Letters to the Editor
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I think the big difference is Huckabee says God choose him
Huckabee's implication is that GOD is behind his campaign. That's a far cry different from only saying you are a Christian leader. I agree with pretty much everything you said, except I do feel there is a difference.
It may just be me reacting to Huckabee's overly slick style since he was a former minister. However, I still think it's worlds apart to say you are a "Christian Leader" as opposed to saying "You are god's chosen one".
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But.. but... I got an email saying Obama is a Muslim
Keep in mind that Obama's status as a member of the majority religion in this country is being smeared; there isn't anything wrong with being a Muslim, but there's a clear attempt to portray Obama as someone who is LYING about being a Muslim and that makes lots of stupid people nervous.
Mixing religion and politics makes lots of smart people nervous, but some critical analysis (a la Mr. Greenwald) should demonstrate that Obama is making a statement about how he runs himself, not how you run the country (except, indirectly, that he has qualities admirable in a leader, in part due to his religious convictions).
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puunjab:
uckabee's implication is that GOD is behind his campaign. That's a far cry different from only saying you are a Christian leader.
Fair enough, but Obama says he is "called to Bring Change" and "called to Serve" -- "called" by whom?
Bush has long been criticized for using the "called to" formulation -- the U.S. is "called to bring freedom to the world" -- as that is the standard evangelical formulation for what God instructs one to do.
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Christian does not equal Republican
Maybe it isn't a bad thing for people to be reminded that being a person of faith, specifically a Christian, doesn't mean being a conservative Republican. Despite the lack of attention they receive compared to the "evangelicals" there are many people out there whose understanding of Jesus' teachings about regarding each other as brothers and sisters and helping those in need leads them more toward liberalism and the Democratic Party. And if Obama can help make that clear it will be a positive thing.
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Panderer in Chief
Yes, on Super Tuesday, vote for the Panderer in Chief. Does she cry? Does he pray? Does he pray for the 'right' god? Does he want more waterboarding or less? A bigger fence? Got to hit all those 'right' important issues. And Jeez, doesn't John Edwards have nice hair. And Obama's ears are too big to be president.
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if you parse the point of argument enough, nothing is different
are they both christian? yes
are the both politicians? yes
are they both trying to appeal to a south carolina electorate? yes
so, to answer your question: "Are there differences between Mike Huckabee's and Barack Obama's overt political appeals as Christians?"
the real answer is "yes, of course" ... but your lawyerly narrowing, parsing leaves one to answer "no." which makes this a useless post, glenn.
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totoro
"Are there differences between Mike Huckabee's and Barack Obama's overt political appeals as Christians?"
the real answer is "yes, of course"
What are they?
Huckabee was criticized specifically for proclaiming himself as a CHRISTIAN in order to get Christian voters to vote for him on that basis. That isn't what Obama is doing here?
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Christian vs. Theocrat
Christians believe God calls them to live a particular way.
Theocrats believe God calls the entire nation to live a particular way, preferably but not necessarily voluntarily.
Obama is a Christian. Huckabee gives every indication of being a theocrat. We shouldn't make the mistake of confusing the two simply because they claim to worship the same God.
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What Winston said
I think Obama has to show his church-going credentials in the Bible belt to help people remember he is not a Muslim. Folks like Brian Williams aren't exactly helping matters (I was so irritated at him at the Nevada debates! Jon Stewart parodied it succinctly, as usual).
Obama's sporadic Christian-ating seems (slightly) less disingenuous than the photos of Bill Clinton darkening a church door, Bible in hand, in the midst of the Lewinski scandal. (Though, to be fair, for all I know, Bill Clinton attended church every weekly, and he press only felt like photographing him *that*( Sunday, to make him seem hypocritical. Would our press do such a thing?)
Even so, I am far less alarmed by Obama's brand of Christianity than I am with Huckabee's, who interprets the Constitution by asking What-Would-Jesus-Write? And Huckabee truly panders to the Evangelicals, and their ugliest platform planks: "defending" marriage against "the gays", overturning Roe v Wade, and killing anyone who looks "furrin" and therefore possibly trerrorist-y.
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Advertising good Christian status
As a rabid Agnostic, I hate to see this kind of thing, but the fact of the matter is, if you want to win in South Carolina, it's probably necessary. If you're the first legitimate black politician with a chance at winning the Liberal party's nomination in a Red-as-they-come state, where the ability to fly a Confederate flag is still a subject of heavy debate, and where your opponents are spreading rumors that you're a koran carrying muslim who turns his back on the flag during the pledge of allegiance, well then, I'd say that advertising the fact that you've attended church for the past 20 years is probably one of the few strategies available to you.
I'm looking forward to the day when going to church isn't a prerequisite to lead this country, but I'm not holding my breath for it to happen anytime soon.
Stephen Pruitt
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It's not just a lawyerly difference
I have been one of the volunteers distributing this flyer in South Carolina, and as a resident of this region -- and a non-Christian -- I can tell you that it's important to counteract this whole "secret Muslim" smear, which is filling up inboxes all over the place. Is the message also "I am one of you?" Yes. Does that make me feel a bit uncomfortable? Yes, but ... I think another message here is "I vote from my heart, I make decisions based on what is right, not just what polls well." Which is a huge distinction vs. Hillary Clinton.
Obama has never said he would govern as a "Christian leader" -- just that he has faith and faith propels him to serve his countrymen. No hint of white supremacist Christian Reconstructionism ... which is kind of the worrying thing about Huckabee. (Well ... one of them.)