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<P class=cnn_first><EM><STRONG><EM>Editor’s note: </EM></STRONG><A
href="http://briankaylor.com/"><EM>Brian T. Kaylor</EM></A><EM> is assistant
professor of communication studies at James Madison University and author of
“Presidential Campaign Rhetoric in an Age of Confessional
Politics.”</EM></EM></P>
<P> </P>
<H1 class=cnnBlogContentTitle><A
title="http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/14/my-take-dont-be-fooled-by-candidates-god-talk/
CTRL + Click to follow link"
href="http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/14/my-take-dont-be-fooled-by-candidates-god-talk/"
rel=bookmark>My Take: Don’t be fooled by candidates’ God talk</A></H1>
<P>By <STRONG>Brian T. Kaylor</STRONG>, Special to CNN</P>
<P>Rick Perry’s Wednesday visit to Liberty University marks only the latest
effort by the Texas governor to reach the White House by confessing his
faith.</P>
<P>Even in an election cycle dominated by economic concerns, Perry and several
of his Republican presidential opponents have spent the last few months trying
to out-God-talk one another in hopes of attaining salvation at the ballot
box.</P>
<P>While debate moderators and election commentators focus on economic issues,
the religious rhetoric of the presidential candidates appears to go mostly
unnoticed - except by the key Republican voting bloc being courted. After being
a Republican, the best predictor of someone being a Tea Party supporter is
whether a person has a <A
title="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/17/opinion/crashing-the-tea-party.html
CTRL + Click to follow link"
href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/17/opinion/crashing-the-tea-party.html">desire
to see religion significantly impact politics</A>.</P>
<P><SPAN id=more-20450></SPAN>This type of confessional politics, in which
candidates invoke God and cite Scripture to win elections, has unfortunately
dominated U.S. politics for three decades. Ever since Bible-quoting Sunday
school teacher Jimmy Carter won the White House in 1976, presidential candidates
have followed his example of using religious rhetoric that is testimonial,
partisan, sectarian and liturgical.</P>
<P>Exemplifying the confessional political style, Perry <A
href="http://caucuses.desmoinesregister.com/2011/07/16/texas-perry-starting-to-feel-called-to-run-for-president/">said</A>
he felt “called” by God to run for president. He kicked off his campaign with
brazen confessional gusto, bringing tens of thousands together in an NFL stadium
for a <A
href="http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/06/perry-mixes-political-script-with-scripture/">day
of prayer and fasting</A>.</P>
<P>In June, Perry secretly <A
href="http://ethicsdaily.com/conservative-christian-group-met-with-rick-perry-cms-18156">met</A>
a <A
href="http://ethicsdaily.com/conservative-christian-group-seeks-new-reagan-cms-18098">group</A>
of nearly 80 conservative Christian leaders at a gathering organized by
evangelist James Robison. The Texas evangelist led a similar secret meeting in
1979 to plot Jimmy Carter's defeat.</P>
<P>That earlier effort culminated in an <A
href="http://ethicsdaily.com/news.php?viewStory=16555">August 1980
religious-political rally</A> with Republican presidential nominee Ronald Reagan
that helped Reagan mobilize conservative pastors for his victory. At the event,
Reagan famously used a line suggested by Robison to win over the crowd: “I know
you can’t endorse me … but I want you to know that I endorse you and
what you are doing.”</P>
<P>Perry isn’t the only candidate who believes the road to 1600 Pennsylvania
Avenue runs down the church aisle.</P>
<P>Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, who has also <A
href="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/06/26/ftn/main20074482.shtml">said</A>
she felt God was “calling” her to run, won the Iowa Straw Poll last month in
large part because of <A
href="http://ethicsdaily.com/iowa-straw-poll-reveals-role-of-religion-in-politics-cms-18368">support</A>
from conservative evangelicals. Her campaign strategy includes <A
href="http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/08/08/7304701-bachmann-attends-church-service-denouncing-homosexuality">speaking</A>
in churches and <A
href="http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0811/60764.html">garnering</A> pastor
endorsements.</P>
<P>Now that Perry has entered the race with a similar strategy, Bachmann’s poll
numbers are in free fall. As Jesus <A
href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+26%3A52&version=TNIV">warned</A>,
those who live by the sword will die by the sword.</P>
<P>Even candidates who might not be expected to try their hands at confessional
politics have orchestrated come-to-Jesus moments.</P>
<P>Libertarian-leaning Ron Paul may idolize thinker Ayn Rand (even naming his
son after her) but he is rejecting her atheistic <A
href="http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/06/29/jesus-or-ayn-rand-can-conservatives-claim-both/">worldview</A>
as he hopes to become the GOP’s standard-bearer. In July, Paul’s campaign <A
href="http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Ron-Paul-Campaign-Announces-bw-4176369219.html?x=0&.v=1">launched
its “Evangelicals for Ron Paul”</A> initiative.</P>
<P>The <A href="http://www.facebook.com/EvangelicalsForRonPaul">website for the
effort</A> prominently features a quote from Paul: “I have accepted Jesus Christ
as my personal Savior, and I endeavor every day to follow Him in all that I do
in every position I advocate.”</P>
<P>Even Mormon candidates Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman, whose faith makes them
suspicious to many evangelicals, work references to Jesus into their
speeches.</P>
<P>In the last presidential campaign, <A
href="http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mittromneyfaithinamerica.htm">Romney
proudly confessed</A>, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and the
Savior of mankind.”</P>
<P>At the June Faith & Freedom Conference run by former Christian Coalition
chief Ralph Reed, Huntsman attempted to endear himself to the evangelical
audience by <A
href="http://ethicsdaily.com/huntsman-avoids-faith-questions-at-evangelical-event-cms-18011">crediting
Jesus with bringing his adopted Chinese daughter </A>into his family.</P>
<P>These candidates may not have the same natural religious swagger as Perry,
but they're clearly seeking faith-based voters in hopes of not being left
behind.</P>
<P>Romney has spoken at Liberty University, founded by the late Jerry Falwell,
as has Paul, while Bachmann is speaking there in a couple weeks.
Then-presidential candidate John McCain spoke there in 2008, even after <A
href="http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0002/28/se.01.html">labeling
Falwell an “agent of intolerance.”</A></P>
<P>Sometimes the political conversion experience on the way to Washington seems
even more dramatic than the spiritual conversion of the biblical Paul on the way
to Damascus.</P>
<P>Not to be outdone, President Barack Obama also employs the confessional
political style. During the 2008 campaign he spoke of God and cited Scripture
with more eloquence and ease than McCain. Obama continues to weave biblical
themes and divine references into his speeches, including in <A
href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/09/11/remarks-president-september-11th-10th-anniversary-commemoration">remarks
last weekend</A> at the September 11 anniversary event in New York.</P>
<P>Voters should ignore attempts by candidates to out-confess one another and
instead focus on what really matters.</P>
<P>John F. Kennedy <A
href="http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/jfkhoustonministers.html">declared
in a speech</A> to Protestant pastors in Houston: “I believe that we have far
more critical issues in the 1960 campaign … the hungry children I saw in West
Virginia, the old people who cannot pay their doctors bills, the families forced
to give up their farms - an America with too many slums, with too few
schools.”</P>
<P>These same issues demand our attention today. When religious confessions
crowd out critical issues, we all lose. We are not electing an
evangelist-in-chief.</P>
<P>When political elections come down to who can claim to love God the most, we
all lose. Religious devotion and piety does not inherently equal governing
competence.</P>
<P>When religion becomes merely another political trick, we all lose. The
politicization of faith profanes the sacred.</P>
<P>My prayer is that candidates and voters will move away from confessional
politics. As a committed Christian and former Baptist pastor, I do not wish to
see religion excluded from the public square. However, giving religious beliefs
too much weight in electoral decisions undermines the basic democratic values
that have guided our nation for over two centuries.</P>
<P>The expectation that candidates talk about God and their personal religious
beliefs shifts attention away from critical policy concerns, creates a de facto
religious test for office and essentially disenfranchises those of minority
faiths or who have no faith. Confession may be good for the soul, but it is not
always good for democracy.</P>
<P><EM>The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Brian T.
Kaylor.</EM></P></DIV></DIV></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Verdana></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Verdana>______________________________</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Verdana>Wayne A. Fox<BR><A
href="mailto:wayne.a.fox@gmail.com">wayne.a.fox@gmail.com</A><BR></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>