Evangelicals See 'Religion Gap' for Democrats [View All]

[Rose Siding]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Evangelical Christians, known for opposition to abortion rights and same-sex marriage, flexed their political muscle on Thursday and one said Democrats suffer from a "religion gap" at the polls.

"The religious left is political smoke and mirrors," Diane Knippers, president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, said in a statement read at a gathering of the National Association of Evangelicals. "It simply doesn't have a significant voting base."

In a show of political muscle, the evangelicals attracted speakers from the Senate -- Sen. Sam Brownback, a Kansas Republican, and Sen. Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut Democrat -- to a luncheon where the group's broader agenda was emphasized.
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Brownback spoke of reaching across partisan lines for universal topics, such as rights for the disabled. Lieberman talked about his commitment to stemming global warming, and the place of religious faith in the U.S. government.

"I think your presence, your advocacy on a whole host of issues is not only welcome but necessary and classically American," Lieberman said. "America itself is a faith-based initiative."

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