Mad, Mitt articulates a moderate role for faith in poilitics
Faced with introducing not only himself, but also his religion to the American public, some have said that Mitt Romney needs to have a JFK moment, where he neutralizes his Mormonism by giving a big speech about it the way JFK did about his Catholicism. Especially to those who agree with his social positions on the right, it’s Mitt’s Mormonism, or smooth persona, or CPAC accusations of flip-flopping that are keeping him in single digits.
But this weekend, all three of these factors of Romney’s impacting candidacy converged to reveal more, not just about Romney, but about the role of religion in American politics.
You may have caught this in the blogosphere. During a campaign interview on a local Iowa radio station, Mitt Romney was asked about abortion and constitutional originalism by a DJ who has clearly drunk deeply of the religious right rhetoric. It’s pretty clear from the video that Mitt wanted to talk about himself, not overthrowing the Supreme Court (see 4:20ff in the clip).
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During a station break, they start arguing about how Mitt’s religion relates to his positions on abortion (see 8:00ff). When they go back on air it’s all smiles, but then — at about 8:45 into the clip– they launch into a heated conversation on the role of faith in public life. Of course, Mitt didn’t know that a camera was recording the whole exchange. From 10:45, they really start swinging.
DJ: I think that it’s a big mistake to distance yourself from your faith.
Romney: I’m not distancing myself; I’m proud of my faith.
Then the DJ argues that it’s a problem to “bifurcate” religion and politics. To which Romney points out that, along with abortion, his church opposes sex outside of marriage and drinking. With a hint of sarcasm he asks the DJ: should we make a law banning these as well, just because it’s my church’s teaching?
The station later put the video up on its website and bloggers have been framing it as “Mitt getting tough” or “Mitt throwing a fit.”
However, what’s been missing in the commentary is a conversation about their actual conversation, which was a lot better — entertaining and honest — than most of what comes along during an election year. Mitt lets loose on defining a role for his personal faith in his policy — and it’s clear that he has thought about the difference between universal and personal values.
The DJ attacks Romney by suggesting that he is not doctrinally “Mormon enough” on the issue of abortion. But Romney swings back, pointing out that there are Latter Day Saint politicians and church leaders who are pro-choice and in good standing (10:55).
On the other hand, the old culture war DJ just seems to want Romney to express pride in his faith — which I think merits attention. Most Americans of faith appreciate candidates who don’t use their religion either to win votes or to dodge tough legislative choices.
It’s been clear in recent memory, from at least JFK onward, that serious questions about faith in American public life lie deep, buried by single issues and talking points. From the Sojourners + CNN forum to the faith questions on YouTube in the recent CNN debate to this YouTube video (do you detect a pattern?), as media options increase, and public conversations grow, something has changed. The old days of single issue values voters and brokering religion with Dallas pastors is fading. As a Orlando Sentinel religion journalist, Mark Pinsky recently noted, as the old evangelical taps out, the next couple years will involve “bare knuckles, sharp elbows and hip-checks” — and hopefully more open (Mitts off?) conversations about faith in public life.