It seems as if more and more articles in recent days and weeks have sprouted up about GOP candidate Mitt Romney's religion - Mormonism. In the majority of these articles, the writer author asks the question, "Will Romney's religion hurt his chances in the election?" or it flat out states that Evangelicals will not vote in as large of numbers for Romney as they would for a Christian Republican candidate, like Herman Cain.
I read an article today that 20% of Republican voters and 27% of Democratic voters would not vote for a Mormon. I have to say, that's disappointing. I'd refer to myself as a liberal more so than a Democrat, but given the choices, I typically vote Democrat. Now, I don't know how many of those very Democrats would vote against a Democratic candidate who was Mormon. I have to imagine those numbers would decrease and the Republican numbers would increase, but that's mere speculation. For the time being, those are the only numbers we have to work with. As a "Democrat," I'm disappointed that over a quarter of our base would vote against a person based on their religion. I'm disappointed with the Republican base too. Combine those two numbers and close to a quarter of voters wouldn't vote for Mitt Romney for his being a Mormon. I think that's pretty sad.
Now, I'm in no way saying I'd vote for Mitt Romney if he becomes the Republican nominee. I'll likely be voting for Barack Obama in 2012, regardless of the GOP nominee. I do think I'd listen to what Jon Huntsman has to say and ponder voting for him, but he doesn't have a chance at the nomination, so I won't have to worry about making that difficult decision. But, whether or not I would vote for Romney is irrelevant. The man should be judged on his policy ideas, on what he could bring to the country as leader of it, not what he practices in private with regard to his religious beliefs. As far as I see it, that's personal. It's really none of my business and I'm not going to base my vote on a person's religious views. I'm not going to sit here and say I believe a person would be a better leader if they were Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, Christian, Mormon, etc. I'm voting a person into office to do their job, to lead the country to a better tomorrow and their religious beliefs are going to play absolutely no factor in that.
So, while I'm not a supporter of Mitt Romney's politics, I ask that people look at his policy ideas and how he would run this country, and not let his religious beliefs play a part in their decision.
I read an article today that 20% of Republican voters and 27% of Democratic voters would not vote for a Mormon. I have to say, that's disappointing. I'd refer to myself as a liberal more so than a Democrat, but given the choices, I typically vote Democrat. Now, I don't know how many of those very Democrats would vote against a Democratic candidate who was Mormon. I have to imagine those numbers would decrease and the Republican numbers would increase, but that's mere speculation. For the time being, those are the only numbers we have to work with. As a "Democrat," I'm disappointed that over a quarter of our base would vote against a person based on their religion. I'm disappointed with the Republican base too. Combine those two numbers and close to a quarter of voters wouldn't vote for Mitt Romney for his being a Mormon. I think that's pretty sad.
Now, I'm in no way saying I'd vote for Mitt Romney if he becomes the Republican nominee. I'll likely be voting for Barack Obama in 2012, regardless of the GOP nominee. I do think I'd listen to what Jon Huntsman has to say and ponder voting for him, but he doesn't have a chance at the nomination, so I won't have to worry about making that difficult decision. But, whether or not I would vote for Romney is irrelevant. The man should be judged on his policy ideas, on what he could bring to the country as leader of it, not what he practices in private with regard to his religious beliefs. As far as I see it, that's personal. It's really none of my business and I'm not going to base my vote on a person's religious views. I'm not going to sit here and say I believe a person would be a better leader if they were Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, Christian, Mormon, etc. I'm voting a person into office to do their job, to lead the country to a better tomorrow and their religious beliefs are going to play absolutely no factor in that.
So, while I'm not a supporter of Mitt Romney's politics, I ask that people look at his policy ideas and how he would run this country, and not let his religious beliefs play a part in their decision.
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