It’s what we’ve come to expect from George Stephanopolous: ridiculous questions saved solely for his conservative guests.
The host of ABC’s “This Week” invited Governor Bobby Jindal (R-LA) on his program the day after Jindal headlined “The Response” prayer rally in Baton Rouge, where the governor dared to suggest that our nation needs a spiritual awakening. It was one particular moment, when Jindal pointed to his Bible and told the crowd, “Our God wins,” that Stephanoplous considered controversial. He grilled the governor on his comments, asking, “Is it the job of the president to lead a spiritual revival?” Jindal didn't hesitate in responding that leaders should indeed rely on their faith in God to guide their decisions. He even enlightened the ABC host by explaining how this is not a new fad:
“It is a time-honored tradition, going back to our nation’s founding, for our presidents, for our leaders to turn to god for guidance, for wisdom. George Washington did it, Abraham Lincoln did it, Harry Truman did it,” he said. “So, absolutely I think this idea of praying to God for wisdom and guidance is as old as our country.”
Judging by Stephanopolous’s quick change of subject, I doubt he was interested in hearing Jindal give a sermon. Bringing up a very different topic, the host referenced a comment Jindal made two years ago when he said the GOP had to stop being the ‘stupid’ party. Stephanopolous asked if that was still the case. Here was Jindal’s cool and collected response:
“I think we’ve gotten better. I think to be a governing party, we can’t just be a party of ‘no,’ we’ve got to be a party of solutions: Not only repeal, but replace Obamacare, we need to offer detailed plans for energy independence, manufacturing renaissance, school choice, where the dollars follow the child, a stronger foreign policy where our friends trust us, our enemies respect and fear us, where we invest in our military. We need to be a party of solutions, we need to a party consistent with our conservative principles.”
When Jindal first made the 'GOP is stupid' comment in 2012, he did so as a way to critique the GOP’s watered down conservatism, which likely cost them the election. It was a way to warn his fellow conservatives to make sure that didn't happen again. Stephanopolous did not provide this context for his viewers. Nonetheless, the host's question was an opportunity for Jindal to lay out some of the main conservative tenets.
Good for Jindal for sticking up for his Christian principles and for offering a bright way forward for conservatives. The governor said he is currently thinking and praying about running for president next year.
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