Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Meet the New Boss...

So Howard Dean is now the head of the Democratic National Committee. Evangelical Outpost is linking to this hilarious analysis of Dean's attempts to woo evangelical voters in his new position.

My take? I think the Democrats have probably shot themselves in the foot. I don't see Dean as the man that can lead the Democratic party back to majority status. His campaign stance on the war screamed extremist. Perhaps he didn't believe that and was simply using that to appeal to primary voters. If so, he's in for more trouble.

On the religion issue, Dean and the rest of his party seem to think that it's all a matter of rhetoric. If they just say the right things, they can bring in the Evangelicals. The problem is that by and large the Evangelical conception of morality includes a hefty integrity requirement. Which means it isn't just what you say, it is also what you do, who you support, and the unity of thought that ties them together.

I've known Evangelical ministers who run their churches like Dean wants to run the Democratic Party. They decide what they want to do and then consult the bible for some verses to justify their own ideas. Then whip that into a sermon to preach on Sunday. Those ministers don't tend to have very large churches in my experience.

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