The folks at the White House must think that they're living through the second Battle of Britain. It seems that not a day goes by when the air raid sirens don't begin to wail. This time, it's yet another book, this one on what the Bushie's really think about religious conservatives.
WASHINGTON — A new book by a former White House official says President Bush's top political advisers privately ridiculed evangelical supporters as "nuts" and "goofy" while embracing them in public and using their votes to help win elections.
The former official also writes that the White House office of faith-based initiatives, which Bush promoted as a nonpolitical effort to support religious social-service organizations, was told to host pre-election events designed to mobilize religious voters who would most likely favor Republican candidates.
The assertions by David Kuo, the former No. 2 official in the faith-based initiatives program, have rattled Republican strategists already struggling to persuade evangelical voters to turn out this fall for the GOP.
Some conservatives lamented Thursday that the book, "Tempting Faith: An Inside Story of Political Seduction," also comes in the midst of the scandal involving former Rep. Mark Foley's interest in male congressional pages, another threat to conservative turnout in competitive House and Senate races.
In the book, Kuo, who quit the White House in 2003, accuses Karl Rove's political staff of cynically hijacking the faith-based initiatives idea for electoral gain. It assails Bush for failing to live up to his promises of boosting the role of religious organizations in delivering social services.
Coming next, another round or denials, finger pointing, denials, etc. Folks on the left will just shake their heads. Why is it not surprising? The folks in the middle probably won't notice. The question is the religious conservatives. My guess is that in their bones, the evangelical leadership probably already knows this. But hey, whatever. Everyone is using everyone. There are no virgins here. But what about the rank and file? To the extent that they ever hear about the book (they sure aren't going to read it), what will they think? What will they do? More importantly, will they go out and vote and for whom?
Technorati Tags: Republican Scum, David Kuo
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