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Thursday, December 06, 2007
Amanda Carpenter :: Townhall.com Columnist
Media RomneyFest Over Faith Speech
by Amanda Carpenter
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Mitt Romney’s campaign could receive the boost he needs to regain his lead in Iowa after the much anticipated speech about his Mormon faith drew a broad range of praise from journalists and political commentators Thursday.

In the last week, former Arkansas governor and Baptist minister Mike Huckabee surpassed Romney in poll numbers for the first-in-the-nation primary state of Iowa, and it’s suspected Romney is now seeking to allay unspoken concerns Mormonism.

According to the latest Des Moines Register poll, released December 2, Romney has lost his once-commanding lead in Iowa and Huckabee now enjoys a five-percentage point lead with 29% to Romney’s 24%.

In his remarks, Romney did not discuss specific doctrines of Mormonism and emphasized themes of “religious liberty.”

From the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library, Romney promised “If I am fortunate to become your president, I will serve no one religion, no one group, no one cause, and no one interest. A President must serve only the common cause of the people of the United States,” in a 20-minute long live speech carried by CSPAN-3.

Click here to read for the full text of the speech.

Roger Simon, chief political columnist of the Politico, called Romney’s speech a “stellar performance” that was a “very smart calculation” by his campaign at an “Early State Primary Countdown” event hosted by Politico, ACLU and The George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University later that day. Continued...
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About The Author
Amanda Carpenter is the author of “The Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy's Dossier on Hillary Clinton,” published in October 2006.
 
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Reply # 1
Date: Dec 8, 2007 - 12:04 AM EST
Romney needs a history lesson
I tire of the revisionist history offered by those who would have our secular government, intentionally and carefully designed as such from the outset, infused with a dose of good old time religion.

The United States was founded as a secular government, as is clear from the Constitution which says nothing substantive of god or religion except in the First Amendment where the point was to confirm that the government is not to establish an official religion. To be sure, some of those who drafted the founding documents professed their belief in the Christian god. So what? Others among the drafters did not profess, or denied, any such belief. In any event, they drafted documents plainly founding the government on the power of the people (not a deity).

Lest there be any doubt, shortly after the founding, the President, with the unanimous consent of the Senate, entered into the Treaty of Tripoli declaring, in pertinent part, “the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion.” Note that under the Constitution, treaties, apart from the Constitution itself, are the highest law of the land.

Romney's railing about those seeking to create a religion of secularism (an oxymoron apparently intended as an insult, which itself is ironic coming from a religionist) and to remove from the public domain any acknowledgment of god(s) is but a strawman. The concern is not whether people may acknowledge god(s) in the public domain, but whether GOVERNMENT weighs in one way or the other. Our government should not be in the business of promoting religion by putting god slogans on its currency or calling on its citizens to pledge allegiance to the nation "under God."
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Reply # 2
Date: Dec 7, 2007 - 10:56 PM EST
To me...
Romney doesn't come across as being genuine or totally honest. I believe he will say what the viewers or listeners at the want to hear just to get a vote, sort of like Hillary.

I also see him as using the same talking points Republicans of the last 6 to 8 years, which have not always been in line with the Republican voters values or expectations of them. A couple examples are; allowing out of control spending go unchecked prior to the last election cycle, and quite a few (but not all) being in favor of a path to citizen ship (aka bought amnesty and line cutting ahead of legal immigrants) in the face of an outspoken voter base who clearly oppose such action.

Lastly I see him as the Republican candidate who is doing all he can to buy the Republican nomination. He has spent millions just in Iowa, where he pretty much bought the straw poll. When you have to spend that much to win, maybe it should be a clue that the message you are giving is not that which the voters are seeking.

The Mormon issue for me is mute. For me a candidates faith is only a small factor. I really think the media is making an issue of it more than the voters themselves.
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