God-o-Meter

Catholics the New Evangelicals?

Tuesday April 1, 2008

Categories: John McCain

mccain12.jpgThe Dallas Morning News reports on John McCain's quiet campaign too woo Catholic voters, noting that that the task may be easier for the Arizona senator than mobilizing conservative evangelicals. For all the attention lavished on evangelicals' role in George W. Bush's reelection, Catholic support was also crucial to the effort, with Bush beating the Catholic John Kerry among Roman Catholic voters. If McCain winds up in the White House despite tepid evangelical support, then playing to the middle replaces Karl Rove's play-to-the-base strategy as the way that Republicans win. And if that happens, Catholics--the nation's most dependable swing voters--become the new electoral prize, just as evangelicals were after 2004. With the Democratic presidential candidates making unprecedented plays for Catholic support, that process appears to be well underway.

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Comments
Paul Shiras
April 2, 2008 11:52 AM

Roman Catholics are more Plentiful than Right-wing Evangelicals and more more in tune with social issues. They encompass a greater range of economic and educated levels. It would be wise for McCain to court them. Without them, he would lose the election. Right now Clinton seems to be favored among the Catholics and the Mainstream Protestants.

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The God-o-Meter (pronounced Gah-DOM-meter) scientifically measures factors such as rate of God-talk, effectiveness—saying God wants a capital gains tax cut doesn't guarantee a high rating—and other top-secret criteria (Actually, the adjustment criteria are here). Click a candidate's head to get his or her latest God-o-Meter reading and blog post. And check back often. With so much happening on the campaign trail, God-o-Meter is constantly recalibrating!

God-o-Meter blogger Dan Gilgoff is Beliefnet's Politics Editor. A former political correspondent for U.S. News & World Report, he is author of The Jesus Machine: How James Dobson, Focus on the Family, and Evangelical America are Winning the Culture War.

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