Why Is This Poll Being Ignored?
CRISIS Magazine - e-Letter
May 27, 2004
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Dear Friend,
Before I get to main subject of this e-letter, I want to do
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Alright, I'm done with the pitch. Now let's get on with the main
subject of this e-letter...
With all the recent controversy surrounding John Kerry's
pro-abortion politics, a lot of emphasis has been put on how Church
leaders should react. Debates -- even among non-Catholics -- have
focused almost exclusively on whether the senator should be denied
the Eucharist, whether he should be excommunicated, etc.
But there's one vital question that hasn't been given the attention
it merits: Is Kerry's "dissenting Catholic outreach" strategy going
to win him votes?
The answer -- which may come as a surprise to many -- appears to be
"no."
I base this on a Zogby poll released this week that indicates that
only 20% of America's 51 million Catholics support Kerry on issues
where he opposes Church teaching. In some cases, that support is as
low as 6%. The poll asked 1,388 American Roman Catholic voters
whether they'd vote for a Catholic political candidate if he
supported legislation that was in opposition to Church teaching on
specific moral issues.
Senator Kerry, call your office -- it looks like Catholic voters
like their representatives to be faithful to the Church. Here are a
few of the things the poll revealed...
** 80% of Catholics are less likely to support a Catholic
presidential candidate who "voted to allow minors to be transported
across a state line for an abortion in order to evade parental
notification laws in another state." In 1998, Kerry did just that.
** 68% of Catholics are less likely to support a candidate who voted
against the Unborn Victims of Violence Act. Again, Kerry voted
against passing this bill (in fact, it was one of the few things that
Kerry took time out of his campaign schedule to vote on this year).
** 65% said they'd be less likely to support a candidate who "would
use a Roe v. Wade litmus test to appoint pro-choice judges." Guess
who has already pledged to support only pro-choice judges for the
Supreme Court?
** 53% said they would be less likely to support a candidate who
"voted in favor of stem cell research from harvested human embryos."
Not surprisingly, Kerry supports stem cell research.
** 55% said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate who
"voted against the Defense of Marriage Act." Kerry was one of only 14
senators to oppose the bill.
** 50% of Catholics said they'd be less likely to support a
candidate who was against education vouchers. Kerry has already
promised to oppose school vouchers if elected.
** 57% said they'd be less likely to support a candidate who voted
against "requiring schools to allow voluntary prayer." Kerry, of
course, voted against restoring this right to public schools.
Interestingly enough, even if some Catholic respondents weren't
particularly concerned with Kerry's voting record (saying it would
make no difference in how they voted), even fewer actually SUPPORTED
Kerry because of that record.
The figures for Catholic support of Kerry are surprisingly small:
23% support on the question of stem cell research, 12% on protecting
the unborn, 10% on same-sex marriage, 10% on federal judicial
appointments, and a measly 6% on parental notification.
Some might dismiss the poll, arguing that regardless of what
Catholics say right now, they'll vote on bigger issues (like Iraq and
the economy) come November. While that may well turn out to be true,
this poll gives no indication of it. In fact, only 1 in 5 respondents
said that issues "other than those of a religious nature" would take
priority in their choice of a candidate.
So what does all this say about the coming election? Well, one thing
is certain: John Kerry's strategy of appealing to Catholics on
dissenting Catholic issues isn't an effective approach. If he wants
to pull enough Catholics to win the election, he might want to
rethink his Catholic voter outreach.
You can get the full poll results here:
http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2004/5/emw128303.htm
I'll talk to you next week,
Deal
P.S. Don't forget -- you want to take advantage of the $10 CRISIS
Magazine deal, you need to jump on it now. Here's the link...
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