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Jon Shields on Democratic Virtues & the Christian Right

tonygill — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 09:00:15 +0000

Prof. Jonathan A. Shields (assistant professor of government, Claremont McKenna College) talks about about his latest book, The Democratic Virtues of the Christian Right, with Tony. Whereas popular media accounts of the Christian Right during the 1980s portrayed this loosely knit movement as belligerent, Prof. Shields finds that Christian activists are often trained to press their issues in the public arena in ways that facilitate deliberative democracy. Taking the pro-life movement as his primary test case, he examines how this movement has evolved over the past four decades. Jon interestingly notes that the anti-abortion movement had its roots in Catholic progressivism and the Civil Rights protests of the 1960s. During the 1970s, evangelical Protestant Christians became increasingly involved in promoting a pro-life agenda. We examine Operation Rescue, one of the more confrontational groups within this movement and explore why it eventually fizzled out as a major organization, and what strategies and organizations played a more prominent (albeit quieter) role, including the National Right to Life Committee. Jon covers some of the strategies and training methods activists use that promote democratic norms and enhance issue deliberation. We broaden our discussion to examine the rise and decline of the Moral Majority and what groups such as the Christian Coalition have done in its place. Contrary to what one might glean from media reports over the past several decades, evangelical Christians have become more politically active in the 1990s and continue to be in the first decade of the 21st century. We finish off with some thoughts about the future of the Christian Right and the role it may be playing in the Tea Party movement. Recorded: November 2, 2010.

RELATED LINKS

The Democratic Virtues of the Christian Right by Jonathan A. Shields.

RELATED PODCASTS

David Brody on the 2010 Midterm Elections and Religious Journalism.

Corwin Smidt on Religion, Elections, and the God Gap.

David Brody on the 2010 Midterm Elections and Religious Journalism

tonygill — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 09:00:42 +0000

What role did religion play in the 2010 midterm US elections? While scholarly assessments of this question may take awhile to be published, we turn to David Brody, chief political correspondent for the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), to get his perspective from inside the beltway. Mr. Brody — an Emmy Award-winning journalist and frequent guest on CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News — has interviewed a number of prominent politicians who played a role in the recent elections, including Barack Obama, John McCain, Christine O’Donnell and Sharron Angle. He shares his unique perspective on being a journalist for a religiously-affiliated news outlet regarding how the the 2008 and 2010 elections played out and what changes occured in the religious and political landscape over the past two years. We talk about the role that evangelicals played in the Tea Party movement, a story that Mr. Brody considers to be one of the most under-reported stories of the election. Our discussion also covers what happened to pro-life Democrats following their vote for major changes in health care insurance, the consequence for three Iowa judges following their decision to overturn a voter iniative on gay marriage, and what role religion played in the candidacies of Christine O’Donnell (Delaware) and Sharron Angle (Nevada). We explore the various tensions between evangelical Christians, secular libertarians and Mormons within the Tea Party phenomenon and David tells us about where “teavangelicals” came from. David also offers up some thoughts on the upcoming 2012 presidential election. We finish with an interesting discussion on what life is like for a Christian journalist in Washington, DC and a secular media world. Recorded: November 9, 2010.

NOTE: Shortly after posting this podcast, David Brody was promoted from wnior White House correspondent to chief political correspondent at CBN. Us folks at Research on Religion can only assume that we played a vital role in this promotion. After all, once you are on RoR, you’ve reached the pinnacle of your profession.

The Brody File blog on CBN.

RELATED LINKS

Corwin Smidt on Religion, Elecctions and the God Gap.

Corwin Smidt on Religion, Elections and the God Gap

tonygill — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 08:00:32 +0000

In a podcast just in time for the upcoming mid-term election in November 2010, Prof. Corwin Smidt — professor of political science at Calvin College and director of the Paul B. Henry Institue for the Study of Christianity and Politics — talks with Tony about the role of religion in the 2008 presidential election. Prof. Smidt lays out the ways in which religion affects national campaigns. We then discuss a phenomenon in American politics known as the “God gap,” wherein highly religious voters (measured by church attendance, prayer habits and/or intensity of belief) have tended to favor Republican candidates over Democrats. Our conversation focuses then on the 2008 presidential primaries and general election showing how the Democratic Party engaged in outreach efforts to close the God gap. We take a historical trip through the 2008 primary season and see how religion influenced the prospects of various candidates including Barack Obama, Mike Huckabee, and Mitt Romney. The controversy over Jeremiah Wright and Romney’s affiliation with the Latter Day Saints (Mormons) is discussed. Moving on to the general election of 2008, we examine what role religion played, if any, in the contest between John McCain and Barack Obama. We finish the substantive portion our podcast with some speculation about the upcoming mid-term election with an eye towards whether the NYC mosque controversy or polls showing an increasing number of Americans are confused about President Obama’s faith will have an effect at the polls. Prof. Smidt also shares his impressions about the role of religion and the tea party movement. Finally, Prof. Smidt discusses various opportunities available to scholars and graduate students at the Henry Institute. Recorded: August 30, 2010.

RELATED LINKS

Prof. Corwin Smidt’s website at Calvin College.

Paul B. Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity and Politics at Calvin College (great links for scholars and graduate students).

The Disappearing God Gap? Religion in the 2008 Presidential Election, by Corwin Smidt, Kevin den Dulk, Bryan Froehle, James Penning, Stephen Monsma, and Douglas Koopmannn (Oxford University Press).

Pews, Prayers, and Participation: Religion and Civic Responsibility in America, by Corwin Smidt, Kevin den Dulk, James Penning, Stephen Monsma, and Douglas Koopman (Georgetown University Press).

Mitt Romney’s Faith in America Speech (December 2007) at National Public Radio.

Barack Obama’s Speech on Race (March 2008) at National Public Radio.

The Party Faithful: How and Why Democrats Are Closing the God Gap, by Amy Sullivan (Scribner).

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Joe Fuiten on Clergy & Politics.

Erik Stanley on Clergy & Free Speech.