How Does the Romney-Ryan Ticket Fit into the "Teavangelical Utopia" Timeline?
Brody's book, The Teavangelicals: The Inside Story of How the Evangelicals and Tea Party are Taking Back America, was published in June and includes a foreword by Mike Huckabee. David Brody is one of the most recognizable faces at the Pat Robertson-founded Christian Broadcast Network and serves as the network's chief political correspondent and author of "The Brody File" column. In his book, Brody maps out a "Teavangelical Utopia" that could unfold between 2012 and 2028 building on the successes of the movement at the local and state level. If evangelicals and Tea Party Libertarians continue to rack up victories on the local and state level as well as get a solid majority in state houses, school boards, and on the board of county commissioners, then what you have is a serious ground game that will not only influence state issues and elections but national races too. It will probably also influence people's opinions of the Tea Party. Since the height of the midterm elections, multiple polls have shown how the Tea Party's favorability ratings have declined. Part of the reason for that is the perception that the Tea Party is an uncompromising force at the national level, but a steady stream of local victories should produce more good will among Americans who may begin to see a Tea Party that affects positive change rather than just an uncompromising bunch bent on opposing everything under the sun. Tea Party members hope the ultimate result will be controlling the agenda and comprising the makeup of many of the state Republican parties. Nobody is saying it's going to be easy, but that's part of the plan. Change the game from within, and reap the political rewards. Brody continues, Whatever the future holds for the Teavangelicals, we do know that they've already had success because they've steered the nation's conversation to that of fiscal restraint and constitutional responsibility. But that triumph is temporary. The Teavangelicals' ultimate accomplishment is an America where the federal government is minimized and Judeo-Christian principles are maximized. The outcome depends on confronting the five challenges listed in this chapter. Conquering just one or two won't cut it. But this is a process that will take time, measured not in months but years ... many years. Brody maps out the "Teavangelical utopia" of the future in a timeline going from 2012 - 2028 in the epilogue of the book. Note that the book would have gone to the publisher prior to Romney capturing the nomination. I've summarized Brody's timeline below, which is titled "Teavangelical Utopia: Myth or Reality?"
There are numerous references to Romney in Brody's book. Romney's presidential aspirations required cultivation of the Religious Right political power bloc and he began courting leaders as early as 2006 while governor of Massachusetts, when Romney now describes himself as being a "severely conservative governor." In one reference in Brody's book, repeated in a recent PBS interview, he describes Mitt and Ann Romney meeting with leaders in 2006 and their subsequent over-the-top gesture. From the book, "In a private meeting at his home in the Boston suburbs, Ann and Mitt Romney visited with more than a dozen evangelical leaders including Franklin Graham, the late Jerry Falwell, Richard Land, Jay Sekulow, Frank Wright, and Gary Bauer. They sat in a circle and ate sandwiches while discussing topics like the fight against radical Islam, stem cell research, and Romney's Mormon faith. It was by all accounts a pleasant meeting. About a month later, all the evangelical attendees received a giant box. Inside was a chair with a brass plate on the back of it. Inscribed on the plate was Romney's signature with the words, `There will always be a seat for you at our table.'" It remains to be seen what role the Romney-Ryan ticket will play in advancing the "Teavangelical Utopia" mapped out by Brody. Thus far it appears that in order to win the election, the GOP establishment is anxious to suppress the Teavangelical wing during the convention and downplay the significance of the Tea Party and Religious Right control of the GOP platform. The Teavangelical partnership could alienate many evangelicals, including those who reject the overt partisan and political tone of the partnership and the further melding of religion and rightwing politics. As shown in video embedded in my article on the pre-convention rally at the River Church, as soon as Pastor Rodney Howard-Browne finished his Sunday evening sermon and turned over the microphone to the Tea Party rally, the Master of Ceremonies called upon the nation to look upward to God. He then immediately compared liberals to dogs and cracked jokes about Nancy Pelosi's "Broomstick One." Brody recognizes that the Teavangelical partnership and agenda to eradicate the government safety net for the poor alienates many progressive-minded evangelicals and notes, "... you won't see progressive evangelicals at your neighborhood Tea Party rally." The merging of the Bible with Ayn Randian ideology may also alienate many socially conservative Christians, some of whom view this as a corruption in service of the interest of mega-corporations and the wealthy. Not all conservative Christians will buy into the David Barton claim that Jesus opposed the minimum wage, the Rousas Rushdoony-sourced idea that most taxes are unbiblical. Many conservative Christians will see through the claims being promoted by Teavangelical alliances that the EPA is a liberal conspiracy against the poor, and that oil companies are their greatest champions and defenders. Nevertheless, Brody claims the Teavangelicals are more politically powerful than ever and that the "Teavangelicals and Mitt Romney" can be "the hottest show in town." Romney may have another idea and the GOP establishment appears to be working to hide the Teavangelical wing from view during the convention. A Teavangelical pre-convention "unity" rally held on Sunday showcased the movement's response to Romney and it's 2012 political strategy - one that appears to be more about demonizing President Obama than supporting Romney. As I'm posting this article, I'm listening to Judson Phillips of Tea Party Nation, one of the speakers at the Sunday rally, comparing the GOP establishment to the Soviet Union's Central Committee. This follows a post at Tea Party nation by Phillips about the RNC titled "The Committee of Commissars." It could be an interesting week at the GOP Convention, but it doesn't look like it will be the Romney-Teavangelical partnership that David Brody described as "the hottest show in town."
How Does the Romney-Ryan Ticket Fit into the "Teavangelical Utopia" Timeline? | 7 comments (7 topical, 0 hidden)
How Does the Romney-Ryan Ticket Fit into the "Teavangelical Utopia" Timeline? | 7 comments (7 topical, 0 hidden)
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