The Sunshine Empire

I was browsing through National Review Online’s blog The Corner, and there was much discussion about Mitt Romney’s “JFK” religion speech. There was much praise and consternation about the display of bravery for religious freedom, and the simmering distrust of Mormonism among the holy elite in the religious right. John F. Kennedy gave a speech to Baptist preachers in Texas prior to his election attempting to assuage their concern over his Roman Catholicism. He returned to Texas three years later and was shot. Seems like it worked wonders. Yet despite the fact that Romney had planned to give this speech before the general election as a nominee, much as Kennedy did, and my general feeling toward his mendacious presence aside, I have mixed feelings about his speech.

Romney gave the speech to bring religious conservatives under his wing, and I have two opposing views of his actions. On one hand I have to say the religious litmus test that we subject presidents too is absurd. We scoff at religious theocracies from our precipice, yet need a president to publicly love Jesus or he’s a Godless heathen. I was raised a Catholic, but I really don’t care how you happen to pray to God, whether in a church, mosque or synagogue. So for that reason I applaud Mitt for saying to the political world that religion should not matter. Yet he brings up God, religion, morals, Jesus, and the gang relentlessly, until anyone starts asking about the Garden of Eden being in Missouri.

I do not pretend to know anything meaningful about Mormonism, but the gold plates, 16 wives, Eden in Missouri, and the rest really freaks out the average person. If it is your faith I would love for you to explain it all to me. But he mentioned in his speech the word Mormon only once. Hardly a rousing defense. When he patterns and marries every portion of his campaign around the George W. Bush God is great tourgasm, except anything reeking of Mormonism, I have a hard time swallowing his “my faith shouldn’t matter” bit. When you fuse your campaign to this holier than thou obfuscation, I hate to say your faith is on the table and fair game.