The Values Voter Summit, the year's biggest political gathering for the Religious Right, took place in Washington, D.C. this past weekend. Every Republican presidential candidate with the exception of Jon Huntsman addressed the summit, evidence of the continuing importance of Religious Right activists and political groups to the GOP. Ron Paul's campaign brought in enough voters to win the straw poll, but it would be wrong to say he was the favorite of the Values Voter crowd. It was up-and-coming candidate Herman Cain who won the loudest cheers (and took second place).
Two days of speeches from presidential candidates, congressional leaders, and Religious Right activists painted a clear picture of where they'll try to take the country if they are successful in their 2012 electoral goals. In the Religious Right's America, banks and corporations would be free from pesky consumer and worker protections; there would be no Environmental Protection Agency and no federal support for education; women would have no access to abortion; gays would be second-class citizens; and for at least some, religious minorities would have to know their place and be grateful that they are tolerated in this Christian nation.
Here's a rundown of some major themes from the conference.
Religious Bigotry on Parade
In one of the most extreme expressions of the "Christian nation" approach to government, the American Family Association's Bryan Fischer has stated repeatedly that the religious liberty of non-Christians, including Mormons, is not protected by the First Amendment. Before the conference, People For the American Way called on Mitt Romney to take on Fischer's bigotry, which he did, albeit in a vague and tepid manner, criticizing "poisonous" rhetoric without naming Fischer or explaining why his views are poison. Getting greater media attention were comments by Baptist pastor Robert Jeffress, who in his introduction of Texas Gov. Rick Perry insisted on the importance of electing a "genuine" follower of Christ. Following Romney at the microphone, Fischer said that the next president has to be a Christian "in the mold of" the founding fathers, calling this religious test for the presidency a "political test."
Beating up on Obama
A major theme of the VVS was attacking President Obama and his policies. Perhaps the nicest thing anyone said about the president was Mitt Romney's snide remark that Obama is "the conservative movement's top recruiter." Less nice, from virtue-monger Bill Bennett: "If you voted for him last time to prove you are not a racist, you must vote against him this time to prove you are not an idiot." Rep. Anne Buerkle, one of the Tea Party freshmen, said flat out that the president is not concerned about what is best for the country. Many speakers denounced "Obamacare," and most of the presidential candidates promised to make dismantling health care reform a top priority. Many also attacked President Obama for not being strong enough in support of Israel, and repeated a favorite right-wing talking point by pledging to "never apologize" for U.S. actions abroad.
Gays as Enemies of Liberty
It is clear that a Republican takeover of the Senate and White House would put advances toward equality for LGBT Americans in peril. Speaker after speaker denounced the recent repeal of the ban on openly gay and lesbian servicemembers in the armed forces; many also attacked marriage equality for same-sex couples. And many portrayed liberty as a zero-sum game, insisting that advances toward equality posed a dire threat to religious liberty. Predictably, the AFA's Fischer was most vitriolic, declaring that the nation must choose between homosexuality and religious liberty and insisting that the country needs a president "who will treat homosexual behavior not as a political cause at all but as a threat to public health."
Loving Wall Street, Hating Wall Street Protesters
On the same day that moving pictures of Kol Nidre services at the sight of Occupy Wall Street protests made the rounds, VVS speakers portrayed the protests as dangerous and violent. Others simply mocked the protesters without taking seriously the objections being raised to growing inequality and economic hardship in America. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor denounced the protesters as "mobs." A number of speakers promoted Christian Reconstructionist notions of "Biblical economics," with Star Parker declaring that "this whole notion of redistribution of wealth is inconsistent with scripture" and calling for the selection of a candidate with commitment to the free market according to the Bible. Ron Paul said "debt is not a biblical principle." The AFA's Fischer said that liberalism is based on violating two of the Ten Commandments, namely thou shall not steal, and thou shall not covet anything that belongs to your neighbor. Liberalism, he said, is "driven by angry, bitter, acquisitive greed for the wealth of productive Americans."
No Love for Libertarians
A major theme at last year's Values Voter Summit, and heard again this year, was an effort to make social-issue libertarians unwelcome in the conservative movement by insisting that you cannot legitimately claim to be a fiscal conservative if you are not also pushing "traditional family values." First Things web editor Joe Carter took a shot at gay conservatives, saying it was not possible to be conservative and for gay marriage -- it simply made you a "liberal who likes tax cuts."
Crying Wolf on Religious Persecution
Religious Right leaders energize movement activists with dire warnings about threats to religious liberty and the alleged religious persecution of Christians in America, which retired Gen. William Boykin said is worse than ever. Crying wolf about persecution of Christians in America is offensive given the very real suffering of people in countries that do not enjoy the religious freedom we do. Several speakers addressed the case of a Christian pastor facing death in Iran. That is persecution; having your political tactics challenged or losing a court case is not.
America is Exceptional; Europe Sucks
We heard plenty of talk about at VVS about "American exceptionalism," a favorite GOP campaign theme in 2010 and apparently for 2012. Rep. Steve King, for example, said "this country was ordained and built by His hand," that the Declaration of Independence was written with divine guidance, and that God moved the founding fathers around the globe like chess pieces . Many speakers contrasted a freedom-loving, God-fearing America to socialist, post-Christian Europe, which Gen. Boykin declared "hopelessly lost."
Smashing the Regulatory State
The anti-government, anti-regulatory fervor of billionaire right-wing funders like the Koch brothers was on vibrant display at the VVS. Without the slightest nod to the fact that regulating the behavior of corporations' treatment of workers, consumers, and the environment is in any way beneficial, a member of a Heritage Foundation panel said conservatives' goal should be to "break the back" of the "regulatory state." Some presidential candidates vowed to halt every regulation issued during the Obama administration. Michele Bachman said her goal was to "dismantle" the bureaucracy.
Judging JudgesMany speakers criticized judges for upholding abortion rights, church-state separation, and gay rights. Newt Gingrich took these attacks to a whole new level, calling for right-wing politicians to provoke a constitutional crisis in which the legislative and executive branch would ignore court rulings they didn't like. He called the notion of "judicial supremacy" an "affront to the American system of self-government." Aside from Gingrich's very dubious constitutional theory, the speech seemed out of place at a conference in which speakers had been calling for the Supreme Court to overturn the health care law passed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama.
Deconstructing the 'Pursuit of Happiness'
VVS speakers love quoting the Declaration of Independence, but some are clearly a little troubled with the notion that the "pursuit of happiness" is an inalienable right, one that might apply, for example, to happy, loving gay couples. Rick Santorum said that the founders' understanding of "happiness" meant "the morally right thing" and doing what God wants. Steve King said the pursuit of happiness was not like a tailgate party, but the pursuit of excellence in moral and spiritual development. Michele Bachmann has equated the pursuit of happiness with private property.
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- John Adams, “A Defence of the Constitutions of the United States of America,” 1787
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjRcO1Sm0HU
"Ron Paul's campaign brought in enough voters to win the straw poll, but it would be wrong to say he was the favorite of the Values Voter crowd"
Yeah the guy who won 1st place wasn't the favorite, it was the guy who came second. Give me a break.
Most event attendees arrived Friday morning. Over 600 Ron Paul supporters arrived by the busloads on Saturday. While many waited in line to register, some attended the 20 minute speech with Ron Paul and thoroughly made their presence known. However, the room was far from full. As soon as the speech concluded, his followers left the room chanting loudly "Ron Paul, Ron Paul..." It was clear they only wanted to hear one person. Then, they attended the meet and greet with their leader and departed almost as quickly as they arrived.
Oh yes, Ron Paul won the straw poll. To call him the "Values Voter Favorite"...is a stretch. His campaign proved they can mobilize people by the hundreds, swarm in like locust, and flood the ballot box. They still however have a difficult time drawing double digits in national polls.
While Herman Cain came in second, so many people wanted to hear him the organizers couldn’t close the auditorium doors. Spontaneous cheers and ovations erupted throughout Cain’s speech.
In this humble attendee’s opinion, he seemed to be the one who truly resonated with the straw poll voters. To me, that makes him the real winner.
Ron Paul has won more straw polls then all others, has more donations from military men and woman the Obama,Romney, Perry, and Cain Combined, has 5 times the amount of people donate to him as Romney and Perry(Cain raised so poor i dont even know).
Vote Ron Paul 2012!
For those who rather wish for government dependency for their well-being, do it at the local/state levels. But there's no reason to enforce central planning on the whole population for nearly everything we do... which is what we have now.
What is so bad about that?
Who was it who said: `Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me.'
Give up? That's becuase you ignore those parts of the Bible that stand in the way of your agenda.
And, my valueless Value Voting friends, here's a free quote to have tattooed on your foreheads:
“When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross.”
- Sinclair Lewis
The scarest part ...they actually think they know what God wants - and they have no hesitation whatsoever in feeling OK about imposing these beliefs on the rest of us..
I, too, want marijuana legalized, but I understand that things will not change with a Congress beholden to Big Pharma, no matter who is elected President. I don't subscribe to conspiracy theories and I don't want women's reproductive rights and the rights of homosexuals to either be squashed (trust me RP is NOT pro-choice) or delegated to the states.
I don't subscribe to a perfect federal government, I'm not naive enough to believe that the government hasn't done terrible things because we know it has. I don't want the federal government to be involved with who has more rights than others because we are all human regardless of race, sex, creed, or sexual orientation. I don't believe that people should be forced to pay for things they don't believe in and I don't believe that it is good to let the government have power over our lives. I support state's rights as a stepping stone to greater freedom. People seem to believe that if the states had more power they would oppress however, logically speaking this would be stupid for states to do because they would lose tax dollars in the form of people wanting to be in places where their rights aren't squashed and where businesses can prosper. RP is definitely not pro-choice, but that doesn't mean that he thinks the federal government should be involved in the issue at all. After all forcing people to pay for things they don't believe in or fostering a system that they don't believe in doesn't make it anymore right for you to do it to them for them to do it to you.