If you think it is too early to see Romney's political opponents using his religion against him, it looks like you should think again. In South Carolina, a Republican Party functionary who is also an evangelical attempted to confront Romney publicly about Mormonism. She has drawn news media attention as a result.
Guess what? She's been a high-profile McCain adviser. For years.
The "Confrontation"
An article today by Lee Bandy in The State tells the first part of the story:
The quarterly meeting of the S.C. Republican executive committee Sept. 16 ended on a sour note when one of its more prominent members cornered Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and grilled him about his Mormon faith.
It was not a pretty sight, according to witnesses.
Romney, a possible Republican candidate for president in 2008, was in town to address the state executive committee.
Cyndi Mosteller, chairwoman of the Charleston County Republican Party, one of the largest GOP organizations in the state, came armed with a bunch of material — and questions — about the Mormon church. . . .
Mosteller, an evangelical, said she especially was concerned about the church’s attitude toward African-Americans and its stand on polygamy. . . .
Mosteller said the issues of race and marriage concern her. She fears they could become campaign issues and hurt Republican chances.
Afterward, Mosteller said the governor did not answer any of her questions. She described the meeting as “very tense.” [Emphasis mine.]
If you're like me your antennae rose when you saw Ms. Mosteller's issue concerns. African-Americans and polygamy? Are those really the issues that worry evangelicals? I thought it was fears about Mormonism being a cult and not truly Christian that motivated evangelical skepticism about Romney.
Notably, the article reports considerable revulsion and denunciation among other South Carolina GOP leaders:
Cindi Costa, a conservative Christian from Charleston and member of the Republican National Committee, waited outside the room. She earlier pleaded with Mosteller not to confront Romney.
“This makes me sick,” Costa said. “Your personal faith is not game in politics. It’s a private matter.”
Who Is Cyndi Mosteller?
A Google search of Ms. Mosteller's name produces numerous hits that make it clear that she is a high-profile conservative political activist who has been a McCain operative in the past, and probably is one now. Here's a profile that appeared in February 2002, among many other profiles of leaders in McCain's 2000 organization:
Cyndi Mosteller: Conservative issues adviser. Mosteller is advising McCain on "family/cultural/right to life issues." She is the president of Trident County (S.C.) Citizens for Life. To her knowledge, she is the only one advising McCain on "Christian issues." She had met McCain several times when he came to South Carolina, spoke with him there, and their paths crossed at various GOP functions.
The campaign approached her to advise, and she began doing so this past summer. Mosteller began meeting frequently with McCain in South Carolina in late winter 1999, a few months before the start of the Republican primaries. When she meets with the senator, John Weaver, Rick Davis and Trey Walker often accompany him, and she also speaks with John Raidt. She says she likes that the meetings are only about her issues and are not mixed in with other advisers’ topics.
Mosteller has advised former South Carolina Gov. David Beasley, as well as presidential contender Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas) in 1996. She chairs the South Carolina GOP platform committee, and has done so since 1996. She told the Center she has appeared on television's Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher several times over the last two years.
Ms. Mosteller (photo here) has also identified herself on a radio program as McCain's "National Policy Advisor for Family & Cultural Issues," a position she apparently held in 2000. She is described here as "a Baptist [who] has a master's degree from Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Mo." Update: South Carolinians for Romney has produced still more information about Cyndi Mosteller. If you're interested in Romney's efforts in South Carolina, that looks like a good blog to visit.
What Does This Mean?
Probably many things, including:
- The gloves are coming off early. If you think a political operative like Mosteller, who was tied into McCain's 2000 campaign, is attacking Romney in this way without McCain's approval, I think you are sadly mistaken.
- This tactic is not new, and we will probably see it again– during the GOP primaries and, if Romney is nominated, in the general election. As K-Lo has noted, "it was Ted Kennedy himself who, when Romney challenged him for his Senate seat in 1994, tried using Romney's Mormonism against him."
- Evangelicals will need to be careful about being used by McCain and other Romney opponents in the upcoming primaries. Mosteller made a frontal assault on Romney's Mormonism and pretended to do that as an evangelical, yet her "religious" assault does not appear to be genuine at all. She's simply trying to kick up dust about Romney's religion by raising two hot-button issues. Neither issue is religious in nature, but the demagogic possibilities are boundless: Just play on the candidate's relatively obscure religious beliefs and see if you can spook enough voters into supporting you instead.
We will be following this. I know John will have some lively thoughts to add.
John adds: First of all, I wish I could give a big "Amen" to Lowell's contention that Evangelicals are not concerned about polygamy and racism among Mormons, but alas, I have people talk to me about it too much. While neither charge can be leveled at the CJCLDS there are enough splinter groups practicing polygamy and enough Evangelicals poorly enough read not to make the distinction to avoid having to deal with this charge. Racism also continues to be evidenced by individual Mormons, though it is no longer the practice of the church - I have personally seen it.
Having said that; however, in general, this is no different than Evangelicals being attacked for things that happened during the Crusades, or the Civil Rights Movements of the 60's - it's not a legitimate attack. This is ugly and this is despicable.
At the same time, it is shrewd politics. In one stroke this McCain operative has managed to paint Romney in a bad light, and Evangelicals. Let me repeat that - this is bad news for Evangelicals too. This paints us as backward looking, bigoted, pushy, rude, and bascially red-necked.
McCain's weakness in the primaries, and the general election for that matter, is his lack of appeal to the so-called "values voters." It is no accident this was done right on the heels of Romney's appearance at the Family Research Council's Washington Summit this past weekend. We have have an interview in transcription/editing with John McIntyre of Real Clear Politics right now (look for it next week). In it, McIntyre opines that McCain, with a united GOP behind him, is unstoppable. To achieve a united GOP, McCain has to appeal to the values voters (not gonna happen) or he has to marginalize them - which incidents like this one can do.
This, frankly, is my primary motivation for starting this blog. The religion question as it relates to Romney, when it comes from Evangelicals, reflects badly on Evangelicals. We are not the close-minded, bigoted rubes so many would paint us.
To date, this is local news - it's in the local section of a local paper. If it stays that way, to respond would be to expend the ammunition to early in the fight. But it is a harbinger of things to come. I think Romney needs to develop the tools to deal with this, and he needs to do so publicly. Because he dealt with this woman in private and has not commented, she is controlling the news cycle. It is lucky this paper chose to look at all sides of the issue - I doubt Romney will be so lucky with the MSM.
Romney needs to have answers to this in his arsenal and ready whenever the shots are fired. This looked a little too stage managed to me. Romney needs to be entirely comfortable with his faith and answering questions about it. Properly prepared, this woman could have done what she did publicly and Romney could have made her look the fool. He also needs to have a few prominent Evangelicals in the wings, not merely to denounce the attack, but also to show his interest in preserving the Evangelical's reputation and well as the Mormons.
I was coming to believe that the religion attack was going to be all in the whispers - Now it appears I was wrong. I was concentrating too hard on Evangelicals leveling the charge and noting they were smart enough not to want to get smeared in the leveling. I neglected the fact that others might make it in the Evangelical name and "kill two birds with one stone" as it were.
This is not hardball, this is dirty politics.
UPDATES:
1. More about this incident here, at South Carolinians for Romney. Thanks to e-mailer Andru B. for the link. Andru provides a correction and some additional links and background:
Cyndi Mosteller actually confronted Gov. Romney a week before the story was written so it didn't actually occur "right on the heels of Romney's appearance at the Family Research Council's Washington Summit this past weekend". We've been covering it since it first appeared in the Contra Costa Times last week. The State Newspaper is a fairly left-leaning however so their timing may be intentional to offset Romney's positive press at the FRC summit.
2. Called As Seen suggests a Romney reponse. And has comments about dirty tricks in the age of Google.
3. Dean Barnett links to us (thanks, Dean), and expresses an arch but agnostic view about whether there's a connection here to McCain. McCain can settle that quickly by repudiating Mosteller's efforts and her related statements.
4. Evangelicals for Mitt says the problem is worse than it looks:
I talked to some of our own sources in South Carolina, and they confirmed this story. Mosteller not only worked with McCain in 2000, she is allied with him now. Here's where the story gets even worse. Mosteller's attack is actually consistent with what other McCain people have been telling prominent South Carolina evangelicals. Over the past couple months, we at EFM have engaged in multiple conversations with South Carolina evangelicals, and most of the people we've talked to have mentioned "McCain folks" who've told them that Mormons "have problems with race and marriage."
5. Wizbang has more.
Technorati Tags: John McCain, Cyndi Mosteller, Mitt Romney, evangelicals, Mormon, Mormonism, South Carolina
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