Rand Paul: Will Religion and "Aqua Budda" Cost Him the Election?
In this Oct. 3, 2010 file photo, Kentucky Senate candidates, Democrat Jack Conway, left, and Republican Rand Paul, prepare for their debate in Louisville, Ky.
/ APRepublican Rand Paul and Democrat Jack Conway are at odds over a number of critical issues, such as health care reform and taxes, but the in the last two weeks of the campaign season, the Kentucky Senate race may come down to a quarrel over Paul's religion.
The two candidates went head-to-head on Sunday, during a debate, over whether Conway crossed the line by airing an ad that calls into question Paul's commitment to Christianity, given his history of affiliating with a group in college that mocked religion.
The ad has spurred a strong backlash -- even from liberals -- who say Conway did himself a disservice by attacking Paul's religion. Others, meanwhile, have defended Conway's aggressive ad, arguing that the Democrat needs to reveal Paul's extreme views to voters if he wants to pick up some necessary momentum before Nov. 2. Recent polls give Paul a slight lead but show Conway within striking distance. It remains to be seen whether his ad will prompt Kentucky voters to question Paul's character, or whether it will come off as a distasteful attack.
Conway's ad is keeping alive the story that Paul, while in college, belonged to a group called the NoZe Brotherhood and allegedly once led a young woman to a creek, tied her up, and demanded she worship the "Aqua Buddha." Conway said Sunday he was airing the ad because "values matter."
Some liberal commentators turned up their noses at the advertisement -- even if they agreed with the premise that Paul's belief in Christianity is questionable.
"The trouble with Conway's ad is that it comes perilously close to saying that non-belief in Christianity is a disqualification for public office," wrote Jonathan Chait of the New Republic. "That's a pretty sickening premise for a Democratic campaign."
Conservative blogger Erick Erickson of RedState.com urged readers to donate the Paul's campaign in response to the ad.
Critical Contests: CBS News Election 2010 Race Ratings
See all Ratings for Senate, House and Governors in an Interactive Map (Updated Oct. 18)
Others defended Conway, arguing that voters don't know enough about Paul.
"People are acting as if it is some kind of political sin to point out to ordinary Kentucky voters the kind of stuff about Paul's extremist libertarian views that everyone in the punditry already knows," Theda Skocpol, a political scientist at Harvard, told Talking Points Memo. "This does not amount to saying that Christian belief is a 'requirement for public office' as one site huffs. It is a matter of letting regular voters who themselves care deeply about Christian belief know that Paul is basically playing them. No different really than letting folks who care about Social Security and Medicare know that Paul is playing them."
Similar political scenarios provide negligible evidence as to whether Conway's ad could be effective. The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza points to the 2008 ad then-Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.) ran against her opponent, Democrat Kay Hagan, calling her "Godless." Kagan launched a response ad criticizing the line of attack -- just as Paul has now -- and went on to win by a solid 9-point margin.
However, not all examples suggest the ad would work in Paul's favor. And yesterday, the Lexington-Herald Leader gave its endorsement to Conway, suggesting as Democrats would, that Paul is too extreme.
"Since riding the Tea Party wave to victory in the Republican primary as a relatively unvetted candidate, Paul has spent the summer and early fall revealing himself to be quite the ideologue who's long on simplistic slogans but short on understanding the drastic consequences of adhering to those slogans," the newspaper's editorial board wrote.
Paul is far from the only candidate in this election cycle to be dogged by attacks that have little to do with policy. Personal attacks against Tea Partiers appear to have hurt some candidates, such as Delaware's Christine O'Donnell, but have left barely a scratch on others, like Nevada's Sharron Angle.
CBS rates the Kentucky Senate race as having a GOP edge.
Kentucky Senate Election: Rand Paul (R) vs. Jack Conway (D)
CBSNews.com Special Report: Campaign 2010
Key Senate Races to Watch: California - Arkansas - Illinois - Colorado - Nevada - Connecticut - Florida - Kentucky - Missouri - Wisconsin - New Hampshire - Ohio - Pennsylvania - Washington - West Virginia - Delaware
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I would like to ask the author of this article, Ms Stephanie Condon, who looks like she is about 12 years old yet has the lofty title of Political Reporter for CBS ........
I am absolutely positive you voted for Obama ---considering your age, your employment by the MSM.....
Do YOU realize that YOU , personally, are going to be held responsible for repaying, for the rest of your adult life, until you finally drop dead, the obscene debt this corrupt regime has built up?
Stephanie, did you know when you cast your valuable little vote for that liar and crook, Obama, what you were setting yourself up for? Did you know that you will NEVER collect your social security because it has been stolen from you and given to people that it was never intended to go to?
I hope and pray that you love your job because guess what? You will never, never be allowed to stop working and retire because Mr Hope and Change and his corrupt ilk need your tax dollars.
Get ready, Child. Get ready for the rest of your life to be dedicated to paying for Obama's trash, Marxist legislation.
He owns you, Sweetie.
Paul has too much going for him which are the very things that Conway has going against him:
Like Obama, Pelosi and Reid's corrupt regime that has taken this country to the brink of economic disaster for the past 21 months----
Like the thirteen TRILLION dollar (and growing) debt that our children and grandchildren will be saddled with for generations to come....paying back money borrowed from the CHINESE and used to buy votes from the likes of Ben Nelson of Nebraska, Barbara Boxer, Mary Landrieu and Blanche Lincoln and the rest of that corrupt gang of thugs who have been running roughshod over the Constitution of the United States for the past 21 months!
Someone needs to remind the college kids who think Obama is so cool that they will work until the day they drop dead, for the rest of their entire lives....unable to ever retire because they will be shackled to their jobs FOREVER so that the statist government Obama, Pelosi and Reid have devised will forever need their taxable income to pay for their fraudulent "programs" that are being shoved through congress even now.
Someone needs to tell those idiotic college kids who think they're so smart and think Obama is so cool that they will NEVER collect their social security which was created to be used solely for senior citizens who paid into it all of their working lives....into a LOCKED BOX which was never supposed to be broken....but is now being used for buying the votes of cradle to grave welfare bums and illegal aliens.
WAKE UP, AMERICA!
Vote for ANYONE but a democrat incumbent!
Who are the Republicans?
They are a prejudiced and biaseds group of people against:
The Truth - They lied ab out Health Care Coverage and Medicare
in an effort to scare the general public.
They lied about new taxes when there were no new
taxes.
They lied about out-of-country funding of the
federal election - Threatening our democracy.
The private sector will not create jobs when they
can. All businesses are in business to make money,
and creating jobs will not make more money.
Jobs are being outsourced by the American Chamber
of Commerce to other countries.
The free market has not worked so far and have not
weeded out choices as many Republican operatives
are saying.
Under the new Health Care bill, insurance companies
must by law cover without limitations or caps.
Free market insurance is already in effect and is
not working.
Realize The negative tone of bringing out: " The
Murder of Obama's father" during election time.
Just another tactic of the Republican/TEA party of
"NO"
The Poor - There seems to be more of them today
resulting from massive layoffs by the mega-corps.
there seems to be more uninsured and the
Republicans want it to stay that way.
They support the American Action Network, The
United States Chamber of Commerce and American
Crossroads, the real special interests, which has
no Transparency.
Blacks - Look at how the speak about president
Obama.
They lamblast and ridicule Michelle Obama.
They "Hope he fails".
They don't want any good press for the President!
Hispanics - Speak English only!
Illegals - GO HOME!
Gays - They are an abomination and aren't born that
way! It's a choice! They can be cured!
They can't be themselves in the military!
They can't marry!
Islam - Not in my back yard!
Vote
Out
The
(E)Incumbent Republican party of "NO"