study the Bible and try to follow Jesus' teachings have very little in common with the "Religious Right." Unfortunately, they don't sound so sensational on the news networks and they get very little airtime anywhere other than NPR. They let their work and faith exemplify their beliefs, attend integrated churches, care about their communities, and pretty much keep their political views to themselves. Please don't lump all Christians into the same camp.

[LinkSync]

07:16 PM on 05/05/2009

May God have Mercy on us all.
Especially those that would leverage Religion to effect political change or actions.
We have seen where that leads and I for one want no more of it.
Religion has NO PLACE in politics.
It can inform your personal views etc. and I would think must do so if the religion was sincerly believed.
How anyone can believe in todays religions is beyound me.
But most do.
That being said I too believe in God.
Just not religion.
The cool thing is......GOD HAS NO VOTE!

[doctor4kids]

08:09 PM on 05/05/2009

I agree! While God may have created man; surely man created religion.

[Imzadi]

09:32 AM on 05/06/2009

Absolutely spot on both of you!! (Except for the existance of God part...)

[courtreporter]

09:35 PM on 05/05/2009

I totally agree .... but at least the Democrats can show that the Republicans don't "own" all Christians. There's actually those of us who are Democrats through and through -- and it's because of poverty, the environment and ALL "social" issues besides abortion!! My religion makes me who I am --- and it's a DEMOCRAT!!!

[seekanddestroy]

06:14 PM on 05/05/2009

I find it appalling.....that this subject ran out of gas.......

[seekanddestroy]

05:44 PM on 05/05/2009

Personally, I find most Christians to be decent folks. Most of them. Some of them are out of their freakin' minds. To use a word..Apalling.........

[LooktotheLeft]

05:15 PM on 05/05/2009

I have only one thing to say here so please listen:

I hope Heath Shuler is a better "christiany" broadcaster than he is Rep from NC....and better than he was as a quarterback (Redskins).

[LooktotheLeft]

04:36 PM on 05/05/2009

There are definitely far too many "religiousy" people on this thread. Calling all secularists? Are you out there? An athiest, perhaps? H*ell, after all the battering I've gotten on this Falwelish thread, I'll even take an agnostic at this point.

[seekanddestroy]

05:40 PM on 05/05/2009

I'm a sinner. Can I be of service?

[LooktotheLeft]

05:44 PM on 05/05/2009

Cool.

[kjstjohn]

05:49 AM on 05/06/2009

LOL. I'm a Christian--which does not change the fact that I'm a sinner too.

[kobio]

05:40 PM on 05/05/2009

I'm with you!!

[LooktotheLeft]

05:44 PM on 05/05/2009

Dude, thank gawd almighty. I thought for a minute I had linked into Pat Roberson's chat room or something.

[Indie2008]

04:28 PM on 05/05/2009

Go for it. many in the Religious right were motivated by good intentions, and the Republicans took advantage of it.