Reply #27: Why the Haggard Scandal Could Hurt Evangelical Turnout [View All]

[54anickel]

David Kuo says the Ted Haggard scandal and its fallout shows why, as he makes clear in his bestselling book, it is so dangerous to mix faith and politics

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1554908,00.html

David Kuo, the former number two at the Office of Faith-Based Initiatives in the first Bush White House, is camped out on the NYT bestsellers list with his book, Tempting Faith, about the dangers of mixing politics and evangelicals. He says he met Ted Haggard only a few times, but says that the episode has saddened him nonetheless, especially the headline-grabbing fallout of Haggard's admissions.

"At the end of the day, this comes down to bringing Jesus into politics," he says. "Right now, it's not Ted Haggard on trial. It's Jesus. This is about the God he represents. When you make yourself a public figure and you fall, you bring the perception of your God with you."

"Jim Dobson's response was particularly telling," Kuo says of leading evangelical James Dobson. "He basically blamed the controversy on gays and Democrats. When evangelical leaders can't see beyond Tuesday on any question, what on earth is happening?"

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Politically, Kuo sees a potential to reduce the evangelical vote on Tuesday. "I think the significance of the Haggard thing is this building case against evangelical involvement in politics. Christians are smart," he says. "They can see what influence politics is having."

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