Me, A Bigot?
By Mike Gallagher
Friday, May 25, 2007
I never enjoy arguing or disagreeing with fellow conservatives, especially someone as smart and likeable as Hugh Hewitt. I figure I’ve got my hands full enough by sparring with pesky liberals than to find fault with a like-minded colleague.
So being called a “bigot” by Hugh the other day made for a particularly bad day.
Republican presidential hopeful, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks to reporters at his campaign headquarters in Boston Wednesday, May 16, 2007, one day after the latest GOP presidential debate, and amid a daylong effort by his campaign to enlist 24,000 new supporters. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
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Allow me to explain how in the world this could have possibly occurred.
The issue of a Mormon in the White House is one of those sensitive issues that many Americans don’t really want to openly address. Sure, Hugh has written a terrific book on the subject, but he’s an enthusiastic and energetic Mitt Romney supporter, so it’s a bit tricky to accept the book as an objective analysis of the prospect of the former Massachusetts governor ever occupying the Oval Office.
But what really prompted me to dive into discussions about the prospects of a Mormon being elected president was reading an article in Time Magazine referring to the accusation that if anyone is reluctant to vote for Gov. Romney because of his religious beliefs, that reluctance is religious bigotry.
In fact, the article reported that it’s none other than Hugh Hewitt making that claim.
So I thought it would be very productive to invite Hugh on my radio show in order to have a productive conversation about this complicated issue.
I like Mitt Romney. He’s obviously a smart, talented, decent man with the kinds of values and ideology that most mainstream conservatives can appreciate.
But for someone to suggest that in this Judeo-Christian nation of ours, a presidential candidate’s religious beliefs are only being debated or considered by intolerant religious bigots is the type of tactic that is typically employed by the truly intolerant far left.
As we learn more and more about Mormonism, we are forced to confront the fact that the church clearly has some peculiar and unusual beliefs. If the belief that the Garden of Eden is in Jackson County, Missouri doesn’t get your interest, how about the conviction that people will be gods and goddesses of their own planets in the hereafter? Or the sacred undergarments many Mormons wear, believing in some kind of protection against spiritual or physical harm? And more importantly, how about their belief that God is a person of the flesh and that the Bible needed to be altered and updated by a man named Joseph Smith who was visited by an angel named Moroni in the early 1800’s?
Listen, I believe strongly in respecting other people’s faiths and beliefs. And every Mormon I’ve ever met is a kind, decent, loving person with terrific dedication to family and country. Certainly there are people who think we mainstream Christians have some strange beliefs, too.
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