Posted on 03/04/2007 7:26:41 AM PST by veronica
Fred Wehba is not supposed to be a Rudy Giuliani supporter.
A born-again Christian who helped found an evangelical church in celebrity-soaked Beverly Hills in 2002, Wehba is deeply opposed to Giuliani's pro-choice, pro-gay-rights views.
But Wehba, a successful businessman, is willing to look beyond those traits to something else he sees in the Republican former mayor: a leadership X-factor that he believes could squash Democrat Hillary Clinton and carry Giuliani all the way to the White House in 2008.
"He's someone who can get things done, and he can win," said Wehba. "And I'm not the only Christian who thinks like that."
As 2008 hopefuls start to woo different slices of the electorate, one of the more unexpected shifts appears to be a slow migration of white evangelical conservatives toward the thrice-married Giuliani.
A Washington Post/ABC News poll last week found that such voters are now a major reason why Giuliani is outpacing Arizona Sen. John McCain by 23 percentage points - up from just seven percentage points in January.
Giuliani is pulling ahead with a novel approach: by simply agreeing to disagree with conservatives on social issues, then moving quickly to the common ground he shares on taxes, education and the war on terror.
"You've got to run based on who you are," Giuliani told a group of South Carolina firefighters recently. "If you do it that way, even people who disagree with you sometimes respect you."
Giuliani is aided by the fact that conservatives have no real standard bearer in the top tier. They distrust McCain for once bashing televangelist Jerry Falwell, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is now greeted with beach flip-flops for all his shifts on abortion and other social issues.
"Giuliani has an authenticity that does register with a lot of conservatives," said John Green, a senior fellow at the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. "They say, 'Well, at least we know where he stands.'"
Which is why Wehba, 59 - a former Texan who last voted for George W. Bush - will be standing with Giuliani tomorrow night when he hits Los Angeles for a fund-raiser.
"Maybe we don't all agree with his social positions," said Wehba. "But that's okay, he's a deal maker."
I believe that Jimmy Carter is not only stupid but twisted. His views have very little to do with whether or not he considers himself an evengelical born-again Christian. The idea of evangelicalism is to bring people to Christ - to save them, not to hand out candy bars or new houses. Candy bars and new houses are nice, but they are not the heart and soul of the evangelical message. If he is, indeed, an evangelical born-again Christian, he is extremely periforal(sp?).
GIven the prevailing mood at FR, please do not encourage FReepers to hold a gun to your head!! There's bound to be a taker!
"Peripheral," and you're right about the gun!
He will make it through this time of attacks on him. He is a winner; he looks like a winner and he acts like one. He knows what is coming and he is ready. Good man.
About Post #33 - do you believe this stuff? What about "no personal attacks"?
Actually I cannot believe a lot of what is going on around here. Some have sunk to levels beyond comprehension in their verbal attacks of those who dare disagree with their view on just about anything. Personal attacks are used by people when they can't retort or carry on a conversation in an intelligent fashion.
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