Giuliani's Divorce a Problem for Evangelicals

Because of his three marriages, evangelical Christians will have a hard time supporting Rudolph Giuliani in his bid to become the Republican Presidential nominee in 2008. In a story published today by the Associated Press, Richard Land, head of public policy for the Southern Baptist Convention says that while evangelicals might be able to tolerate a divorced candidate, they have serious doubts about Giuliani, who has been married three times.

Land told the AP that evangelical Christians feel that the former New York mayor showed a lack of character during his divorce from his second wife, Donna Hanover. In 2003, Giuliani married Judith Nathan, whom he had dated publicly while he was married to Hanover.

"This is divorce on steroids," Land told the AP. "To publicly humiliate your wife in that way, and your children. That's rough. I think that's going to be an awfully hard sell, even if he weren't pro-choice and pro-gun control."

In spite of praise for his handling of the situation in New York following the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center, Giuliani has faced an uphill battle gaining the trust and support of the evangelicals in general and Southern Baptists in particular that make up the core of the GOP's base. He holds what many consider unacceptably moderate views on abortion, gun control, and gay rights, putting him at odds with southern evangelicals in key primary states.

Other candidates have had divorces in their past and still been embraced by evangelicals, most notably Ronald Reagan, who in 1980 became the first divorced man in US history to be elected President. Arizona Senator John McCain has been married twice, but Land sees this as less of a problem for McCain.

"It's a molehill compared to Giuliani's mountain," Land said. "When you're a war hero, you have less to prove on the character front."

Recent polls show Giuliani leading among the possible Republican candidates, followed by McCain and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Romney is also struggling to prove to evangelicals that he is both conservative enough and religious enough to deserve their support.

Southern Baptists have been staunch supporters of President Bush because, in addition to his conservative positions on social issues, they identify with him as a born-again Christian. However, they and other evangelicals are struggling to find a new candidate who shares their views on abortion and gay marriage, while the Republican Party fears that evangelicals will just stay home in 2008, much the way they did in 1996 when they found Sen. Bob Dole to be not conservative enough.

Sources:
Associated Press
CNN.com