The LAST direction the GOP needs to continue down is that same rat-hole being bored by the Political Dominionists! And with former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum, (R) Pennsylvania, you get a doubled down extremist. The mere fact that he is on the road voicing his dismay at the current republican members of Congress should be a huge red flag!
CBS News – Article September 30, 2009
“Yes, the same Rick Santorum who lost his U.S. Senate seat in 2006 with only 41 percent of the vote.
The same Rick Santorum who’s a Sarah Palin-esque lightning rod who regularly sent the left into a tizzy with his anti-abortion rights and anti-homosexual views.
Well, this week, he’s headed to Iowa – the first in the nation presidential caucus state – to deliver speeches in Des Moines and Dubuque, not because he’s running for president in 2012 (“It’s three years away. … I have no plans. … it’s not that I’m not going to plan…”) but because, as he told reporters on a conference call today, the Republican Party “needs to have voices out there to try to direct the opposition.”
“We’re the opposition party and we’re not doing a heck of a job in my mind of articulating why we’re opposing and, just as importantly, articulating solutions to the problems that confront America and this is an opportunity for me to do that,” Santorum said.
Oh sure…I see his disappointment. We just don’t have enough “real” conservatives in the Republican Party representing the serious social issues. Now that is very disturbing! really? They are what? Too LIBERAL for Santorum? Whoa, I say!
“In an interview with the Associated Press published April 20, 2003, Santorum grouped gay sex together with incest, polygamy, and zoophilia as deviant sexual behavior threatening society and the family. He further stated that he believed consenting adults do not have a constitutional right to privacy with respect to sexual acts.” - Wikipedia
And let’s not forget that he made my gallery of GOP Hypocrites & Criminals in a past post over at theopalinism…
Rick Santorum,Republican U.S. Senator Pennsylvania and devout Political Dominionist under the Roman Catholic club of Knights of Malta, used $100,000 of PA state funds earmarked for that state’s school children to educate his own children, who were not residents of Pennsylvania.
[Former] U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum should reimburse $100,000 to the Penn Hills School District for taxpayer money used since 2001 to cover online charter school tuition for his children, four school board members said.”
Santorum and all those who are embedded in this skewed and twisted thinking are dead serious about imposing their ‘c’hristian morals on all of us, while they give themselves carte blanche to do what ever they want! His paranoia about his never-ending and growing family, (as a believer in Quiverfull – but that will be a discussion for another blog post). Here is an excerpt from an article on Theocracy Watch.org that discusses just how far they have gotten in positions of power where legislation is drafted that can change our lives and freedoms in this country…
“Before the midterm elections of 2006, dominionists controlled both houses of the U.S. Congress, the White House and four out of nine seats on the U.S. Supreme Court. They were one seat away from holding a solid majority on the Supreme Court. As of January 1, 2007, dominionists will not control the leadership of either house of Congress, and the President will no longer be able to so easily appoint dominionists to the federal courts.
Five of the Republican Senators who were unseated on November 7 received whopping scores of 100% from the Family Research Council and Focus on the Family Voter Scorecards. Those Senators are: Conrad Burns (R-MT), George Allen (R-VA), Rick Santorum (R-PA), James Talent (R-MO), and Mike DeWine (R-OH). Rick Santorum was the number three ranking Republican in the party. Santorum and Allen both had Presidential ambitions. (FRC and FOF are the most politically influential of dominionist organizations.)
Where do we go from here?
Dominionists were very close to controlling all three branches of the federal government from which they could impose their narrow interpretation of scripture on the rest of society. People so close to full political power are not going to go away. The American people need to maintain vigilance and understand the history of how dominionists came to political power. And we need to embrace democracy with a passion — for it was voter apathy that allowed leaders like Pat Robertson [and Sarah Palin] to get so many dominionists elected to Congress in the first place.”
We totally MISSED this wake up call! Why do I say that? Because the concept of Political Dominionists setting out to turn our democracy into a theocracy is still either an unknown issue and/or a topic that is dismissed with a roll of the eyes as absurd. Until we all start truly taking them seriously…we are not using vigilance!
“True, people of faith have always tried to bring their interpretation of the Bible to bear on American laws and morals … it’s the American way, encouraged and protected by the First Amendment. But what is unique today is that the radical religious right has succeeded in taking over one of America’s great political parties. The country is not yet a theocracy but the Republican Party is, and they are driving American politics, using God as a a battering ram on almost every issue: crime and punishment, foreign policy, health care, taxation, energy, regulation, social services and so on.” - Bill Moyers, Journalist and television host.
What we have happening right now is “slight-of-hand”. While the MSM (so dreaded by Palin, yet so central to her mere existence!) is focusing all it’s attention on Palin’s “memoirs” – I still can’t say that with a straight face – we have Mr. Salvation hitting the same pious Political Dominionist campaign trail that you will see Palin pandering to.
Don’t take your eyes off the ball! The games HAVE begun…
Thanks for your work, Leah.
You clearly state the problems we're faced with by these people.
You are a real asset to the country.
Thank YOU for being out there and really getting this! You are going to change this tide. Many thanks….
Thanks for your work, Leah.
Sheesh! Even when they're voted out of office, they just won't go away.
I can really relate to your paragraph "We totally MISSED this wake up call!"
When I talk to folks about this topic – even well educated folks – they have no clue. They have this vague notion of a few loud mouth religious people in congress, and think it ends there. The more I talk, the more they think I'm making this stuff up. It's so bizarre to them, you'd think I was promoting Sasquatch for President. I get the rolling eyes. So I just calmly end the discussion by suggesting they Google a few terms and check it out for themselves. I know if they ever look up reconstructionists, or dominion theology, they'll get more hits than they could read in a lifetime.
It's like Scientology, only without the kooky Xenu sci-fi bits, and with a far more concerted effort to "clear the planet". And just like Scientology, people will look at what they hear, see that it's totally bizarre and makes no sense, and roll their eyes in disbelief. I've gotten it with both cults. The biggest difference, and it ain't very big at all, is that this movement is nominally Christian.
Exactly! And to be at all critical of anything positing itself as Christian…is immediately greeted with shaming, angry accusations and questioning that your intents are the work of Satan. As well as from non-believers – the acceptance of these people as legitimate. It is easier to accept that, than to really learn and/or accept who they actually are.
It's that ol' "ignorance is bliss" place of comfort. Those are the ones we need to shake awake.
@ GenieO: Your assessment of peoples' reactions when trying to open a discussion about the hidden influences of dominionists is correct. The majority of this nation are wide eyed innocents when it comes to any knowledge about the goals of those who are dedicated to achieving a theocratic state, and truly uncomprehending about any possibility of that happening. This is frightening and we must continue to try to provide some kind of education to the complacent ones.
May you, Leah, have a chance soon to follow in the footsteps of your fellow Alaskans Shannyn and now AKM. May you be given that window of opportunity to widen your message to a larger audience.
You need to be seen and heard!
The few can bring down the many, if they achieve placement in the right positions of power.
It has been done before, and unfortunately, it shall be done again.
You are correct, and that larger audience awaits. My fellow researchers and I have dedicated our waking hours to exposing the very real threat of a theocracy in America. As Alex and I continue to work diligently on God's Own Party? we appreciate those like SM, AKM, Max, Jeff Sharlet and others for being out there and beating the bushes down so that when the time is right we will follow and virtually pave that path.
We are passionate about what we do and I will intuitively know when we are ready to take our message to the media. This upcoming book will be unique and contain information that will create its own publicity…so we have to dot all our i's and cross all our t's before we head out into open fire, so to speak. And then we will most definitely be seen and heard!
Sometimes I wonder if maybe moderate Republicans (or former Republicans) may end up being the key to this. When I reached voting age, I was a Republican, and so was my father. We were precinct chairs. My first year that I was old enough to vote was Reagan's first year in office. Why were my dad and I Republicans? Well, because of limited government in part, including freedom to live your life without a lot of interference by government.
So what happened next? We went to the County Convention. It came as a big surprise to find out that the platform was suddenly dominated by all kinds of socially intrusive planks, like anti-abortion, prayer in schools, etc. Many of the senior leaders were voted out and people from local conservative churches were voted in. That was the beginning of the end for the Republicans.
The 1994 Republican Revolution was loaded with the same kind of folks that got voted in locally in the early 80's. I would say the party jumped the shark long ago, but it took the Terry Schiavo fiasco to finally show once and for all that the Republicans were ALL ABOUT getting in your business if it involved any kind of deeply personal stuff that government should keep its nose out of, like religion, end of life choice, reproductive health choices, sexuality, marriage, etc. Oh, AND they also became the party of supporting wiretapping any and every American citizen – really respecting people's privacy there…
My father and I left the party years ago, and are now progressive Democrats. A lot of Democrats I know don't like the Theocrats but can't get their heads around the scope and danger of Political Dominionism. My father-in-law was visiting and we were trying to explain about The Family, and also about the danger of Palin's connections. This was long after the election. He dismissed the whole thing. "Well, I would never vote for her", as if that was enough to keep us safe. He's a not very devout Presbyterian and a scientist and he thinks this is just all a crazy conspiracy theory.
But for my father and I, having seen what happened in the local party, it's not hard at all to believe. I'm thinking that maybe the biggest hope could lie in Republicans who have basically been tossed out of the party because they aren't extreme enough. I would like to see some people like Christine Todd Whitman running again, against the extremists that are in there now I also think that some of the Blue Dogs really would be far better off in the Republican party. In a lot of ways I think having a reconstituted MORE SANE Republican party could help everybody.
I couldn't agree more! It is really the thrust of my message in "Close Call"…appealing to the former secular Republicans to PLEASE take their Party back! What a better country this would be if we could get back to pre-infestation days of liberal versus conservative ideologies WITHOUT the extreme evangelical contingent – the Political Dominionists.
I long for that to become a reality! I know numerous people who like you and your father were at one time proud to be a member of the former Republican Party, who are now set adrift while these devout cult followers run the show and embarrass former republicans. My father included. And your observation that it is not enough for them to not "not vote for her", it actually will require diligent participation by politically secular republicans to reclaim their party…precinct by precinct in the same manner that the evangelicals stole them.
As progressives we can wake up to what has happened, and what continues to threaten our freedoms and our democracy – but it is truly up to the republican members to enact a policy of separation of church and state within each states' GOP party platform and preamble. I really appreciate your contribution on this! Thank you!
Thank you for your reply, and thank you for keeping on this issue. I definitely am going to keep following this. I was led back here by the newest post over at Immoral Minority, and I hope more people will come and see what you have to say.
I think Political Dominionism is right at the top of threats to our country, and the sooner more people wise up the better. I think there are still a lot of sane former Republicans who would be happy to return to a politically secular Republican party. Even though I am happy as a Democrat, it's vital for us to have an opposition party that has more to offer than just NO to everything.
I haven't given up hope. The reaction from the extreme Right about President Obama going to Copenhagen to pitch Chicago as a location for the Olympics is so over the top that I think a lot of people can't help but sit up and take notice. Since when is it bad for the President to try to promote our country? And somehow anti-American?
Maybe some resistance from within the GOP is finally starting. Senator Lindsey Graham has been a big part of saying NO to everything, but at least he finally called out the birthers and Glen Beck. It's not much, but it's a start.
The problem for the GOP right now is they have lost face, credibility and maturity. They have squat! – save for the fear-mongering they disseminate in order to retain any base at all! The politically secular republicans have fled the party in shame as they watch their party implode. Those that remain and claim to represent conservatives in this country are synonymous with the the playground bully; and playground bullies are great at kicking dirt, sticking out their tongues and calling names. Makes us all proud doesn't it?
Besides…President Obama had one or two other agenda items in Copenhagen in addition to the Olympics pitch…
…and the world watches!
I couldn't agree more! It is really the thrust of my message in "Close Call"…appealing to the former secular Republicans to PLEASE take their Party back! What a better country this would be if we could get back to pre-infestation days of liberal versus conservative ideologies WITHOUT the extreme evangelical contingent – the Political Dominionists.
I long for that to become a reality! I know numerous people who like you and your father were at one time proud to be a member of the former Republican Party, who are now set adrift while these devout cult followers run the show and embarrass former republicans. My father included.
And your observation that it is not enough for them to not "not vote for her", it actually will require diligent participation by politically secular republicans to reclaim their party…precinct by precinct in the same manner that the evangelicals stole them.
As progressives we can wake up to what has happened, and what continues to threaten our freedoms and our democracy – but it is truly up to the republican members to enact a policy of separation of church and state within each states' GOP party platform and preamble.
I really appreciate your contribution on this! Thank you!
These stories bring to mind a long-time friend who was widowed a few years back, and suddenly found religion. Although our correspondence (she is in Oregon and I'm in Kentucky) had been sporadic prior to the campaign season, it escalated once Palin was nominated, and we had opposing views and I enjoy a hearty debate. There was NO making her see reason on anything. She only follows Fox and told me that her prayer group would start praying for McCain to pass on once the election was over so Palin could step up to the presidency! By that point, I knew there was no changing her mind on anything and felt I had no choice but to sever communications with her. To wish for the death of one person so that a group's wishes could be met is sick, and how they can call themselves christians is beyond me!