The Religious Wrong: Faith Battles

I can think of many reasons not to vot for Mitt Romney. He's two-faced. He's a panderer. He's a corporate lackey. He's against equality. The list goes on and on (and on). Honestly, however, I couldn't give two craps about him being Mormon. That in and of itself means nothing to me, nor should it mean anything to anyone with a grain of common sense or common decency. There shouldn't be a "what is his/her religion" question when people go to the polls. People should vote on the records and words of political candidates.

I also have to take issue with the statement that there are aspects of Mormon doctrine that are "unelectable." It's not that I disagree with the statement because anyone who is hardline Mormon may thus be unfit to serve (though I don't believe this includes Romney). It's that the guy who said this is implying that the same is not true about Christian candidates when it comes to Christian doctrine. Look at how bad the reaction was to Rick Perry's "Strong" ad. He is a very devout Christian (probably a more devout Christian than Romney is a devout Mormon I would guess), but that is in part why many deem HIM unfit to serve: because people don't like how he clings to certain doctrines (read: interpretations) of Christianity as well as his religious fervor. The same goes with Rick Santorum and Michele Bachmann. Too much religion, not enough substance (especially in Bachmann's case).

There is also the fact that EVERYONE knows this man is a Mormon. Despite this, he has been a constant #1 or #2 in the GOP polls over the course of several months nationally while others have risen and fallen, including some of those devout Christians. The speaker in this video patently ignores this fact. If his religion is such a huge negative, why has he kept polling so high? I'm not saying there aren't people who won't support him because of his religion specifically, I'm simply saying that those people are a minority, even among Republicans.

As Jonathan Capehart mentioned in the Washington Post this week, we're electing a President, not a pope.