Over the last several months, the Republican presidential field has been consumed by the near-collapse of Senator John McCain’s campaign, the question of whether Fred Thompson would enter the race, and whether Rudolph W. Giuliani’s appeal would endure.
But on the ground in Iowa, which holds the first nominating contest, a pitched battle has broken out involving two lesser-known candidates who are trading accusations of religious bigotry and hypocrisy. The battle has become the most heated and personal rivalry in the Republican field.
The fight is for second place in the Aug. 11 Iowa Straw poll, a traditional bellwether that signals the strength of Republican campaigns, and it pits Mike Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor, against Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas. And it could mean life or death to either of their candidacies.
The current tensions stem from an e-mail message sent to two Brownback supporters by Rev. Tim Rude, the pastor of an evangelical church in Walnut Creek, Iowa. In the message, Mr. Rude, a Huckabee volunteer, compared the religious backgrounds of Mr. Huckabee, a Baptist pastor, and Mr. Brownback, who is Roman Catholic.
“I know Senator Brownback converted to Roman Catholicism in 2002,” Mr. Rude wrote. “Frankly, as a recovering Catholic myself, that is all I need to know about his discernment when compared to the Governor’s.”
How rude!
Mr. Guiliani’s appeal will not endure. Eventually the difficulties of his personal life will become and issue and sink his campaign. However, if the choices do become Hillary vs. Rudy then certainly it will be a metaphor for what America continues to risk becoming.
It saddens me to think that the authenticity of one’s faith is dependent upon which denomination they are affiliated with. What we need is “godly leaders” not Presbyterians, Anglicans, or Catholics, etc.
Did I miss a link to the text of the Brownback campaign response? I would be interested in reading something other than his political opponents staff characterizing it as “whining”. It could, of course, have been gracious, for all we know, or a simple acknowledgement that playing the religion card is inappropriate (which it is).
I remember two stated qualfications for the presidency of the US.
1) A native citizen of the US. 2) At least 35 years. History records that most if not all candidates were Christians or professed to be so. But nowhere is it found that they must be Christian. The public goodness of their character may be more desirable than their faith. When you consider also that there is no limitation as to male or female, white or black skin color then that means the door is wide open for a lot of candidates.