From The Seattle Times, 6/14/05:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2002334837_harrop14.html
Froma Harrop / Syndicated columnist
Religious conservatives are getting played for patsies
Liberals have long admired religious conservatives for their
willingness to place moral principles above a quick buck.
The religious right's idea of morality may not mesh with the left's,
but at least the two groups share the notion that values can trump
economic expediency.
I, for one, cringe at debates that, brought to their logical
conclusion, could end at "Child prostitution: Just tax it."
Casinos as a way to collect government revenues stand well above child
prostitution on any morality scale, but they do share the same
slippery slope.
Both involve exploiting weak people.
And so when religious conservatives oppose government-sanctioned
gambling, many liberals want to march by their side.
But rather than make common cause with liberals, religious
conservatives often fight alone.
That's because the religious right inhabits the same Republican Party
as the moneyed elite.
The money men demand loyalty and ultimately call the shots.
Politicians try to play both sides, but anyone keeping score sees an
obvious imbalance.
Mammon gets four-star service, and morals lip service.
The Bush tax cuts, for example, are very real.
The "values" part of his program is not.
On the life issues, the president makes grand gestures, such as flying
back to Washington during the Terri Schiavo affair.
During the election, Republicans made a big show of supporting a
constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage.
And whenever Hollywood offends, they run to the microphones.
But despite all the talk, virtually nothing ever moves on the moral
agenda.
There has been no serious effort to outlaw abortion, the key
"pro-life" issue.
The day after the election, everyone forgot all about the
constitutional amendment.
Show business, meanwhile, continues to pump out cultural sludge with
no slack.
A left-of-center type, I support the right to an early abortion,
believe states should set the rules for marriage and defend free
speech, however unlovely.
But I respect moral conservatives for thinking about things other than
money.
And so it seems tragic that they have ended up in the same political
bed as the K Street operators -- the lobbyists working Congress for
tax breaks, government contracts and lax regulations.
Polls show that religious conservatives care deeply about the
environment.
Some Christian leaders have warned against economic policies that tax
only working people and not investors.
These are concerns that liberals share.
What a power partnership they could make working together.
Before the 2004 election, Bush adviser Karl Rove reportedly wandered
around the White House whistling "Onward Christian Soldiers."
He certainly got the soldiers' votes.
But in getting what they want, the religious conservatives have been
treated with a certain disregard.
And when the K Street crowd moves in, they get played for patsies.
Consider recent revelations regarding the campaign to expand gambling
in Alabama.
In 1999, the Christian Coalition of Alabama helped defeat a proposed
state lottery.
The coalition is currently fighting a plan to open Indian casinos in
Alabama.
Now we learn that a lobbying group called Americans for Tax Reform had
given the coalition $850,000 to work against the casino plan.
The anti-tax group is headed by Grover Norquist, a powerful player in
Republican money circles.
It turns out that Norquist had no interest in discouraging casinos.
To the contrary, he was working for a casino tribe in Mississippi.
The Indians didn't want gambling emporia next door in Alabama to
compete with theirs.
They gave Norquist's group $1.15 million to stop them.
The Christian Coalition has strict rules against taking money from
gambling interests.
So Norquist in effect had passed the coalition 850,000 tainted dollars
to protect his clients' casino profits.
(Some now charge that coalition leaders were in on the scheme.)
People of faith should take a cold look at the people who really run
the conservative movement.
Many religiously devout citizens want health coverage for all
children.
They see a moral imperative in protecting endangered species.
These caring people will never be able to vote on these issues if they
remain captive to the Republicans' mammon brigade.
Sadly, the Democratic Party has a cultural and stylistic disadvantage
in attracting religious conservatives, especially in the South.
But suppose religious conservatives started looking at substance over
style and compared what they're actually getting from the two parties.
Just suppose.
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Scientology crooks: http://sf.irk.ru/www/ot3/otiii-gif.html
http://PerkinsTragedy.org http://www.rightard.org/
End Republican race hatred: http://www.thedarkwind.org/
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