Some in Iowa Surprised by Hillary Clinton’s Ease With Faith

[kennetha]

As a thoroughly secular guy and outright atheist myself, I don't care a whit about Hilary's faith or Sander's lack of faith. I would actually love to see some one who is openly an atheist in office. But to many Americans faith matters. Most of those are Republicans, but not all. Can't imagine Sanders reaching out to people of faith in this way. And as the campaign moves South, Clinton's ease with talking about matters of faith and how they form the core of her motivations will, I predict, increasingly an asset for her. And probably, Sander's lack of serious engagement with religion will become a liability to him with some democratic constituencies in the more racially diverse and politically moderate South.

There was the rally in Indianola, Iowa, where Hillary Clinton told a crowd that it was the teachings of John Wesley, a founder of the Methodist religion, that had inspired her to seek the presidency, and to “get back up” after setbacks.

On Sunday, she spoke about “the core of Christ’s message” at Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids.

Then on Monday here in Knoxville, when a voter asked if her beliefs aligned with the Ten Commandments, Mrs. Clinton reflected at length and spontaneously on her religious outlook.

“I am a person of faith. I am a Christian. I am a Methodist,” she said. “My study of the Bible, my many conversations with people of faith, has led me to believe the most important commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself,” she continued, “and that is what I think we are commanded by Christ to do.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/30/us/politics/some-in-iowa-surprised-by-hillary-clintons-ease-with-faith.html?ref=politics

[saltpoint]

1. Damn, this woman can pander with

the best of them.

[TwilightGardener]

2. Pathetic last-minute appeal to the supposedly religious people of Iowa.

Kind of like the "I'm your abuela!" laughable patronizing bullshit.

[saltpoint]

4. Agree. Unctuous crap. eom

[DURHAM D]

7. Over 50 years of comfortably talking about

her faith is hardly last-minute.

[TwilightGardener]

8. She can lie about anything with great ease. She and Bill are PERFORMERS.

[cali]

3. I can't help but laugh at her claim that it was John Wesley

who in inspired her to run for President.

[saltpoint]

5. Yep. John Wesley is a pale ghost

next to God Himself, who has hand-picked Ted Cruz to be our next president.

God to John Wesley: "Shove off, punk. this is my show."

[pangaia]

6. JESUS !!

[Punkingal]

9. Disgusting pandering.

[tblue37]

10. Sanders' speech at Liberty impressed the young evangelicals there and even

some of their teachers. He reminded them of what their Christ said about social responsibility and about the spiritual danger of greed and wealth.

[elleng]

11. ME TOO, and no pander. Some like to understand.

'Is Martin O’Malley The Candidate Religious Progressives Have Been Waiting For?

'When asked in December 2015 to describe his approach to politics, former Maryland governor and Democratic presidential candidate Martin O’Malley could have repeated the same slew of archetypes commonly heard from those seeking the White House. He could have framed his campaign as that of a political outsider, for instance, or championed his desire to “get stuff done,” or even trumpeted himself as a harbinger of hope and change.

Instead, the two-term governor appealed to something increasingly uncommon among Democratic candidates: his faith.
“The politics of higher purpose — that’s what’s always drawn me to public service,” he told the Nation. “I believe that the power of politics isn’t money. It’s the beliefs that unite us, when they are actually tapped — when a leader is willing to make him- or herself vulnerable for the sake of those values.”' >>>

http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/01/29/3744243/martin-omalley-pope-francis-catholic/

[winter is coming]

12. Playing the Jeebus card. It's gotta be the last days. n/t