Category Archives: Social conservatives


Giuliani and the evangelicals

One of the great questions of this election will be whether social conservatives abandon Rudy Giuliani. Conventional wisdom suggests that they will. The Giuliani campaign has gone to great lengths to argue that they will not. Today, the LA Times weighs in with polls and anecdotes:
"He’s got that New York mentality — that’s why I […]

PBA decision impact

I have not yet decided what the impact of the Partial Birth Abortion decision will be on 2008. I see two scenarios. Will the narrative that emerges be about abortion or about judges?
John McCain and Mitt Romney will want to talk about partial birth abortion and abortion. It is a 70% issue nationwide and higher […]

Romney’s flip-flops take a village

Mitt Romney opened his mouth and inserted his foot again. However, it turns out that he was replacing Hillary Clinton’s words with his foot, so it may well be a trade up.
You see, back in 1998 he said that Hillary Clinton was "very much right" that "it takes a village:"
Hillary Clinton is very much right, […]

Rudy: Our party has to get beyond issues like that

Regarding abortion, Rudy Giuliani said at a campaign stop in Iowa: "Our party has to get beyond issues like that." That reminds me of something else he said…
Update: Looks like a reporter stripped some context out.

Tags: Giuliani, Iowa, Life, Social conservatives

Romney, like Giuliani, ducks on SC ultrasound bill

Last week, I said that Mitt Romney supported the South Carolina ultrasound-before-abortion bill. But I was wrong. He has said that it is a state issue and ducked, invoking the same federalism argument that Rudy Giuliani is using. From AP:
"I would like to see each state be able to make its own law with regard […]

GOP Candidates and Federalism

Yesterday and today (in response to Andrew Sullivan), Hotline’s Marc Ambinder pointed out that Rudy Giuliani is, perhaps, making a dodge on a variety of issues by invoking federalism. In essence, Marc’s position is:

By not saying something like
I think the flag is divisive, and I don’t like it. But Alabamans can do what they want.
[…]

Romney still struggling with abortion

Mitt Romney has struggled with his position on abortion. He has been accused of being a flip-flopper, and Romney has shifted his stance from being pro-choice, to saying that he was always pro-life,  to now admitting that he used to be pro-choice.
Earlier this week, Romney released clips from "Ask Mitt Anything," including one he titles […]

24% of Iowa Caucus-goers …

According to The Fix, that’s the number that self-identify as the religious right. That’s interesting in its own right.

Tags: Iowa, Republicans, Social conservatives

Huckabee attacks Romney; praises Giuliani

On Face the Nation yesterday, Mike Huckabee attacked Mitt Romney over his hunting record. He said:
"I think it was a major mistake," said Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor. "It would be like me saying I’ve been a lifelong golfer because I played putt-putt when I was 9 years old and I rode in a golf […]

Rudy on how he wins

"In a loud voice" that perhaps reporters weren’t supposed to hear, Rudy Giuliani says that the social conservatives will be split and that he will form a coalition of the remainder:
In a voice loud enough to be overheard on the other side of the room, he outlined his view that the other candidates would divide […]