Free Republic

Christian conservatives looking to put a Republican in the White House heard a lot about the economy on Friday in a sign that their social issues may take a back seat in 2012. Many political speakers at the Faith and Freedom Coalition, including Republican White House hopefuls, emphasized jobs, debt and deficits... In contrast to some previous presidential campaigns, social issues like gay marriage and abortion have not been prominent topics for Republicans hopefuls seeking to replace President Barack Obama in next year's election. The weakness of the economy has triggered a debate within the Republican Party about whether conservatives...

Gov. Haley Barbour issued a warning to social conservatives in choosing their Republican nominee for 2012: “Purity is the enemy of victory.” “Remember purity in politics, purity is the enemy of victory,” Barbour said. “We can’t start out with the idea out as the Faith & Freedom Coalition that our candidate’s got to agree with me on every single thing. We cannot expect our candidate to be pure. Winning is about unity. Winning is about us sticking together to achieve the main thing.” “Conservatives, religious people, small government people, we are not going to have purity. We’re not going to...