2006-10-16
Shortly after information came out about David Kuo's book, which asserts that even the Bush White House called their evangelical supporters "nuts" and "goofy", those very supporters came out in force to absorb a sales pitch called "Liberty Sunday", seemingly unfazed by the disrespect in which they are held by even the salespeople.
The Republican Party and the megachurches ask these people for money, votes and power, and all they offer in return are tokens like fear-based attacks on gay rights ("The expansion of non-discrimination laws to include homosexuality inevitably constricts our right to express and act on our religious beliefs"), faith-based initiatives, attacks on abortion and stem-cell research, and the occasional religious icon on public property.
The quid-pro-quo is very cheap for the Republicans but very costly for America, because real human rights and American principles are being traded away for money, votes and power. Much of the cost today is borne by gays, women needing abortions, and victims of diseases for which stem cells hold promise. But those are just the boogeymen-du-jour of this credulous constituency. Who will be next?