Faith and frustration in the Heartland
Donald King
Posted: 08.12.2008 / 2:08 PM PDT
The major party conventions are just around the corner and the candidates will soon be announcing their Vice Presidential running mates, so after a rather apolitical summer around here, people are once again beginning to talk politics. This is true throughout the heartland, as I just returned from vacation in Missouri and Arkansas where people were freely expressing their frustration. As many commentators have observed, since the presidential nominees have been chosen, there has been a noticeable lack of enthusiasm for the choices facing the American electorate.
Let me suggest why I think this is the case and what the candidates need to do in the coming months leading up to Nov. 5. First, it is important to remember that even though turnout for caucuses and primaries was up this year, it is still the case that citizens who participate in these events comprise a small percentage of the eligible electorate. This is a structural problem because primaries and caucuses are dominated by party activists, excited about a particular candidate and organized to influence as many others as possible to join them in turning out for these party votes. In my town, it was the Huckabee supporters on the Republican side and the Obama and Clinton supporters on the Democratic side. On both sides, there were many evangelical Christian voters, as there were participating that night across Iowa.
We learned later that night which candidates “won” and would get the boost as they moved on to New Hampshire and beyond. On Super Tuesday, candidates competed across the country primarily by spending big money on TV ads, and they were whittled down those who could continue to raise money and show support in different regions of the country (or hang on like Paul or Kucinich in a venue like the internet that offers access to committed loyalists). This left fewer and fewer choices to voters participating in the remaining primaries.
The frustration referred to earlier comes from the broader and larger electorate now looking at these candidates and being generally apathetic and dissatisfied with both the Republican and Democratic choices. A few examples from lots of folks I have talked to in recent weeks.
Many evangelical Christians who inhabit the heartland and resonated with Mike Huckabee, do not hear the same language or see the same values evident in John McCain. His positions on issues of importance to them such as gay marriage, support of faith-based organizations, poverty, and the environment to name a few are seen as vague or underdeveloped. At the same time there is widespread confusion and uncertainty among evangelicals about Obama’s faith and its influence on his politics. They seem unaware of his open declarations of his Christian commitment and biblical values.
Many traditionally conservative voters don’t agree with McCain on key issues like immigration, foreign policy, and the economy. Moderate to conservative Democrats worry about Obama’s lack of experience in foreign affairs, his social policy agenda, farm policy, and support of small communities like theirs. I often hear that all he talks about is “change” without spelling out what he means.
My conclusion is that both candidates need to address these concerns and be much more direct and specific in speaking about their personal faith and what it means for their politics. It would help if they could show a consistent set of values that is evident across a range of issues, not just an overly simplistic up or down on hot button issues.
Their imminent choice of a running mate is also something some people will be looking at. McCain’s ability to garner as large a share of the evangelical vote as Bush did will depend on the turnout of this segment of the electorate and choosing a person who has openly spoken of his or her faith (e.g.Gov. Huckabee, Sen. Brownback, Sec. of State Condi Rice) could be beneficial.
The same must be said of Barack Obama. He must do more to identify himself as a man with a strong faith commitment that influences his politics. Democrats are just beginning to learn that they can no longer afford to avoid all reference to religion. This definitely hurt John Kerry and it will hurt any Democrat who writes off the significant numbers of people of faith in America who choose a candidate on the basis of their character and integrity as much as they do on issues. I am continually surprised by how many people say they are reluctant to support Obama because he was raised a Muslim and continues that affiliation. Prejudiced and uninformed–definitely, but how can so many Americans be so misguided?
Voters today can usually detect pandering and focusing only on hot button issues to garner support. I believe that for the first time in my memory, both presidential candidates are men of strong religious beliefs and there must be a connection between their values and their politics. But this is not widely evident and people expect it to be the subject of discussion as they weigh their choices. So the candidates must cast aside any fears and be much more transparent in the ways they talk about their fundamental values for it to be understood by the millions of people of numerous faith commitments listening more closely than ever as the election approaches.
