Bush will lose the Catholic vote

[KingofSwords]

The religious war that is of most concern to George Bush these days has nothing to do with Wahabi, Shia or Sunni Muslims.
It involves Roman Catholics, and particularly those in the five swing states of Missouri, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Judging by the enthusiasm that Catholics are showing for Senator John Kerry, Mr Bush may be in greater jeopardy than he ever expected.

Where his father lost the Catholic vote to Bill Clinton by 16 percentage points, Mr Bush won it against Al Gore by three points, according to exit polls on election day 2000. That gave him enough states for Florida to make a difference.

So long as the Democrats were tainted with the sex scandals of the Clinton White House, the Republicans could provide comfort and sustenance in a party led by a Sunday school teacher given to daily prayer breakfasts. It would be tougher to woo Catholics away from a war hero with an Irish name married to a Latin widow born in Africa.

It may be too early to gauge the scale of the challenge facing Mr Bush. So far, the Democrats have counted the votes in only two small states, with only a handful of the delegates needed to choose their candidate.



http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections2004/story/0,13918,1137835,00.html

[MidwestTransplant]

1. Interesting

I hadn't really considered that.

[Sandpiper]

2. I think most Catholics would rally round

One of their own.

Evangelicals of the Bush variety tend to regard the Catholic Church as the great scarlet whore of Babylon.