Dobson: Republican majority has "very little" to show for "pro-family, pro-moral" agenda; Santorum pushed marriage amendment in response
On his radio program, James Dobson complained that the Republican Party has "very little ... to show for it" in terms of accomplishing the goals of "the pro-family agenda, the pro-moral agenda, [and] the sanctity of life." In response, Sen. Rick Santorum expressed his desire for Congress to vote on the Federal Marriage Amendment, describing the amendment's purpose as "protecting marriage ... between one man and one woman."
During the January 12 broadcast of his radio program, Focus on the Family founder and chairman James C. Dobson complained that the Republican Party, in control of the White House and Congress, has "very little ... to show for it" in terms of accomplishing the goals of "the pro-family agenda, the pro-moral agenda, [and] the sanctity of life."
In a discussion with Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) about the relation of family life to social policy issues, Dobson said he wished that Republicans "would begin to take stock of what they're doing to the family," and lamented that "very little ... has been accomplished that relates to ... conservative social issues," adding that "there's just nothing going on." Dobson speculated that Americans "are pretty irritated" at both Democrats and Republicans for that reason.
In response, Santorum expressed his desire for Congress to vote on the Federal Marriage Amendment, calling it "one of the most important pieces of legislation" for 2006. Santorum described as "foundational for our society" the amendment's purpose of "protecting marriage ... between one man and one woman," and spoke of a recent meeting of the Arlington Group, a coalition that, according to its founder Paul Weyrich, is the source of "the effort to put marriage on the ballot in eleven States."
From the January 12 broadcast of the Focus on the Family radio program:
DOBSON: I wish the -- not only the Democrats -- but the Republicans would -- begin to take stock of what they're doing to the family. You know, it's been over a year now since the presidential election and Republicans have been in power in the House and the Senate and in the White House, and there is very, very little along the lines of what we're talking about to show for it. There's very little that has been accomplished that relates to social -- conservative social issues: the pro-family agenda; the pro-moral agenda; the sanctity of life. There's just nothing going on, and I know there are a lot of people out there that are pretty irritated at both parties, frankly, for that.
SANTORUM: Well, I would agree with you in part. We are -- we are working -- in fact, I was just meeting with the folks at the Arlington Group earlier, talking about the marriage amendment, and I believe that's one of the most important pieces of legislation that we are going to be able to deal with this year. And I'm hopeful that we are going to have a vote on the marriage amendment sometime in the spring. I'm hopeful it'll be March -- in the March timeframe. We need to have a good debate -- as is going on across the country right now -- on the issue of protecting marriage being between one man and one woman. It is foundational for our society.
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Brokeback Reference about Santorum and Dobson and who is on....you know.
Sometimes I don't even think Santorum can explain himself to himself.
The only reason they would have a vote on it is because it is an election year and Republicans think gay bashing is a winning strategy.
The G.O.P. - the party of little government, states' rights, the champions of the rights of the individual - so far they have:
1. Taken away from state courts the right to sue; 2. Regulated drivers' licenses; 3. Regulated marriages; 4. Objected to the Kelo decision - where the Supreme Court upheld the rights of the states to determine the definition of "public purpose."
All of these matters used to be under the jurisdiction of each state. Now the Republicans have made Federal cases out of them...
Go figure...
Regards the comments of Senator Rick Santorum:
OK, that 'intelligent design' issue didn't quite work out the way Rick had hoped: he had jumped on the advisory board of 'The Thomas More Law Center', the ones who defended the Dover Area School District's policy of teaching 'intelligent design', betting on their, and that, horse; but one day after a federal judge ruled that the district's policy on intelligent design is unconstitutional, he jumped right off that advisory board, completely withdrawing all support of the issue, and retreating from 'The Thomas More Law Center'.
Talk about 'cut-n-run'!
But he's back with a new issue; a real winner; that last nag he bet on is forgotten; this horse has SPEED, and BREEDING; this one's a sure winner!
Senator Rick Santorum: I was just meeting with the folks at 'The Arlington Group' earlier, talking about the marriage amendment, and I believe that's one of the most important pieces of legislation that we are going to be able to deal with this year.
...now I don't know what 'The Arlington Group' is, just as I didn't know what 'The Thomas More Law Center' was, but I can guess what the 'marriage amendment' is; and what U.S. Senator Rick Santorum said about it is sure worth pasting again...
I believe that's one of the most important pieces of legislation that we are going to be able to deal with this year
...with U.S. troops in the field, in a very unpopular war in Iraq; with bribery and corruption swallowing up the Republican Party; with the 'warrantless surveillance' matter about to fall in the lap of the Senate; and with a projected 2006 deficit expected to climb over $400 billion dollars, up from the 2005 $319 billion; and we have a U.S. Senator up for re-election this fall, who thinks that 'the marriage amendment' is...
one of the most important pieces of legislation that we are going to be able to deal with this year.
...sounds like a winner to me!
...not the issue I mean; that's as dead a nag as 'intelligent design'; the winner I'm refering to is...
Rick Santorum's opponent in this fall's Senate race!
...and he and his followers should clue in: the Republican party doesn't, nor ever did, care about the Christian conservative social agenda. It has never been anything but a tool to pry apart the New Deal Democratic coalition and get people to vote for a movement that is totally inimical to their practical interests.
Think about it: what has the conservative got to offer the average working American if you take away the "culture war"? Answer: nothing. Conservatism has been and is opposed to everything done over the last 100 years to benefit average folks. What do they oppose? Minimum wages, wage and hour regulations, occupational safety and health regulations, mandatory benefits, family leave, equal pay initiatives, school lunch programs, environmental cleanup and anti-pollution laws, affirmative action, anti-trust laws.
What are they for? Globalisation and the outsourcing of jobs, tort "reform" to protect corporations from lawsuits, tax cuts for people who are taxed so heavily they can only afford million-dollar houses.
The only thing conservatism has is the "culture war", but it's a huge non-issue. Fool people into believing that they need a federal law to prevent them from getting an abortion they don't want; fool them into believing they need a federal law defining the meaning of their marriage so it won't collapse when the gays next door get married; fool them into believing their ability to practice their religion is under attack because people think City Hall is not a house of worship.
The sad fact for the Evangelical right is that they've been had. The Republicans who go around with Jesus on their lips, touting the Christian social agenda are by and large the least Christian people among us. Crooks, serial divorcers, philanderers, drug users, tax cheats, bigots, hypocrites, draft dodgers, bribe-takers. Jimmy Carter was probably the most sincere Christian to occupy the White House in my lifetime. The Christian right needs to take a long, hard look at what the Republican party has actually done for them, and reconsider their allegiance to it.
-mid
midsize: You said it all...thank you!
Hmmm...I always wondered what would these people think if Christ was to come back and walk among the gay population...wow! would he do that?
Let's think about that for a moment, he had murderers, prostitutes, thieves, and so on that was part of his "crew"...didn't mention anything about Fundamentalist Christians.
"So many right-wing Christians...so little lions"
A bumper sticker I saw the other day sums it up another way:
"In Jesus' day, the Religious Right were known as Pharisees"
I want one.
LOL.
Truer words were never spoken. Could I get permission to send your comment to my local newspapers' editorial page? Definitely more people should read this.
That comment would need a lot of revision before going anywhere but before a friendly audience. Feel free to borrow any or all ideas if you want to write one of your own, though.
Thanks for the praise, anyway.
-mid
MIDSIZE, I am absolutely in agreement with your comments, and in regard to Jimmy Carter, his latest book, OUR ENDANGERED VALUES, AMERICA'S MORAL CRISIS, is a must read. He hits the fundies head on in ALL the key issues and explains how they have used certain Bible versus out of context to support their views and contentions. It came as a surprise to me to learn that while he and Rosalyn still are active in their small Baptist church in Plains, GA, they have completely severed their association with the Southern Baptist Convention. Needless to say, Falwell, Robertson, et al, are not on the Carters' "A" list and, finally, I have found a vocal, prominent, Christian Democrat who shares my views.
Dobson and Santorum drink from the same crazy right cup. It is good to hear that Dobson thinks he is not getting anwhere, and as far as Rick goes, he is going to lose big time next time. It borders on ridiculous to contemplate how little they understand families.
About Carter being the most Christian (in the best sense of the word) President in recent history. I live in Orange County, Ca., a big festering red sore on a nice blue state,and I love any opportunity I get to mention that I turned 18 in 1980 and voted for J.C. (he even has the same monogram as Jesus-they could share towels !)
I used to work with some self-described Christians who were very Republican, big fans of Reagan and both Bushes,spoke of Carter like he was a murderer.Once I asked them what they thought of all of the aforementioned presidents post-White House work (RWR and GHWB's big dollar speaking engagements and corporate bonanzas vs. Carters humanitarian and social work.)
Their response? Carter was putting on a "show", The Republicans had been more "traditional values" (Gov't medical decisions, Big Biz rewards?) while in office, and so deserved to be "successful" afterwards.
I'm using a whole lot of quotation marks.I know it's lousy writing, but I cant seem to talk about conservative thinking without them.It's just so backwards on so many levels.
And these are working people, and they VOTE !
My only consolation during elections here? I go to the polls(used to be 4 or 5 people in line, last Prez. election there was 35-40), and the street is packed with big SUV's with fish stickers and Harvest( that's a big christian concert out here) stickers and very unhappy, serious looking people trudging up to the booths with their teeth all clenched cuz they're going to defend their marriages by denying civil rights to some other consenting adults,and when the dust settles, the rest of Californy comes through and their votes don't count.
But don't misunderestimate them !
I lived in Irvine for 7 years and dutifully cast my vote for the sacrificial lambs the Dems put up against Chris Cox. Lived before that in Duncan Hunter's funky little district down in San Diego (how does the same guy represent El Centro and Coronado?) and dutifully voted for the loser there, too.
Hang in there and try to stay out from under a Hummer.
-mid
Duncan Hunter is in the 52nd District. Coronado is in Susan Davis' 53rd District and El Centro is in Bob Filner's 51st District.
I think that you lived there before the last redistricting.
thanks for the heads up on the redistricting. What that has to do with my post, however, eludes me. When I lived there, that described the district in which I lived.
-mid
Dobson will wait until hell freezes over before the repugs make good on their promises. There's nothing better to get the "folks" riled up like a good gay or abortion controversy -- if they actually do something about it what will they lure "values voters" with??
Beautiful thinking and writing, midsize!
Why doesn't Dobson use his political capital to ban divorce? If he wants to protect marriage, he should work for the annulling of all granted divorces. Then everyone goes back to their first spouse. According to the Bible, no second marriages are valid anyway and all remarried folks are adulterers. Or if he wants to protect American families, why not work to remove ourselves from Bush's 2 trillion dollar war? Or reduce the military to lessen debt? And so on.
Of course, blaming gay folks is easy.
I told someone at church that I would gladdly support an amendment banning gay marriage to "protect the sancity of marriage" as soon as there's legislation that makes cheating on a spouse a federal offense.
They were actually shocked that I would even suggest that. This amendment proposal is just another smoke screen.
I wish Dobson would actually read the New Testament and see what Jesus would do.
you have some 'splainin' to do. As a registered voter from Pennsylvania, I have only 2 words to Rickie in November: bye bye.
I wonder what the divorce rate of homosexual unions is versus the average divorce rate of heterosexual unions. I haven't heard of any longitudinal studies of gay marriage, but I firmly believe that homosexuals might prove to take marriage more seriously than heterosexuals. Has ANY homosexual had as many divorces as, say, Rush Limbaugh? How about Britney Spears' little weekend marriage in Las Vegas? I don't believe the Christian right gives a rat's behind about the "sanctity of marriage." It is all just a talking point to get the guilt-ridden Christian hypocrites to all agree on something they're not personally guilty of...being in love with someone of the same sex. It's kinda like stacking the deck before the big card game. They know they're gonna win solely because of the percentages...cowards.
The Christian right should stop whining about family values...the Republi-cons care nothing about values...just the votes that their rhetoric will garner. At least Abramoff actually gave the money that he promised to the people that he bribed, instead of hollow promises. Wish in one hand, and let the Republi-cons do what they do in your other hand.
What in the wild wild world of sports are these guys talking about? I guess as a liberal I'm anti-morals, is that what I am to believe? Where is the morality in repression and regression? I sincerely hope that Santorum really does push this legislation because I believe that we can beat him, especially if he backs this constitutional amendment. Listen we liberals not have all the answers, but regressives don't have a pro-family, pro-morality agenda, they have bigoted repressive agenda!
ever read excerpts from the "left behind" books? all this imagery of jesus slaughtering all the "non-believers" in the most sadistic fashion imaginable. or am i thinking of don corleone getting vengance on his enemies? or is it kind of the same thing? i've come to the conclusion in the last few years that religion in it's extremes is a form of mental illness, and a good deal of the american people, a supposedly first world country, are infected. a couple of years ago, when the ten commandments controversy was at it's peak, you had polls showing 70% of america expressing support for placing the commandments monument in the alabama supreme court lobby. a disturbing attitude to say the least. and a large part of those people surely gave the answer that was "expected" for a "good christian."
Haven't read the Left Behind books--personally, I think that eschatology is a subject better avoided--but I'd like to put in my two cents on the issue of displaying the 10 Commendments.
I worked as a substitute teacher in my city's public school system for the better part of a year, and in only one classroom were the 10 Commandments posted. The children there were some of the most unruly, obnoxious little [fill-in-the-blank]s that I've ever dealt with.
I know it's just one example, but I put it forward as a counterpoint to the idea that posting the 10 Commandments automatically results in desirable behavior. It simply doesn't work.
I believe there is a line from the bible that says, "Do not cast pearls before swine". This is exactly what James Dobson and the evangelical right has done, they've cast thier pearls before swine. Midsize is absolutely correct, the republican party does not and has never cared about the so called "moral fabric " of society. James Dobson and the evangelical right are reaping what they've sowed, and I have zero sympathy for them. To politicize thier agenda is a mistake, eventually people are going to get sick of it, and start voting these right wing phonies out of office...hopefully its sooner than later. Midsize you rock!