Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback and Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum (in photo), two of a conservative kind, were long considered the most likely contenders to be the religious right’s preferred presidential candidate in 2008. But columnist Robert Novak said that Santorum, who is likely to lose re-election to Democratic state Treasurer Bob Casey, declined Brownback’s offer to campaign on his behalf. Brownback could help shore up Santorum’s conservative base, which “has been shaky since he vigorously supported moderate Sen. Arlen Specter in the 2004 Pennsylvania Republican primary,” Novak said. But Brownback’s aid also “could buttress Democratic attacks that Santorum is the candidate of the religious right.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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16 Comments
I saw a great line from the late-night talk shows (not sure which one):
“President Bush has gotten so many requests to campaign for Republican candidates that his schedule is full. Unfortunately all the requests come from Democrats.”
Folks: google ‘Santorum’ and see what you find.
Two whackos.
I especially like “the religious rights”. Yeeah, religion doesn’t have any place in government.
In fact I think it should be illegal for them to use religion as a basis for lawmaking. Religion is a personal matter.
Oh i’ll probably get flamed for this one :)
I’m pretty sure the people of Pennsylvania can make their own decisions on who they want in the Senate seat.
As far as being part of the religious right, can’t think of a higher compliment for an individual. I don’t agree with using religion to promote politics, but I think participation is key to keeping a strong nation.
Having observed Brownback for many years I have come to believe that his Christianity is genuine. I am particularly struck by the fact that he carries it to helping the poor and victime of violence in places like Darfur. I don’t know that I can say the same for Santorum.
Yellowback is a filthy traitor, but Santorum is at least on the right side of th immigration issue. Neither of them are REAL Christians, in my mind.
Viva La Raza Blanco!!
Only two things are infinite,the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the former…..Albert Einstein
Did the conversation go something like this,
“Hey, Santorum, do you want me to come on over and help with the campaign?”
“No thanks, I don’t want to be associated with crazy cult members.”
Santorum defintely should be able to recognize crazy.
Brownback and Santorum – if you put them both in a sack, you would not know which one popped out first.
My preference is to put them both back in the sack and leave them. What would Jesus do?
Maybe God will call them to a higher purpose….way high.
Jim G.:Being a Servant of God and to mankind IS the HIGHEST calling of God.What a much better World we would live in if we all would strive to serve each other instead of seeking to be served.
America, the Land of OPPORTUNISTS and no longer the Land Of Opportunity.
Valid point TM. From what I have seen Santorum is an OPPORTUNIST; however as I said above I think Brownback is “real” and respect him for that.
For a REAL example of an opportunist see:
http://www.netscape.com/viewstory/2006/10/12/karl-rove-just-get-me-a-f-ing-faith-based-thing/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.crooksandliars.com%2F2006%2F10%2F12%2Ftempting-faith-christian-conservatives-duped-by-bushco-part-ii%2F&frame=true
http://www.netscape.com/viewstory/2006/10/12/karl-rove-just-get-me-a-f-ing-faith-based-thing/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.crooksandliars.com%2F2006%2F10%2F12%2Ftempting-faith-christian-conservatives-duped-by-bushco-part-ii%2F&frame=true
Book says Bush just using ChristiansText SizePrintRSS 10/12/06Washington, D.C.More than five years after President Bush created the Office of Faith-Based Initiatives, the former second-in-command of that office is going public with an insider’s tell-all account that portrays an office used almost exclusively to win political points with both evangelical Christians and traditionally Democratic minorities.
The office’s primary mission, providing financial support to charities that serve the poor, never got the presidential support it needed to succeed, according to the book.
Entitled “Tempting Faith,” the book is not scheduled for release until Oct. 16, but MSNBC’s “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” has obtained a copy.
“Tempting Faith’s” author is David Kuo, who served as special assistant to the president from 2001 to 2003. A self-described conservative Christian, Kuo’s previous experience includes work for prominent conservatives including former Education Secretary and federal drug czar Bill Bennett and former Attorney General John Ashcroft.
Kuo, who has complained publicly in the past about the funding shortfalls, goes several steps further in his new book.
He says some of the nation’s most prominent evangelical leaders were known in the office of presidential political strategist Karl Rove as “the nuts.”
“National Christian leaders received hugs and smiles in person and then were dismissed behind their backs and described as ‘ridiculous,’ ‘out of control,’ and just plain ‘goofy,’” Kuo writes.
More seriously, Kuo alleges that then-White House political affairs director Ken Mehlman knowingly participated in a scheme to use the office, and taxpayer funds, to mount ostensibly “nonpartisan” events that were, in reality, designed with the intent of mobilizing religious voters in 20 targeted races.
According to Kuo, “Ken loved the idea and gave us our marching orders.”
Among those marching orders, Kuo says, was Mehlman’s mandate to conceal the true nature of the events.
Kuo quotes Mehlman as saying, “. (I)t can’t come from the campaigns. That would make it look too political. It needs to come from the congressional offices. We’ll take care of that by having our guys call the office [of faith-based initiatives] to request the visit.”
Nineteen out of the 20 targeted races were won by Republicans, Kuo reports. The outreach was so extensive and so powerful in motivating not just conservative evangelicals, but also traditionally Democratic minorities, that Kuo attributes Bush’s 2004 Ohio victory “at least partially . to the conferences we had launched two years before.”
With the exception of one reporter from the Washington Post, Kuo says the media were oblivious to the political nature and impact of his office’s events, in part because so much of the debate centered on issues of separation of church and state.
In fact, the Bush administration often promoted the faith-based agenda by claiming that existing government regulations were too restrictive on religious organizations seeking to serve the public.
Substantiating that claim proved difficult, Kuo says. “Finding these examples became a huge priority.. If President Bush was making the world a better place for faith-based groups, we had to show it was really a bad place to begin with. But, in fact, it wasn’t that bad at all.”
In fact, when Bush asks Kuo how much money was being spent on “compassion” social programs, Kuo claims he discovered “we were actually spending about $20 million a year less on them than before he had taken office.”
The money that was appropriated and disbursed, however, often served a political agenda, Kuo claims.
“Many of the grant-winning organizations that rose to the top of the process were politically friendly to the administration,” he says.
More pointedly, Kuo quotes an unnamed member of the review panel charged with rating grant applications.
“But,” she said with a giggle, ‘When I saw one of those non-Christian groups in the set I was reviewing, I just stopped looking at them and gave them a zero… a lot of us did.’”
“Tempting Faith” contains several other controversial claims about Kuo’s office, the Bush White House and even the 1994 Republican revolution in Congress.Credit: MSNBC