This new ad by Absolut may be pushing the right buttons in Mexico, but for those of us in California who can't imagine living in a land other than America, I find it rather disturbing.

So, for those of you out there who may like a vodka Martini or maybe just a Screwdriver from time to time and may not be as familiar with the Spirits market, may I recommend the following labels:

Ketel One
Chopin
Belvedere
Grey Goose
Finlandia

And heck, if you can't afford anything else, Smirnoff.

Or better yet, ditch the spirits market altogether and have a Sprite.

Seriously though, I think Absolut should get some backlash for the ad.

Matt Lewis points to a Huckabee motive. David Brody has a headache over this thing. But I see another motif at play here.

Am I blowing smoke about the hidden anti-Mormon agenda of many of the signatories who signed onto the God Not Government post?

Well, let's review. Granted, these excerpts don't come anywhere close to equating Mormonism to Homosexuality, but even I was a bit shocked by some of these quotes.

My main point is this: if you want your egregious arguments to hold any water at all... don't include anti-Mormons on your list of adherents.

• Matt Barber, Policy Director, Concerned Women for America quoted here as helping a reformed homosexual who converted to Mormonism find "scripturally-sound" evangelical churches to attend.
  
• Ted Baehr, Author of Culture Wise Family, on the September 11th film: "What [the character of] Brigham Young does in the movie is talk about…that you have to have blood atonement... This is going to be an issue [for Romney]. ”
• Janet Folger, President Faith2Action, See here: "Romney, as a Mormon, doesn't believe Jesus was God's only Son (Lucifer, they claim, was his 'brother'). Nor does he believe in the virgin birth. Instead, Mormons believe God the Father had physical sex with Mary. The word blasphemy comes to mind. A bit more than a mere 'denominational difference,' don't you think?"
• Gary Glenn, President AFA, Michigan, played the "religion card" in his GOTV efforts for Huckabee
• James Hartline, Founder and Publisher, California Christian News: "San Diego Republican Party Hits New Low - Invites Cult Member As Christmas Party Guest Of Honor" - "Mormon politics is more about promoting the economic interests of the Mormon Church and its wealthy members rather than any pseudo Biblical beliefs."
• Linda Harvey, President Mission America: "He used his Republican and Mormon identity to push through radical policies on gay marriage, abortion and pro-homosexual school programs that Ted Kennedy always dreamed about." - link
• Gregg Jackson: Writes here in an article entitled: "Is this the end of Evangelicalism in America?": "A cornerstone of the Mormon Church, Grudem writes, is the classic heresy of Saint Paul's day – angel worship. In his book, Grudem insists that an orthodox Christian must practice the theology he reads. So why would he step forward to become part of the Mitt Romney propaganda blitz trying to mislead evangelicals into doing what would shock most evangelicals in American history: elect a Mormon for president? "
• Peter LaBarbera: "The sponsor of a homosexual-inclusive “hate crimes” bill in Utah is hailing the support of two Mormon-owned media organs, signaling the neutrality of the powerful and socially conservative church on an issue that is seen by many family advocates as the first step in the wider 'gay' agenda."

And I'm only half way through the list. In my mind, many of these people are hiding behind silly political pot-shots because they have theological angst against the Mormon church.

Am I wrong here?

Labels: evangelicals, mitt romney, mormonism

Maybe this is reverse psychology?

That’s the only excuse I can think of in defense of the GINGPAC decision to blast the idea of a McCain-Romney ticket. Unfortunately I don’t think these guys had reverse psychology in mind when they drafted this ad that, according to the website, will appear wherever McCain campaigns, starting in Prescott, AZ this weekend.

I could go on in an almost endless rant about why these guys have it wrong about Romney. However, the illogic and misinformation are patent from reading the ad. Citing questionable sources and making bare (and false) allegations does not lend credibility to their claims. Indeed, one could find numerous reliable and prominent sources that completely negate the claims they make.

Probably the saddest part of this was seeing Paul Weyrich’s name attached to the ad. Et tu Paul?

Today, John McCain on Letterman, the Weyrich waffling, Gentry Collins
on the move, and zodiac signs predict who?


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Labels: david letterman, John McCain, mitt romney, mittcast, paul weyrich, zodiac election

Here's the setup.

Lowell Brown, the savvy legal eagle over at the Article VI blog, links to this article by Warren Smith. (Lowell and crew are masters at surveying the current intersection of politics and religion. Its an important post which we will discuss at some later date but Smith's claim is the issue at hand.)

In his WorldMag article, Smith alleges that Paul Weyrich (noted conservative Christian leader who endorsed Romney last November) now openly regrets his endorsement. Quoting Weyrich: "Friends, before all of you and before almighty God, I want to say I was wrong." Smith continues:

In a quiet, brief, but passionate speech, Weyrich essentially confessed that he and the other leaders should have backed Huckabee, a candidate who shared their values more fully than any other candidate in a generation. He agreed with Farris that many conservative leaders had blown it. By chasing other candidates with greater visibility, they failed to see what many of their supporters in the trenches saw clearly: Huckabee was their guy.

Lowell thinks Smith is spinning. I'm not convinced. Its difficult for me to claim spin with that direct quote from Weyrich. Still, context is everything.

My sources tell my that Weyrich (like many conservatives) was not a little miffed about Mitt's endorsement of McCain. I understand his sentiment but disagree with his reasoning.

The gist of the meeting, which Smith says took place in early March, lambastes leaders for not getting behind Huck. Its hard to justify this thinking. I could use the same logic in my corner to berate Iowan Evangelicals for not getting behind Mitt (which is the demographic move that started the whole McCain ball rolling after all).

From my perspective Mitt's McCain move was calculated but completely logical. McCain has always been the snubbed candidate from most sides of the conservative playground. But today, he's the only guy left to be picked for the kickball game. With the anti-Bush electorate so vocal, McCain may just be the best guy. This is what Mitt sees and what I hope our readers will see as well.

To wit: conservatives who oppose McCain for political reasons are essentially "kicking against the pricks" - a rough venture when the alternatives are President Clinton or Obama.

Still, Weyrich is expressing a certain bewilderment and understandable angst which many conservative Christians are feeling about McCain. Another source who is deeply connected in Evangelical circles expressed his dismay that McCain isn't reaching out to them.

A third source confirmed this feeling but indicated that its mostly par for the course. "McCain is coming to these conservative events but mostly just to check the box that says he was there. He holds no private meetings, no meet and greets and never lingers to mix with the crowd."

I hope he's wrong. Its going to take more than the facade of placation to placate these masses.

Still, context is everything. While Weyrich in early March was miffed at Mitt I'm told he's also a bit perturbed about Huck's defense of Reverend Wright. What goes around comes around.

Labels: endoresements, evangelicals, John McCain, mitt romney, paul weyrich