Ever since Mitt Romney ran for president in 2008, his Mormon faith has been a controversial issue as several Religious Right activists have been calling Mormonism a cult and suggesting that voters should always prefer Christian candidates.
And it is not only Romney’s faith that has been a problem from some Religious Right activists, as Glenn Beck’s Mormonism has likewise caused concerns which others have tried to assuage.
So, of course, the Religious Right is absolutely convinced that it is the media and President Obama that will make an issue of Romney’s faith should he win the Republican nomination:
“I assume that given the early signs of what an Obama campaign is going to look like, with this class warfare stuff, that every tactic imaginable will be used by the Obama campaign, including attacking the religion of his opponent,” said Gary Bauer, president of American Values and a long time leader in the social conservative movement.
Other prominent evangelical leaders told The Huffington Post that they believe Romney will be ambushed by the press.
“The major networks are heavily invested in Barack Obama’s reelection,” said Richard Land, a leader with the Southern Baptist Convention who heads its ethics and religious liberty commission.
“And they’re all going to run detailed specials, now that we have the first Mormon nominee for president: ‘What does the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints believe?’ And they’re going to go into all the beliefs of Mormonism, hoping to scare the 40 percent of independents who make up the decisive vote in the electorate to not vote for someone who believes such things.”
Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, agreed.
“I think the media, and the American public via the media, will know all they want to know about Mormonism,” Perkins said. “I think the left-leaning media that is sympathetic to the president will try to drive a wedge deeper between him and social conservatives.”
