The American Spectator

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The Mormon Ticket

2.15.08 @ 12:01AM

(Page 2 of 7)

Tolerance is our way of life and it is good. Mormons are by and large the best neighbors one could wish for. But Americans are far too ill-informed about religions other than their own, and are usually far too ignorant of their own religious beliefs I know this because I am a Calvinist Christian and I am amazed what people tell me about what I believe. I don't believe Jesus is Satan's brother. But if Mitt is honest about it, he will tell you that he does. I did a Google search on the subject before writing this and found that the Mormons have done a good job of spinning their stance on this controversial fact, but if you are patient and keep searching the subject, you can confirm it for yourself.

Here's an example: "The appointment of Jesus to be the Savior of the world was contested by one of the other sons of God. He was called Lucifer, son of the morning. Haughty, ambitious, and covetous of power and glory, this spirit-filled brother of Jesus desperately tried to become the Savior of Mankind. Milton R. Hunter, The Gospel Through The Ages, 1945 Edition, Page 15 (Hunter was a member of the Mormon ruling council from 1945 to 1975).

Mormonism seems to be in the throes of reinventing itself. Perhaps, like the Worldwide Church of God, it will eventually find its way into the pale of orthodox Christianity. To do so, however, it will have to eschew the Book of Mormon and other cultic writings.

But I would, and did, vote for a Mormon to be my president.
-- Paul Neuman
Atlanta, Georgia

There is no doubt that Mitt Romney's religion played a role in his ultimate defeat. And that is a shame.

Certainly some prejudice came from secularists, but it is undeniable that much of it came from Christians. Those who opposed Romney because of his religion would do well to remember that the New Testament was emphatic that we should submit ourselves to the secular government, regardless of who is in power. Romans 13:1-7, and 1 Peter 2:11-17 (which, by the way, were written in the context of persecution by the virulently anti-Christian Roman government) make this clear, as does Christ's statement to render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's.

Martin Luther likewise said (and I'm paraphrasing), "I would rather be governed by a competent Turk [Muslim] than by an incompetent Christian."

However, it is hardly fair to say that anti-Mormon prejudice was the cause for Romney's fall. This is because his flip-flops on abortion and homosexuality were brazen, politically expedient calculations, and exactly what Americans hate about politics. In 1994 (and 2002), Mitt Romney ran to the left of Ted Kennedy on gay rights, and claimed that he was "pro-choice." Suddenly, Romney is pro-life, and advocating strict constructionist judges, which he did not do while serving as governor of Massachusetts. Voters are left wondering, "Who, really, is the real Mitt Romney?"

While Mormons are among the finest people I have ever met, they preach a different Gospel than what is found in the Bible. This scared people out of voting for him, but it shouldn't. Here in America, we elect a commander-in-chief, not a theologian in chief.

His flip-flops notwithstanding, Mitt Romney's past experience as governor, business owner, and savior of the 2002 Winter Olympics prove that he is a very capable individual with a fine resume. Plus, he would have been a far preferable candidate to Hillary the Methodist, or Barack Obama, who belongs to the ultra-liberal United Church of Christ.

Had he gotten the nomination, I would have voted for him.
-- Greg Hoadley
Fort Lauderdale, Florida

It is not right to tar everybody with the bigotry of a few. Unfortunately, that is what Mr. Orlet does in his article "No Mormons Need Apply."

I agree in part with Mr. Orlet, there is an anti-Mormon feeling that helped Romney to lose. But it is very important to stress that even he points out that there is not enough information to be able to blame any one cause. But then he goes on to do just that.

Romney had many self-imposed hurdles to overcome. He had been a Liberal. From Massachusetts. And since when did the South give their votes to Yankees. (No offense intended, but in the South, if you hale from north of the Mason-Dixon line you are a Yankee.) Romney claimed he converted to conservatism. He did so just before his run for President, how convenient. Every leading contender on the Republican side flip-flopped, but Romney let himself get identified as such. After he converted, as governor, he had stood up for human life and traditional marriage in liberal Massachusetts, and did so in the face of withering attacks. But he couldn't get the message across that his conversion had been tested and he stayed true. Most of the time, he was too reserved to really connect with middle or lower class voters. If he had run with the same enthusiasm for our causes that he had while withdrawing at CPAC, the story would have been different. And since when has a self-financed millionaire ever really had a good chance to win our nomination?

Besides, there is nothing wrong with voting for someone because you identify with them, whether the identity is regional, military, religious or whatever. How in the world do we distinguish whether a vote for one person was really for him and not against another? In some places Romney won over the Giuliani and Thompson supporters and in some places he didn't. Many Romney supporters are now voting Huckabee. The major problem on the Republican side was breaking out of the small group appeal into broad based appeal and Romney and McCain were the only two who did so, but neither did it well. Romney had won quite a few states and a significant proportion of the total vote before he pulled out. Romney needed to win Florida to have a good chance of breaking the winner take all advantage McCain inherited from Giuliani in the New York area. But close doesn't count.

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