Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Ohio Republican Catholics Pick The Mormon Over The Catholic

I wonder if Mint ever thought he would beat his Catholic competitors for the Catholic vote.

Hmmm....looks like Rick Santorum has a Catholic problem.  Perhaps he's getting some Catholic backlash over the bishops grand standing about birth control--or his own grandstanding for that matter.
 In any event I agree with Rachel Maddow and Chris Mathews, someone in the Santorum camp needs to convince Rick to shut up about sexual issues, especially women's sexual isssues. 





Loudly Catholic Santorum loses Ohio Catholic Vote

By Dan Gilgoff, CNN.com Religion Editor
(CNN) - Rick Santorum, a conservative Catholic who is outspoken about faith-based issues, lost Catholic voters by a wide margin in Ohio on Tuesday, potentially a key factor that allowed Mitt Romney to squeak out the narrowest of victories overall in the state.

According to CNN’s exit polls, Romney took 43% of Ohio Catholics on Super Tuesday, compared to 31% for Rick Santorum, and Romney beat Santorum overall by 38% to 37%.
Catholic voters counted for a third of Ohio’s Republican electorate, the largest share of Catholics in any Super Tuesday state.


“The margin of Romney's win among Ohio Catholics is surprising, given Santorum's traditional Catholicism,” says John Green, a political science professor at the University of Ohio. “Romney's margin among Ohio Catholics - especially in the three largest metropolitan areas - may account for his close win in Ohio.”
Green notes that Romney, a Mormon, has consistently won the Catholic vote in this year’s Republican primaries. That pattern runs counter to speculation that Catholics would focus more on hot-button issues at a time when Catholic bishops are battling the Obama White House over government-mandated contraception coverage.

Romney has denounced the Obama administration’s contraception rule but Santorum has gone further, making social issues a cornerstone of his campaign. Last week, the former Pennsylvania senator said that John F. Kennedy’s 1960 speech in which the then-presidential candidate advocated an absolute separation of church and state nearly made him throw up.

The Catholic vote is one of the largest swing blocs in the country, voting for the winning presidential candidates from both parties in recent elections. But the bloc is so diverse, including many Catholics who differ with church leaders on social issues and many who have drifted from the church, that many religious and political experts dismiss any notion of a “Catholic vote.”

In Ohio, the most contested of the 10 states to cast ballots on Tuesday, Catholics represented one of GOP primary’s main constituencies. Another major bloc, white evangelicals, comprised almost half of the Ohio vote, and broke for Santorum over Romney by 47% to 30%.

One progressive Catholic group made political hay out of Santorum’s weak showing among Ohio Catholics, emailing reporters a statement titled “Santorum campaigns on divisive wedge issues, promptly loses Catholic vote.”

“Catholic voters care more about economic issues that affect their families than they do about socially divisive wedge issues like contraception,” said James Salt, executive director of Catholics United, in the statement.
“Mainstream Catholics want leaders who can address the moral challenges of our day like income inequality, underwater mortgages and poverty,” Salt continued, “not leaders who perpetuate a never-ending culture war that divides our community.”

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7 comments:

  1. I noticed those polls too last night. It seems that Catholics gave Romney a slight victory in Ohio by their support. Something to think about.

    Mark

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  2. wild hair said...
    I now reside in one of the most catholic and reddest areas of Ohio. Here the "Stop Planned Parenthood" signs prevail. I can say I was astonished to see only one Santorum sign in my little travels around the area of late. Often at election time the worst republican signs are everywhere. I saw no Romney signs. There were some Ron Paul folks out on a street corner yesterday for election day. They looked like high school kids. They will grow up some day, I hope.

    I guess these catholics in my neighborhood have gone to college, no snobs; or they like their birth control. It's sort of hard to figure. Another explanation is some people of means will support Romney over Santorum.

    Then, last night, Santorum has his headquarters at the Franciscan University in Stubenville, Ohio noted for its conservatism and charismatic bent. It has been said Santorum is really running for pope not president.

    It will be fascinating to see what happens to the republican party.

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  3. I am an Ohio resident and voted Tuesday, but in the Dem primary. I'm not going to take chances with Mittens, Sanctimonious, or Newt. The impending slime fest that will be the 2012 campaign also makes me happy I don't watch TV and have to see all the negative political ads. I also wish we could ban the automated telephone campaign calls. That is one innovation I can do without.

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  4. Looks like the sheep aren't listening to their bishop shepherds since the Roman vote is going to Romney. Just another sign of the division between the hierarchy and the real world. Unless things change big time, the Church isn't going to keep it's institutional power much longer.

    Searcher

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  5. I thought I would come back here. Thank you khughes. I did not vote in the Ohio primary because 1. I am not registered yet. 2. I did not really care, if I could, to vote in the republican primary.

    I have obtained my brand new Ohio Photo Id. The Ohio BMV, Bureau of Motor Vehicles, issued that after I provided my birth certificate, social security number, and new address that I really lived where I said I did.

    My complaint is that a legal friend of mine told me the BMV of Ohio should have provided me with information on where and how to register to vote. I am certain that did not happen. My friend said that is not only a violation of federal law but also state law.

    One more example of republican voter suppression.

    I am embarrassed to have a picture of that republican, John Kasich, on my new photo ID. Please, can we get rid of these people.

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  6. Colkoch, how do I email you? I have somethings that I would like to voice over your blog, but it exceeds the character limit of the comments box. My email is advocatusdiaboli88@yahoo.com

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  7. Catholic Church publicly declares US women "immoral" And the implosion continues!!

    http://www.examiner.com/political-buzz-in-national/catholic-church-publicly-declares-us-women-immoral

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