All Blog Posts from Horserace

From CBS News' Scott Conroy, on the campaign trail with Mitt Romney:

For months, political pundits speculated about whether Mitt Romney would deliver the “Mormon speech.” But today’s address was not about the candidate’s faith. Romney only uttered the word “Mormon” once during his remarks in College Station, Texas, instead focusing on the role that religious diversity has played in American history and the importance of restoring faith in the public sphere.

The speech was likely the most important of Romney’s political career, and the event felt more like a State of the Union address than a campaign stop. Many of Romney’s Boston-based staffers made the trip to Texas, and the Secret Service was out in force to protect former President George H.W. Bush, who introduced the former Massachusetts governor. The campaign even released a photograph of Governor Romney making final edits to his speech, as if to draw attention to the enormity of this event.

Although the comparisons are inevitable John F. Kennedy’s iconic 1960 speech that dealt with the then Democratic nominee’s Catholic faith, Governor Romney only briefly alluded to President Kennedy and did not mention him by name.

“Like him, I am an American running for president,” Romney said. “I do not define my candidacy by my religion. A person should not be elected because of his faith nor should he be rejected because of his faith.”

The biggest applause line from the invitation-only crowd of over 400 who filled the auditorium here came when Romney hearkened back to another political icon from his home state of Massachusetts—an American legend who achieved fame during the Revolutionary era, rather than the time of Camelot.

“Then Sam Adams rose, and said he would hear a prayer from anyone of piety and good character, as long as they were a patriot,” Romney said. “And so together they prayed, and together they fought, and together, by the grace of God, they founded this great nation.”

Romney has been reading Jon Meacham’s book on the Founding Fathers and the role their faiths played in establishing the United States, and it was clear from his many references to the early days of the nation that their ideals of religious tolerance were on the candidate’s mind.

“The conviction of the inherent and inalienable worth of every life is still the most revolutionary political proposition ever advanced,” Romney said.

While Kennedy’s 1960 speech emphasized the candidate’s belief in a firm separation of church and state, Romney’s speech promoted a symbiotic relationship between faith and American society. Romney said that rather than turning toward the “religion of secularism,” the United States should bolster the role that faith plays in the public sphere.

Read full post…

From CBS News' Scott Conroy, on the campaign trail with Mitt Romney:

Mitt Romney began his day in New Hampshire by delivering a lengthy presentation on fiscal policy. But the swarm of reporters at the Manchester Rotary Club was only interested in asking the Mormon candidate about one thing: his upcoming speech on religion, scheduled for Thursday.

Romney plans to discuss religion and politics at the George Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas, on Thursday. The move instantly drew comparisons to John F. Kennedy's 1960 speech on his Catholic faith, but Romney said he would focus on a separate but related topic: the role of religion in American society.

Romney said he wouldn't seek to demystify his own beliefs because he isn't seeking a religious office.

“Because I’m not running for pastor in chief,” Romney said. “I’m running for commander in chief. And there are ample opportunities for people who want to learn about a particular religion and its beliefs by going on Web sites or reading books. That’s really not the job I’m running for. That’s not the responsibility or the job I would take if I were president either. My job is to follow the Constitution and the rule of law and to do what’s best for America.”

Romney went on to take what might be considered an indirect jab at Mike Huckabee, whose campaign is running a TV advertisement that touts the Baptist minister’s resume as a “Christian leader.”

Read full post…

As we noted this morning, Republican presidential candidate John McCain told an Associated Press reporter over the weekend that he is Baptist, not Episcopalian. McCain has long attended a Baptist church in his home state of Arizona, but until this weekend he had publicly identified himself as Episcopalian.

Now McCain has told reporters that what ultimately matters is his overarching faith. "The most important thing is that I am a Christian," he said.

The McCain story comes on the heels of Fred Thompson's acknowledgment last week that he is not a regular churchgoer and is not comfortable talking about faith on the stump. As for the other frontrunners, former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani has, by and large, not stressed his faith on the campaign trail, while former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has had to deal with a number of questions about his Mormonism, which he has not made a centerpiece of his campaign.

In fact, it has thus far fallen to the candidates with lower poll numbers to duke it out over who has the most legitimate religious bona fides. At the beginning of August, Sen. Sam Brownback's campaign accused Gov. Mike Huckabee's supporters of an "anti-Catholic whisper campaign." And along with Tom Tancredo, the pair indicated at a GOP debate in May that they do not believe in evolution. Alan Keyes, who entered the race today, is also expected to make his faith an important aspect of his campaign.