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This is something I've been pondering for a while:
What Phillips doesn't explain, or at least not to my satisfaction, is why crony capitalists have been able to make an effective alliance with the religious right, while other groups—say, Democrats tied to the labor movement —have not. After all, fundamentalists in America are, on average, relatively poor, and tend to be hurt by right-wing economic policies. It's true that, as Phillips points out, modern fundamentalist doctrine encourages a belief in self-reliance, with a corresponding benign attitude toward wealth and hostility to policies that redistribute income. But the Bush family does not, to say the least, consist of self-made men, and its policies actually do involve redistribution—from the have-nots to the haves. What makes religious leaders see an elite dynasty as their friend?
Both Krugman and Phillips don't seem to have answers for this curious alliance between the low-class fundamentalists and the corrupt crony capitalists. But let me suggest an answer -- Bush and his cronies aren't real Christians, and neither are most members of the religious right. Instead they are Pharisees -- people who cloak themselves with outwards signs of religion while in reality serving greed, money, and power. No doubt Bush *thinks* he is sincerely religious, as did the Pharisees, but his actions -- as opposed to his words -- show he has little concept of what real Christianity is all about.
And then you look at the religious right and what exactly it is that they like about the GOP, and we find that the GOP effectively panders to the anti-liberal MYTHS that so many RR supporters hold dear. That liberals "hate religion" and are trying to turn America into a haven for atheism (when in reality liberals are simply trying to enforce the separation of church and state). That liberals "hate America" and are soft on defense while the GOP will keep them safe (when it's usually GOP presidents who either start wars or start funneling support to unsavory "allies" that later turn into intractible enemies). The the GOP, being businessmen, are more fiscally responsible (when the reality is that both govt spending and debt skyrocket when the GOP occupies the White House. And besides, many top businessmen are embroiled in fiscal scandals of their own.)
And finally, like the Pharisees, the religious right "loves the praise of men, rather than God". That is, the GOP appeals to their sense of self-righteousness (rather than to any real sense of virtue). The GOP tells their supporters that they are the real Americans, the true good people (see Dr. Frist's book, "Good People Beget Good People", and I'm not making that up), the true moral fiber of the country. Dubya never misses an opportunity to pray in public or display his religiosity, whereas Jesus says to pray in secret and not to parade your piety in order to receive praise from men.
So, just as the Pharisees misled the people in Jesus's day, Bush and GOP deceive their followers today, not by showing real morality or virtue, but by pandering to their baser desires, their fears, and their long-cherished myths.
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