Is Romney's Religion A Non-Issue?

grunion

Penultimate Amazing
grunion
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Early in the primary season, one of the favorite topics of the punditry was how Romney's Mormonism made him unelectable. The closer he came to becoming the inevitable nominee, the less we heard of this as an issue in the campaign. Now it seems apparent that there is a journalistic embargo in force against any discussion, or even mention, of the fact that Romney believes in things and participates in rituals that even the hardcore Evangelists find insane (or even evil.) I caught a few minutes of Huckabee and Santorum on Fox News last week squirming, praising his values while avoiding calling him a Christian.

It seems bizarre to me. Explicit discussion of religion has dominated coverage of every election since Reagan. Lieberman's pronouncement of the good within Judaism at every opportunity, and Bush's expenditure of millions catering to Evangelicals, and Obama's awkward repudiation of Reverend Wright, Palin's front and center evangelism, and Republican primary candidates espousing that God speaks directly to them and tells them not to believe in evolution all were key elements to how the media told Americans how to identify who these candidates were, and what were their values. Visits to Church by presidential candidates have always been very public events. But has their been any video of Romney walking into a Mormon temple? I do happen to think that understanding (or at least acknowledging) the beliefs of a candidate is important information for voters to consider.

But, although Obama's being a "closet Muslim" is widely discussed, I have seen all discussion of Romney's religion significantly curtailed in recent weeks. I'm curious how it will be handled in the bio pieces coming out of the convention.

Is Romney ashamed of his church? Has the nomination of Romney effectively marginalized the Evangelical vote? Does the "religion issue" help Obama?
 
I think Romney is well aware that talking about his religion could have repercussions. That said, he is the Republican nominee, and the base will quietly ignore the issue of religion, and just focus on the fact that Romney is religious.

Just being Religious is enough, when it's 'their guy'.
 
grunion said:
It seems bizarre to me. Explicit discussion of religion has dominated coverage of every election since Reagan.
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"Dominated"?

I think it must be an issue of special interest to you. To me, it has always been a side issue, and I think that outside of some occasional discussion during the primaries, most of the electorate doesn't care. I can recall some discussion during the elections, but it hardly "dominated" anything.

Romney's religion doesn't matter to me, and I doubt that it matters to many other people, either. There are a few far right Christians that won't like his Mormon faith, but since the alternative is Obama, they'll vote for Romney anyway.
 
I was raised Catholic, a religion that believes its child-raping priests perform magic rites so the faithful can eat their god's flesh and drink his blood. You think if I ran for office it would be an issue? Would anybody bother to find out whether I believed any of that?

For me, Romney's religious beliefs, real or presumed, are the least worrisome thing about him. A candidate would have to be in one of the really wacky religions, like a Quiverfull Christian, or a Scientologist, or a Presbyterian for me to make it a consideration.
 
Meadmaker said:
Romney's religion doesn't matter to me, and I doubt that it matters to many other people, either. There are a few far right Christians that won't like his Mormon faith, but since the alternative is Obama, they'll vote for Romney anyway.
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From Godvoter.org:
For Christian voters, the priority in this election has shifted from electing a Christian President to denying the White House to the Presiding High Priest of a Satanic Cult whose election may cap America's betrayal of Christ, with consequences to follow.

To affect this denial, Christians can refrain from voting, cast blank ballots, vote for Ron Paul or another candidate, or even vote for, with tightly pinched noses, Barack Obama.
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Romney's religion means nothing to me, only his policies.

While I'm sure there are many evangelicals who cringe at the thought, they will vote for him. I've said for many years, the religious right are Republicans first, Christians second.
 
TragicMonkey said:
I was raised Catholic, a religion that believes its child-raping priests perform magic rites so the faithful can eat their god's flesh and drink his blood. You think if I ran for office it would be an issue? Would anybody bother to find out whether I believed any of that?

For me, Romney's religious beliefs, real or presumed, are the least worrisome thing about him. A candidate would have to be in one of the really wacky religions, like a Quiverfull Christian, or a Scientologist, or a Presbyterian for me to make it a consideration.
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I agree that the religion of presidential candidates is not a very important issue but it is one of the significant ways that candidates have been defined in recent years.

It sounds as if, should you run for office, you would be quick to repudiate the Catholic Church should anyone raise that as an issue. I can't speak to Romney's true beliefs but he maintains his membership, served as Bishop Of The Ward (an administrative leadership role of his congregation, apparently) and would never speak against the LDS beliefs or leadership.

And I think many would place Mormonism on the "wacky" side of the spectrum, though of course this is all subjective.
 
grunion said:
I agree that the religion of presidential candidates is not a very important issue but it is one of the significant ways that candidates have been defined in recent years.

It sounds as if, should you run for office, you would be quick to repudiate the Catholic Church should anyone raise that as an issue. I can't speak to Romney's true beliefs but he maintains his membership, served as Bishop Of The Ward (an administrative leadership role of his congregation, apparently) and would never speak against the LDS beliefs or leadership.

And I think many would place Mormonism on the "wacky" side of the spectrum, though of course this is all subjective.
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Hells no! If I ran for office I'd start going to church again. People eat that crap up. Is be demonstrating that I'm humble and believe there are beings greater than myself, and other nonsense. The public will swallow anything, and I'm good ay encouraging people to swallow things.

Speaking of which, I can't find much wrong with Mormonism, a religion that occasionally sends young men to my door. Jehovah's Witnesses only send me old ladies, good luck getting one of them elected.
 
grunion said:
I agree that the religion of presidential candidates is not a very important issue but it is one of the significant ways that candidates have been defined in recent years.

It sounds as if, should you run for office, you would be quick to repudiate the Catholic Church should anyone raise that as an issue. I can't speak to Romney's true beliefs but he maintains his membership, served as Bishop Of The Ward (an administrative leadership role of his congregation, apparently) and would never speak against the LDS beliefs or leadership.

And I think many would place Mormonism on the "wacky" side of the spectrum, though of course this is all subjective.
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Harry Reid was also a bishop. I don't think it's all that unusual for adult males in the LDS church, and clearly they're not both receiving the same marching orders.
 
I like that godvoter quote. It made Romney sound almost interesting. I'd have a lot more respect for him if he really were a Satanic high priest. At the very least he'd have more exciting wardrobe and hair.
 
TragicMonkey said:
I like that godvoter quote. It made Romney sound almost interesting. I'd have a lot more respect for him if he really were a Satanic high priest. At the very least he'd have more exciting wardrobe and hair.
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I've met some actual Satanists. They were really boring and drank and smoked too much.

Wiccans are much more fun to hang out with, and throw great parties.
 
TragicMonkey said:
I was raised Catholic, a religion that believes its child-raping priests perform magic rites so the faithful can eat their god's flesh and drink his blood. You think if I ran for office it would be an issue? Would anybody bother to find out whether I believed any of that?

For me, Romney's religious beliefs, real or presumed, are the least worrisome thing about him. A candidate would have to be in one of the really wacky religions, like a Quiverfull Christian, or a Scientologist, or a Presbyterian for me to make it a consideration.
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My sentiments, well-said.
 
BenBurch said:
I've met some actual Satanists. They were really boring and drank and smoked too much.

Wiccans are much more fun to hang out with, and throw great parties.
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But what's their food like? I hear "Wiccan" and my mind leaps to horrible visions of lentil chips and hummus. What I look for in a religion is a strong tradition of baked goods, and lots of meat. That's why if I were Christian I'd stay Catholic, they tend to bake. Protestants are capable of showing up at potlucks with a casserole, which makes me totally unsympathetic to the excesses of the Counter Reformation. Greek Orthodox would be good with lamb but not much else. Honey is not a substitute for proper sugar. No wonder the Great Schism happened.
 
TragicMonkey said:
I was raised Catholic, a religion that believes its child-raping priests perform magic rites so the faithful can eat their god's flesh and drink his blood. You think if I ran for office it would be an issue? Would anybody bother to find out whether I believed any of that?

For me, Romney's religious beliefs, real or presumed, are the least worrisome thing about him. A candidate would have to be in one of the really wacky religions, like a Quiverfull Christian, or a Scientologist, or a Presbyterian for me to make it a consideration.
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Magic underwear doesn't count as wacky?
 
TragicMonkey said:
But what's their food like? I hear "Wiccan" and my mind leaps to horrible visions of lentil chips and hummus. What I look for in a religion is a strong tradition of baked goods, and lots of meat. That's why if I were Christian I'd stay Catholic, they tend to bake. Protestants are capable of showing up at potlucks with a casserole, which makes me totally unsympathetic to the excesses of the Counter Reformation. Greek Orthodox would be good with lamb but not much else. Honey is not a substitute for proper sugar. No wonder the Great Schism happened.
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Unitarians are known for coffee and sweet rolls after services.

Yeah, you got Wiccan food down there. Not always, but pretty much.

I'm not sure I'd trust meat from a Satanist. "Pardon me, I have to get off this call because if I don't baste the baby, she'll burn."
 
TragicMonkey said:
But what's their food like? I hear "Wiccan" and my mind leaps to horrible visions of lentil chips and hummus. What I look for in a religion is a strong tradition of baked goods, and lots of meat. That's why if I were Christian I'd stay Catholic, they tend to bake. Protestants are capable of showing up at potlucks with a casserole, which makes me totally unsympathetic to the excesses of the Counter Reformation. Greek Orthodox would be good with lamb but not much else. Honey is not a substitute for proper sugar. No wonder the Great Schism happened.
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The single, solitary good thing about Baptists is their barbeque...
 
Polaris said:
The single, solitary good thing about Baptists is their barbeque...
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That has more to do with geography than religion. And you're wrong, there are plenty of good things about Baptists. I went to a Baptist college. The Baptists were far less uptight than the few Presbyterians. And for people who are notoriously anti-fun there sure was a lot of sex going on, even for college. Some good stuff, too, not just twosomes and opposite-gender stuff.
 
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