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Giuliani Tests GOP on Social Issues
The longevity of GOP presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani's campaign has social conservatives worried.
(By Mel Evans -- Associated Press)
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As Clinton noted, Giuliani will not win the nomination unless he can survive a more direct attack on his positions on social issues. But neither he nor his party can afford an all-out conflict with the religious right. How this quarrel plays out will shape the future of the Republican coalition -- and perhaps the party's chances of holding on to the White House in 2008.
-- Dan Balz
CAN'T PLEASE EVERYONE, PART II
McCain, Thompson Criticized
Two of the leading Republican candidates for president are feeling the heat for comments they have made about the sensitive subjects of religion and same-sex marriage.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona backpedaledall weekend from seeming to suggest that the next president should be a Christian. In an interview with Beliefnet, a religion-oriented Web site, McCain said that America was "founded primarily on Christian principles" and said he would prefer a president who shares that faith.
Almost immediately, the comments were criticized. The American Jewish Committee declared itself "deeply troubled" by McCain's assertion that the United States is a Christian nation, a concept that Jews often recoil at.
McCain's spokeswoman on Sunday issued a statement clarifying his remarks, saying, "The senator did not intend to assert that members of one religious faith or another have a greater claim to American citizenship over another." She added that noting the country's Judeo-Christian roots "is hardly a controversial claim."
Asked to comment on McCain's statement about a Christian nation, former senator Fred Thompson (Tenn.), a rival, said: "Factually, the Judeo-Christian heritage of the United States is certainly factual." Meanwhile, Thompson himself remains in hot water over his position on same-sex marriage. He says marriage should be between a "man and a woman," but he does not favor a federal ban on same-sex marriage, preferring to leave the question to the states.
That has earned him the scorn of some conservatives in his party. In Iowa yesterday, Thompson sought to ease concerns, telling reporters that he has met with conservative leaders who accept his position on the issue.
"Good friends can differ on the details of any approach," he told reporters in Iowa.
-- Michael D. Shear
