One of the more respected political commentators, Robert Novak, writes that evangelicals have privately told him that millions of their followers will not vote for Mitt Romney because he is a Mormon, no matter what, even if it means the election of Hillary Clinton.
UPDATE: RICHARD LAND OF THE SOUTH BAPTIST CONVENTION SAID THE FOLLOWING IN A RECENT SEMINAR:
On whether Southern Baptists would vote for Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a Mormon, for president: “If their choice is between a social conservative and a non-social conservative, most of them will vote for a Mormon social conservative, because they’re more concerned about where they stand on the issues and their worldview than they are their personal faith. And I think it’s the way it should be.â€
Here’s the key excerpt:
Prominent, respectable Evangelical Christians have told me, not for quotation, that millions of their co-religionists cannot and will not vote for Romney for president solely because he is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If Romney is nominated and their abstention results in the election of Hillary Rodham Clinton, that’s just too bad. The Evangelicals are adamant, saying there is no way Romney can win them over.
Romney is well aware that an unconstitutional religious test is being applied to him, but he may be seriously minimizing the problem’s scope as limited to relatively few fanatics. He feels the vast majority of conservative voters worried about his faith will flinch at the prospect of another Clinton in the White House. But such a rational approach is not likely to head off a highly emotional collision of religious faith and religious bias with American politics.
Novak issues a challenge for Romney to take the issue public and point out that such religious tests are un-American and unconstitutional.
My prediction is that Romney will increasingly be seen as the most viable Republican candidate for many Republicans who are not part of the conservative evangelical base. The Church will be dragged directly into the debate with even ruder discussions of garments, “secret” temple ceremonies, polygamy and on and on.
But, as I’ve posted before, I tend to be an optimist. I think the Truth will out and that most Americans will reject the bigotry of the anti-Mormons. Most Americans will think of the people they know who are members and realize they are generally good, hard-working people who happen to have slightly different religious beliefs than they do.
Be sure to read the article on Novak’s take on some Republicans’ attitudes toward the Book of Mormon.
Also, please visit the always insightful Guy Murray on Bloggernacle Times, who also has a post on this issue.
