“It reminds me of what Sinclair Lewis once said. He says, ‘when fascism comes to this country, it will be wrapped in the flag, carrying a cross.’ Now I don’t know whether that’s a fair assessment or not, but you wonder about using a cross, like he is the only Christian or implying that subtly. So, I don’t think I would ever use anything like that.”
But at the same time, he was creating the following ad which just started running in Iowa and New Hampshire…
One thing in that ad sticks out for me and it’s the line at the end: “protecting our God-given freedom.”
Normally I would have no problem with that statement. In fact, I didn’t have a problem with Huckabee’s X-mas ad. If a candidate wants to talk about God or Jesus or Whatever™, so be it. But this ad was literally being crafted around the same time Paul was hinting at the idea of religious fascism and saying he wouldn’t emulate Huckabee’s strategy.
Long story short, the ad makes Paul look hypocritical. There was no reason to put “God-given” in there. He could’ve simply said “protecting our freedom” and the ad would have been just as powerful.
Color me disappointed…
(Cross-posted from Donklephant)