Posted on 02/04/2008 9:06:16 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
By far, the most significant story of the 2008 Republican primaries has been the unlikely candidacy of Mike Huckabee and his_single-handed_resuscitation of Christian conservatives as a force to be reckoned with in the Republican_Party. Yet, regardless of how he fares on Super_Tuesday_and_beyond, Mr. Huckabee will perhaps be best remembered as the man who, however unintentionally, helped persuade evangelicals to vote a Democrat into the White House in 2008 – and possibly in future races, as well.
Since the 1970s, conventional_wisdom has held that evangelicals are driven by a single-minded_concern with defending "moral values," while mainline Protestants focus on issues of social and economic justice. Huckabee has helped crack that old chestnut – and suddenly, the GOP is having a harder time standing for "God's Own Party."
While an orthodox Republican on "gays, guns, and God," Huckabee made his mark by presenting himself as a different type of Christian conservative. His campaign website devotes as much space to arguing for the need to increase funding for the arts, protect the environment, fight poverty, and reform healthcare as it does to the fight against abortion and gay marriage. And though he was forced to toughen his stand on immigration_and government spending, his record as governor of Arkansas, where he raised taxes and granted in-state tuition rates to the children of illegal immigrants, speaks for itself.
For such temerity, Huckabee has been slammed by his GOP colleagues as "liberal." Rush Limbaugh accused him of engaging in "class_warfare"; The Wall Street Journal said it's fair to call him a tribune of the "religious left." But in breaking from the conservative mold, Huckabee is following tracks laid by the National Association of Evangelicals, which last year incited a civil war among evangelical leaders by broadening its political agenda to include issues such as climate change.
(Excerpt) Read more at csmonitor.com ...
Is’nt that waht our elected representatives are supposed to do? Represent the majority who put them in office?
He does have better hair though...
So, you want republicans fragmented, whereas the demorats keep all factions under the big tent and become the permanent majority like they were for 40 years?
Brilliant suggestion!
Here’s who Huckabee is involved with:
NY Times
Friday 11 March 2005
“.. Mr. Cizik said he had a “conversion” on climate change so profound in Oxford that he likened it to an “altar call,” when nonbelievers accept Jesus as their savior. Mr. Cizik recently bought a Toyota Prius, a hybrid vehicle. “ http://www.truthout.org/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi/37/9554
Oct. 2006
“..Cizik dates his “conversion” to 2002, when evangelical left activist Jim Ball of the “What Would Jesus Drive” anti-SUV campaign “dragged” him to Oxford, England, for a global warming summit featuring scientist and Christian thinker John Houghton. “I had, as John Wesley would say, a ‘warming of my heart,’ Cizik recalls. “A conversion to a cause which I believe every Christian should be committed to.”
After his Oxford conversion, Cizik returned home, sold his gas guzzler, bought a Prius, and renewed his interest in recycling. He notes that evangelicals comprise 40-50 percent of the “Republican base” and Republican politicians, who “have stymied action on climate change, will “have to listen” if evangelicals become as passionate as Cizik is about climate change.
Promoters of The Great Warming are hoping that other evangelicals will have dramatic conversions to the global warming cause.like Cizik. No doubt, many of these new enthusiasts for the planet are full of passionate sincerity. But some seem to see acceptance of disastrous scenarios of global warming, fueled exclusively by human activity, as almost an article of faith, transcending need for logical argument. For them, it has become intrinsically a struggle between noble friends of the earth and wicked allies of the fossil fuels industry. They have adopted climate activism as a new crusade.
Evangelicals are more famous, or notorious, for preaching about the impending End Times. At least that old kind of preaching pointed listeners towards repentance...and God. This new mode of climate revivalism points evangelicals towards a very differently kind of imagined apocalypse, in which the solution is not divine intervention but increased government regulation, reduced standards of living, diminished national sovereignty, and enhanced powers for international bureaucracies. That Old Time Religion now looks more appealing, because it involves God.
Frontpagemag.com. http://vacoalblog.blogspot.com/2006/10/boo-just-in-time-for-halloween-folks.html
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/1964460/posts?page=13#13
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Here’s the guy who herded the gullible “religious leaders” together to hear him preach his “sermon” which got the latest round of “crisis mongering” started:
The “Reverend” Sir John Houghton, former head of the UK Meteorological Office, Publisher of Al Gore’s book on GW and Former Co-Chair of the IPCC:
“Unless we announce disasters, no one will listen”
Some call that, “Lying for Jesus”. I would agree.
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Public radio interview with the Reverend Richard Cizik [a trained political scientist and vice president in Washington for the National Association of Evangelicals]
Key excerpt:
Ms. Tippett: You have become quite a spokesman for Evangelical Christian concern about the environment. And, you know, I wonder if that’s something that surprises you. Is that something that’s on your agenda, that’s on the Evangelical Christian agenda that you would not have imagined there 25 years ago or even…
Rev. Cizik: I would have never imagined it. I just would have to say I had a conversion.
Ms. Tippett: Well, tell me about that.
Rev. Cizik: Not just to Christ, you see, many, many years ago. But in 2002, I had a conversion to the science of climate change. ....
Ms. Tippett: Well, tell me about your conversion experience in 2002. ...
Rev. Cizik: First of all, I met great men of science who, like Sir John Houghton, knighted by the queen, the head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, who came forward and said to me, “You can believe in the science and be a faithful biblical Christian, and I am,’ he said. And so in a humble way, not arrogantly, admitting the questions that still exist, John Houghton and many others, for three days, walked some of us that were there in Oxford, England, through all the science, through our biblical teaching and responsibility, and all I can say is, in a John Wesley kind of fashion, my heart was warmed. My heart, you know, was changed...”
http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/programs/evangelicalevolution/transcript.shtml
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“This is going to be an issue which evangelicals are going to look at when they cast their ballots,” Cizik said. ..” But only Republican former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas otherwise considered among the more conservative candidates in the race has explicitly aligned himself with the creation care movement. ..” [The Reverend Richard Cizik ] Much more: “God is Green”
11/06/2007 http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21656644/
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From Gribbit: “The conclusions of the IPCC Summary Report were determined before the study even began. The idea was to make it the “Final Word” on global climate change. The reason for making it the “Final Word” was that by using that terminology, they had hoped that the public would take their bait hook, line, and sinker and they could get the political changes that they want. Yes I said political changes.” See more Gribbit Tidbits
http://www.gribbitonline.com/2007/02/15/why-you-shouldnt-believe-the-global-warming-scare/
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“The evolution of the scientific debate about anthropogenic climate change illustrates both the value of skepticism and the pitfalls of partisanship.”.. Scientists ... reputation for impartiality is severely compromised by the shocking lack of political diversity among American academics, who suffer from the kind of group-think that develops in cloistered cultures. Until this profound and well documented intellectual homogeneity changes, scientists will be suspected of constituting a leftistthink-tank.” “On the left, an argument emerged urging fellow scientists to deliberately exaggerate their findings so as to galvanize an apathetic public...” ~ Kerry Emmanuel - MIT
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“No matter if the science is all phony, there are collateral environmental benefits…climate change provides the greatest chance to bring about justice and equality in the world” Christine Stewart, former Canadian Environment Minister bttt
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/1964460/posts?page=5#5
We aren’t suppose to actually think about any thing! No now we Conservatives are simply suppose to emote our love for this our that candidate and scream hate at every other candidate! So you stop that thinking right now!
Ok, how about an FR-SC? (FR for social conservatives only) LOL
Third pary, block, is not important to me - the exact distiction - is the idea of a group large enough - no diluted - Blacks are teh best example I can think of - can exert more pressure on political matters affecting them.
I could see a huge group, of all religions - even 'Catholics' (kidding:)... joining together with non-religious people, who care for our values/principles. I happen to like LOU DOBBS from cnn... is that bad? LOL
Who are Social-Conservatives? 'Conservatives' who care about money yes!... and other conservative principles in different degress but, who ALSO HAPPEN TO CARE about our culture and values. In other words, it's more than just MONEY!
Research by Barna and the Nehemiah Institute indicate that only 10% of those who call themselves Christians have a Biblical worldview. Only 51% of Pastors have a Biblical worldview.
We in the Evangelical community have to admit that we have allowed the 'world' with all its lusts and desires to creep in to the church, the home, our marriages (and thus our divorces), our child-rearing (we have no problem letting those of the world - and mandated by currently wrong interpreted law to be anti-Christian - to disciple our kids), our eyes and hands, and even how to interpret the Word of God and how much authority it has.
That said, I wouldn't be surprised to see many so-called 'Evangelicals' vote for the abortionists, since many believe in moral relativism.
Less than 10% of Americans who call themselves Christian possesses a Biblical worldview.
More than 90% of Americans who call themselves Christian do not possess a Biblical worldview.
2/3 of Born Again Christians assert that there are no absolute moral truths.
4 out of 10 say they are “absolutely committed to the faith”.
44% of churched youths agree with this statement: “Humans are capable of grasping the meaning of truth”.
85% of churched youth agree with this statement: “What is right for a person in a certain situation may not be right for another person in the same situation”. (Relativism and situational ethics)
62% of churched youth agree that: “Nothing can be known for certain except that which is experienced in your life”.
Click Here To Learn More About Biblical Worldview and Test Yourself
Well at least you answered and I can respect that.
Regards
The whole attack on Huckabee’s tax record is so distorted it bears little resemblence to reality. It’s true Huck signed some tax increases and some cuts. It’s also true that,
a) governors have to produce balanced budgets every year.
b) Arkansas’ legislature is overwhelmingly Democrat, and the governor’s veto can be overridden by a simple majority vote. Therefore Huckabee’s options were very limited.
c) Despite that, the overall per capita state tax bite went down during Huckabee’s 11 years as governor. The per captita tax burden went up during Mitt’s 4 years as MA governor.
It’s a shame that the Mitt and Huckabee supporters have wasted so much time spewing venom at each other. Mitt and Mike actually agree about 95% of everthing. It’s mostly just arguing about who is more (or less) honest about their new more conservative positions. Meanwhile McCain is the real winner.
I fail to see the reason for the hostilities. One supporter of a liberal/moderate going after the supporters of another liberal/moderate. One candidates conversion is true, yet another candidates is not? I am seeing a lot of derisive commentary about the Huckster, Evangelicals, The South..............you know, we all live in trailers, eat fried squirrel. We are flat-earther, bigots. I think that has encouraged me to vote for Huckleberry.
I don’t find any of the current choices conservative and I see no reason for the continued confrontational atmosphere. They are all equally useless to me as a conservative. Yet, I think I prefer, Huckleberry. Every group seems to be a protected class except for Southerners or Evangelicals. You can say anything about them or demean them in anyway you choose and nothing is said. There is not outrage. Yet, if one thing is mentioned about Myth or Mormonism, the reaction goes from cynicism to outright disdain rather quickly. It is going to be McInsane/Crist anyway, so why argue and demean each other? Perhaps after 4 years of Hitlery, Obamarama, the GOP electorate will vote for a Duncan Hunter the next time someone like him runs. Yet, I certainly am not going to hold my breath till the GOP electorate gets a clue.
I'm a Fundamentalist Christian, something like a close cousin to a Evangelical and there's no way they'll vote for a pro-abort, pro gay rights, anti-gun loving Dem candidate who would probable sell out Israel at the drop of a hat!
One more in a very long list of reasons why I will never vote for him.
I thought the church is suppose to build up and encourage the body of believers, seek and save the lost, and take care of widows and orphans.
Where in the Scriptures does it tell the church leaders to be involved with politics or to create a civil war over anything?
This environmental "mother earth" worship and animal rights activism, is idol worship and the last people that should be involved with this are Leaders of a church!
For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened
Professing to be wise, they became fools,
and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.
Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored among them.
For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever.Amen.
Romans 1:21-25
God made this world, and He is the only one that can destroy it!
Why would you believe that Huckabee's dismal stances negate Romney's dismal stances?
They're both big government flim-flam men. For me they are equally unacceptable.
From a fellow member of the Reagan coalition, small-government-leg-of-the-stool, I say Amen to that.
winning elections is the point.
The statements are incorrect, but moreso, the statement is contradictory.
He ran for office in 1994, and again in 2002. He faced voters twice, both times the voters were largely pro-choice.
So if it were true, and it's not, that he went from choice to life to choice to life, he certainly didn't go to life the first time to match some "voter base".
Evangelicals are not going to run into the arms of the abortionists party. Not now, not ever.”
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True....abortion is the litmus test, followed closely by judicial appointments.
Bump for later reading.
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