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Will Today's Final Pre-Iowa GOP Debate Become a Theological Smackdown?

From AP:

Republican Mitt Romney retorted to questions about his faith by surging rival Mike Huckabee on Wednesday, declaring that "attacking someone's religion is really going too far."

In an article to be published Sunday in The New York Times, Huckabee, an ordained Southern Baptist minister, asks, "Don't Mormons believe that Jesus and the devil are brothers?"

Romney, vying to become the first Mormon elected president, declined to answer that question during an interview Wednesday, saying church leaders in Salt Lake City had already addressed the topic.

"But I think attacking someone's religion is really going too far. It's just not the American way, and I think people will reject that," Romney told NBC's "Today" show.

This is some setup for this afternoon's GOP Republican presidential debate, the final candidate face-off before the Iowa caucuses. Will Romney this evening have to address that vital national issue: are Jesus and Satan half-brothers? Or might he be forced to say whether he believes the Book of Mormon is literally true? That Jesus really came to the Americas after his resurrection and established an enlightened society that lasted for several generations? That Joseph Smith in 1830 really found golden tablets that only he could read? Might Romney be asked to explain why he was a member of church that followed racist rules (by not allowing blacks to serve in its leadership) until 1978?

As for Huckabee, he could be asked why his campaign and the two Baptist churches where he once was a pastor have refused to release his sermons. He might also be queried about the declaration he made in 1998--when he was governor of Arkansas--that "we [must] take this nation back for Christ." When Tim Russert asked Huckabee about that quote a year ago on Meet the Press, Huckabee said:

I think it's dangerous to say that we are a nation that ought to be pushed into a Christian faith by its leaders. However, I make no apology for my faith....We are a nation of faith. It doesn't necessarily have to be mine. But we are a nation that believes that faith is an important part of describing who we are, and our generosity, and our sense of optimism and hope. That does describe me.

That was a dodge. Huckabee seemed to be saying in 1998 that he wanted the United States to be a Christian nation. Does he still think so? (By the way, I've tried to get his campaign to answer a particular query: does Huckabee really believe that angels intervene when he goes hunting, as he suggested during a speech to the NRA? So far, no reply.)

With all these theological matters to address at the debate this evening, such matters as Iraq, global warming, or the alternative minimum tax may not even come up. But with Huckabee rising in the polls (both nationally and in Iowa and South Carolina), Rudy Giuliani slipping, Romney faring only so-so, and Fred Thompson and John McCain still lagging, there will be pressure on the candidates to swing sharply at each other. God--or perhaps the brother of Satan--only knows how messy it will get.

Comments

See the chart on MormonInfo.org

Posted by: TinTexas on 12/12/07 at 8:20 AM Respond

I don't understand why it is so difficult to mention the word "Ron Paul". He is the only candidate that does not attact other candidates and he is the only one who can focus on the real issues.

Posted by: Rick Theile on 12/12/07 at 12:20 PM Respond

"we [must] take this nation back for Christ."

Taken out of context. Wasn't Huck speaking to a group of evangelical preachers about what their churches should be doing under the cloak of the FREE EXERCISE CLAUSE of the First Amendment and without any government involvement? Does a politician check his or her free speech and free exercise rights at the door when elected to office.

Obviously, the official policy of the State of Arkansas during the Huckabee years wasn't to "take [Arkansas] back for Christ" or the anti-religous left would be harping on that.

Posted by: Speedzzter on 12/12/07 at 1:31 PM Respond

If angels go hunting with the Huckster, it must be Jesus' brother who went hunting with "Shotgun" Dick--the Devil made him do it!

Posted by: boblecht on 12/12/07 at 3:00 PM Respond

And you should seek out and listen to the inteview Ron Paul gave to an Air America host(his name escapes me at the moment but, he is a regular fill in for Randi Rhodes)in which he said things like the government shouldn't own land. When asked if he thought all the public lands including parks and beaches should be sold off he said yes. If the buyer wanted to develop these land for private use that was fine. If instead the buyer wanted to keep them intact and charge admission that was fine, too. How much would a mansion in Yellowstone fetch? He agreed that if a local school district wanted to teach nothing but the Old Testament and snake handling (the example was cited by the interviewer. I am not making this up) they should be free to do so. All education decisions should be local, not Federal. If you wanted a traditional education for your kids you were free to move to where such a curriculum was offered. The same response was offered to a question concerning inclusiveness of minority students and those of different faiths. You don't fit. Too bad. Go be with your kind elsewhere (My paraphrasing there.) He said property owners should be free to do whatever they wanted with their property. A machine shop in a residential neighborhood? No problem. If you don't like it- move. Any government aid program of any type- nope. Sorry. You are on your own from cradle to the grave. The next day the network was accused of staging an ambush interview by the Ron Paul people. I heard the whole damn thing. There was no ambush. There were questions that weren't the softball crap the other networks were asking him. I think it showed who he really is and what he stands for. And it didn't sound too good. I have nothing against Ron Paul as a person. But, he is a Libertarian and I have yet to meet a supporter of his who knows anything about the Libertarian philosophy other than a few non threatening sound bites. Believe me, we would not enjoy a society under Libertarianism unless like under Republicans, you were already wealthy in a big way. No, on second thought -don't believe me. Find out for yourself like I did and make your own mind up.

Posted by: jim h on 12/12/07 at 5:44 PM Respond

"Ron Paul gave to an Air America host(his name escapes me at the moment but, he is a regular fill in for Randi Rhodes)"

I heard that too, pretty sure it was Thom Hartmann on the regular Thom Hartmann show.

I love the public beaches, mountains and deserts.

The Paulites get upset when I call Ron Paul a kook and a racists but I have held those opinions for many years and my conclusions have very little to do with any of the newer issues exposed.

Lucky for us he is still under double digits and will not be POTUS in 2008.

He claims "states rights" (code word for anything decided by force of federal law with which they don't agree) regarding abortion while trying to ammend the constitution to outlaw the same - another two faced politician.

I have always thought him a kook and always will.

Posted by: capt on 12/12/07 at 9:11 PM Respond

I was about to jump on the Ron Paul bandwagon myself, because he does have a lot of good ideas, and he understands money better than any of the other candidates. He voted against the war, against the patriot act, he wants to get rid of this stupid, ineffective "war on drugs" and he wants to shut down the Federal Reserve--which is actual a Private Central Bank--one of the main things our forefathers fought for against England...But then I started to see his privitazation ideas...And if there's one thing worse than gov't, it's corporations, or corporations with absolutely no regulations. So, I went back to my Democratic roots and am voting for another un-electable guy--Dennis Kucinich!

Posted by: Alan on 12/13/07 at 6:01 AM Respond

Don't you know, this is what we Americans do, we are religious but do not listen to what Christ really said and that is "Be tolerant and don't judge

Posted by: Sean Baines on 12/13/07 at 6:43 AM Respond