Will Romney or Ruedi Come Out?

Romney: No Religious Test for President - Politics on The Huffington Post:
Mitt Romney today told the nation that his sexual religious practices have no effect on his ethics, morals or or views about others. To quote Goldy, Who woulda thunk?"

I must admit to being shocked. shocked. I am a religous Jew, abeit in my own way. If I were running for president, I would be proud to say that the mitzvot would directly shape how I would govern.

"Former President Bush introduced Romney, heightening public attention to the speech. Romney's backdrop on stage was 10 American flags and a replica of the presidential seal. Serving as host at his presidential library, the elder Bush introduced Romney, pointed out members of the candidate's family in the audience and described Romney's father, former Michigan Gov. George Romney, as the father of volunteerism.

"I do not define my candidacy by my religion. A person should not be elected because of his faith, nor should he be rejected because of his faith," Romney said at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum, 90 miles from Kennedy's speaking site in Houston.

"Let me assure you that no authorities of my church, or of any other church for that matter, will ever exert influence on presidential decisions. Their authority is theirs, within the province of church affairs, and it ends where the affairs of the nation begin," Romney said.

Romney said he is often asked whether he believes in Jesus Christ.

"I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and the savior of mankind," he said. While conceding Mormons have different beliefs about the earthly presence of Jesus Christ, "each religion has its own unique doctrines and history. ... Religious tolerance would be a shallow principle indeed if it were reserved only for faiths with which we agree."

How can Romney have it both ways ?

Sound Politics: Comment on Critiques of "the Speech" Strike a PC note: "Romney has the bad luck to belong t s religion that fits the Christian definition of heresy. He can not have it two ways .. being a Mormon means rejecting the central story of Christianity. Moreover, it means accepting the possibility of a revelation that changes truth ... conveyed by his Church elders. Personally, I would vote for Romney because i assume he is a hypocrite. In effect, Kennedy said exactly this in his version of the 'I am a believer' speech. No one believed that Marilyn Monroe's lover would accept a decision from Rome. Unfortunatley, Mr. Romney is less convincing. Posted by SeattleJew at December 8, 2007 04:36 PM"

In my opinion Romney would have been a lot smarter to explain that Mormonism is different from Christianity in many ways. BUT, he should have gone to talk about the many admirable features ... from tithing to family. Either Mormonism is a moral guide and then very important for how he would govern or it is not. Jo Lieberman ran as a devout orthodox Jew. If any voter wanted to know what that meant, Joe would tell her the truth. Mike Huckabee is honest too. Instead of telling others what we gain from his faith, Mr. Romney left us with the of flavor taste that Mormons ares unwilling to come out.

The line between anti bigotry and blind tolerance is less than obvious to me. I thought about embellishing this post with a photo of Mormon underwear. I do not know if Mitt actually wears that stuff so I posted this woman as meat image instead. I wonder if Mitt would object? Would this offend his Mormon sensitivities? Would he want to censor SeattleJew?

I am not sure whether hypocrisy is a sin for Mormons, but I find it ironic that the Republican part is obsessed with toe tapping in the men's room but not with a candidate's commitmrnt to a moral system dictated by his or her religion.

So, just in case anyone whats to write me in for Prez ...

I am a devout Jew who accepts the idea that there are real, absolute natural laws. I am also a committed atheist, because I do not believe that a Deity cold exist even with my morals who would inflict pain and suffering of the sort I have seen. As a Jew, I try to derive my own morality from Jewish principles and am heavily influenced by Alinsky, the Haggadah, Spinoza, Maimonides and the legends of Hillel.

I am definitely not a Christian, but admire those whose Christianity has led them to moral lives .. I count Cesar Chavez, John XXIII, and Jimmy Carter amongst my "teachers."

I have no interest in heaven or hell and no understanding of why anyone would need to be "saved."

I am "straight," if that matters, but really do not hink anything I have done in my sexual life would effect my ability to govern.

Oh yeh .... I believe Tom Jefferson,. ML King, the Buddha, were all much better people than I am.

Giuliani Won't Release Client Names | The Trail | washingtonpost.com: "Giuliani Won't Release Client Names Republican presidential hopeful Rudolph Giuliani reaffirmed yesterday that he continues to hold a financial stake in the security consulting firm he launched after leaving the New York mayor's office, and said the company's client list will continue to remain confidential. Speaking on NBC's Meet the Press, Giuliani defended the arrangement, saying the public is already aware of every 'significant' client of Giuliani Partners. 'Just about every single client of Giuliani Partners, which is my security company, has been discussed, has been examined, certainly every significant one,' he said. There has been considerable media attention given to Giuliani's private business associations. For the past year, though, Giuliani has declined to identify his clients on the grounds that they entered into confidentially agreements with his firm. Giuliani formed the consulting firm in early 2002, offering 'management consulting service to governments and business' and over the next five years it earned more than $100 million. That income, along with a robust speaking schedule, helped transform the moderately well-off public servant into a globe-trotting consultant whose net worth is estimated to be in the tens of millions of dollars."