MANCHESTER, NH - Republican Senator Sam Brownback hopes that someday he’ll be able to answer, by pointing to his own experiences, a rhetorical question posed to him recently by a college student: what would he have done differently had he been president for the past five years. The infamously anti-porn neo-con politician who refused testimony from industry experts during special “porn addiction” hearings and specifically queried then Attorney General hopeful Alberto Gonzales about obscenity during a nomination hearing, believes that the United States has “re-engaged with its faith,” and hopes to ride that perceived wave into the White House come 2008.
As far as Brownback is concerned, America is ready for the first time in more than 100 years to see men and women of outwardly strong religious faith holding public office. According to Brownback, the difference between him and previous religo-political contenders is that he plans on delivering his “faith in politics” message with “a great gentleness.”
Brownback, whose opposition to pornography is second to none within the Senate, hopes that his interest in traditionally non-conservative issues including human rights and prison reform, in addition to his humble and earnest demeanor, strong opposition to abortion, and support for public expressions of religious faith, will make him a hit with the mass of conservatives that he believes await a viable Republican inheritor of the Oval Office.
Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation and an elder in the modern conservative movement thinks Brownback may well be onto something.
“I mention him oftentimes to grass-roots people who call me and say, ‘What are we doing? We don’t have a candidate in 2008,’” he explains.
Ricci Levy, executive director for the Woodhull Freedom Foundation (www.woodhullfoundation.org) has a different opinion, however.
“Senator Brownback and Woodhull stand diametrically opposed to one another on issues of sexual freedom and thus on the broader issue of fundamental human rights,” she assures, speaking from personal experience. “I’ve spoken several times with Senator Brownback and he seems to be a man of principle with what appears to be an almost devout dedication to his positions. For those of us who are committed to sexual freedom as a fundamental human right and who advocate for Free Speech and sexual expression, a Brownback presidency would be a disaster.”
The senator is a certainly a unique blend of conservative religious faiths. Originally an evangelical Protestant who dove deeper into his religion after a cancer scare, he converted to Roman Catholicism three years ago and now attends two church services each Sunday: one for each sect. During a Promise Keepers’ meeting during the 1990’s, he chose to demonstrate his humble piety by washing an aide’s feet in front of other staff members during a farewell reception.
While he formulates his plan of attack, the 49-year-old politico stands out among other hopefuls by aggressively questioning Bush’s second nomination for the United States Supreme Court, Harriet E. Miers. Unfortunately, as even supporter Weyrich admits, the majority of Republicans simply “had not heard of him.” Instead, conservatives are far more familiar with the names and records of luminaries including Tennessee Senator Bill Frist or Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum. Weyrich admits that in order for long-shot Brownback to see his dreams come true he must either sponsor major legislation or take on the administration over something impressive.
Agitating against Miers is a dangerous proposition since, in spite of possessing a minimal judicial background, many evangelical conservatives support her nomination due to her religious faith. In fact, according to previous presidential contender and infamous ultra conservative pundit, Pat Robertson, neo-cons are not going to “turn against a Christian who is conservative, picked by a conservative president.” Or, at least not “if they want to stay in office.”
His views on abortion have become increasingly more hard-line over the years, which some moderate Republicans believe may prove an Achilles heel for the candidate. In 1994, the former agriculture secretary ran for Congress with a platform that opposed abortion – except in cases of rape, incest, or where the woman’s life was in danger. Now he promotes bans on same-sex marriage, human cloning, and embryonic stem cell research and sees abortion as “the defining issue of the difference between the political parties today.”
As part of his move from a focus on economics to a focus on social issues, Brownback is in charge of weekly Capitol Hill meetings of the Values Action Team, a collection of social conservative groups. Prior to taking on Miers’ nomination, his brightest political moment occurred while briefing the news media on his views concerning violence and obscenity after the Columbine High School shootings.
