Denver leaders crown McCain

More than 90 evangelical leaders met in Denver last week to wrestle their way to a consensus on the 2008 election. They reached an unstartling one: They may not be thrilled with cCain, but they're scared stiff of Obama.

Leaders included Phyllis Schlafly of Eagle Forum, Phil Burress of Citizens for Community Values, Steve Strang of Charisma Magazine, and David Barton of Wallbuilders. According to Charisma Magazine, Schlafly said, "The alternative is so bad we must support John McCain." Burress echoed the sentiment: "If Obama wins I need to be able to get up on November 5th, look at myself in the mirror, and when I pray, say, 'Lord, I did all that I could.'"

David Brody called it a "key turning point for McCain." But as dissenting voices get louder and Obama makes gestures of peace toward religious voters, this crowning of McCain may mobilize other evangelicals to distance themselves from McCain's endorsers.

Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell has gathered the signatures of over 10,000 people who say they are "standing up for our Christian faith and supporting Barack Obama." In the Des Moines Register, Rev. David Bjorlin objects to what he calls the hijacking of the word "Evangelical:" It "puts me in a place where, as an Evangelical, I must vote Republican, never question the government, always support war, believe that tax cuts are a great concern of Jesus, disavow science and accept all the other beliefs that have been thrown upon the stinking heap of the already-soiled Evangelical name."

Participants in the Denver meeting also signed a Declaration of American Values, echoing the language of the Declaration of Independence. This Declaration affirmed values like the sanctity of life, marriage, and parental rights, along with gun rights, secure national borders, federalism, and a tax system that encourages limited government and free enterprise.