Saturday, October 14, 2006

Bush Refers to Christian Right as "Wackos"

The Architect: Karl Rove and the Master Plan For Absolute Power by James Moore and Wayne Slater is a fascinating look inside the political maneuvering of Karl Rove in his quest to bring the Republicans to power in every level of government.

From Chapter 15, p. 229:

Karl Rove was on the phone, working the wackos. That's what George W. Bush sometimes called the Christian conservatives, the wackos, and the term had wide currency among Rove's circle of Republican allies. Lobbyist Michael Scanlon told partner Jack Abramoff they had to "bring out the wackos" to help fleece Indian casino operators. Economic conservatives, having little in common, were equally condescending toward the religious Right. But the Christians were a potent political constituency, and Rove recognized their value as a reliable army that could be movivated time and again on behalf of a candidate or an issue.

Moore and Slater portray Rove, a professed agnostic, as a user of the religious Right in his Machiavellian quest for GOP dominance. Bush is a sort of born again Methodist, a religious epiphany sparked by the impending breakdown of his marriage, and was the perfect puppet to "talk the talk" with the religious wackos. Without their vote, in a polarized political climate, Dubuh would have decisively lost.

The newly released book, Tempting Faith by David Kuo, an aide in the office of faith based initiatives, adds fuel to the fire. He describes how the faith based agenda was a thinly veiled effort to mobilize Christian voters.

If current dominance of government by the Republicans, from school
boards to state legislature, congress and the White House, can be held up as a shining example, the Rovian tactic of "the ends justify the means" has worked well. Up to now...

1 comment:

The Libertarian Guy said...

The Christians that don't push for their views to be codified into law, are good people.

The "Christians" (or any other religious faction, Muslims included) who would ABuse the privilege of legislative service, to push their religious beliefs into the lawbooks or the Constitution, are the ones we do NOT need running our country. They are not good people.

It's that simple, and that complicated.