VALUES VOTERS

The New York Times expresses dismay about the dominant issue in the Election:
Mr. Bush appealed overwhelmingly to voters on terrorism and to many others on his ability to handle the economy. But what gave him the edge in the election, which he won 51 percent to 48 percent, was a perceived sense of morality and traditional values.

Asked what one issue mattered most to them in choosing a president, "moral values" ranked at the top with the economy/jobs, terrorism and the war in Iraq. Trailing significantly were health care, taxes and education.

Of the people who chose "moral values" as their top issue, 80 percent voted for Mr. Bush. (For people who chose the economy/jobs, 80 percent voted for Mr. Kerry.) Nearly one-quarter of the electorate was made up of white evangelical and born-again Christians, and they voted four to one for Mr. Bush.

Mr. Bush beat his Democratic opponent in almost all religious categories except among Jews, three-fourths of whom favored Mr. Kerry. But they made up only 3 percent of the electorate. Mr. Bush did particularly well among white Catholics, winning 56 percent of them compared with Mr. Kerry's 43 percent, despite Mr. Kerry's being the first Roman Catholic nominated for president since John F. Kennedy in 1960.

The statistics and details are apparently shocking enough to their readership that not much further description is required.
No doubt this will occasion much concern and feigned surprise at the Old Gray Lady--she'll make quite a display of "getting the vapors" about this.
But none of that will change the answer the NYT comes up with:
Destroy Religion.

Comments

[Old Oligarch]

Hey there, Al. Congrats on the new blog. Don't let the students find it...

[Old Oligarch]

Hey there, Al. Congrats on the new blog. Don't let the students find it...

[c matt]

Awesome. Another fascinating venue for me to fritter hours away.

I love it - the voters "perceived" Bush to have a higher sense of morality and traditional values. Gee, I wonder where they got such a perception?