Looking to regain its base, the Democratic Party is restating its liberal program in religion-friendly terms | Lynn Vincent
In Georgia, state Sen. Kasim Reed in January introduced a bill authorizing school districts to teach courses derived from The Bible and Its Influence, a textbook released last year by the Bible Literacy Project.
In Tennessee, Reps. Rick Nelson and Bob Damron are sponsoring legislation that would allow postings of religious documents such as the Ten Commandments.
In Virginia, Timothy Kaine rode religious campaign themes and Christian radio ads to victory in the governor's race last fall.
All that would be business as usual for the GOP. But these Bible-thumping, faith-stumping pols are all Democrats—and part of their party's emerging effort to reconnect with religious voters.
It's not just a Southern phenomenon. Democrats in the North and West also are becoming more vocal on traditionally Republican issues—from public prayer to traditional marriage. U.S. Senate Democrats in January invited conservative evangelical Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, to speak. Former Vermont governor and current Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean, who once said his favorite New Testament book is Job and last June slammed the GOP as "pretty much a white, Christian party," now says the Bible should be taught as literature in public schools.
Fighting Democrats
| Lynn Vincent
Dogs hate cats. Spring follows winter. Democrats are weak on national defense.
In life and politics, some things are axiomatic.
The Democrats want to change that image. The national party is not only getting religion but also recruiting military veterans to run for Congress. By January, the group of about 55 candidates—about a dozen of them terror-war vets—had become large enough to draw a flurry of major newspaper stories featuring military candidates uniformly opposed to the war and proclaiming themselves ready to rein in the Pentagon.
The "fighting Democrats" are trying to give their party what U.S. House candidate Tim Dunn, Democrat of North Carolina, calls "instant credibility" on defense issues. The Democratic veterans seem unified in their message on the war in Iraq: President Bush sent American forces into harm's way ill-equipped and without a plan, Mr. Dunn told WORLD. Others argue that America needs a "phased withdrawal" with "milestones," an idea that former assistant secretary of defense Richard Perle calls "just another version of basic opposition to the war."
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COVER STORY ARTICLE |
Escalating opposition
