http://www.newsday.com/news/columnists/ny-oppink5508038dec20,0,7299879.column
Op-ed: Paul's smear of Huckabee a low blow
James P. Pinkerton
December 20, 2007
Is Mike Huckabee a fascist? That's the insinuation from Ron Paul, one of Huckabee's rivals for the Republican presidential nomination.
And it's a cheap shot. One needn't agree with, or even like, Huckabee to know that throwing around the f-word "fascism" is a low blow.
This story is important, because it speaks to the larger question of whether Christians can fully participate in politics without being slurred. Here's the context: Huckabee ran a TV spot in which the former Arkansas governor wishes Americans a "Merry Christmas." And in the background, there's a windowpane, or some shelving, that looks a bit like a cross.
On Fox News Tuesday morning, Paul was asked his opinion of the spot. The Texas congressman declared: "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.'"
Then, Paul caught himself a little: "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." It's hard to know if Huckabee was pitching his Christianity. But it's easy to know that Paul smeared Huckabee.
The author Sinclair Lewis is remembered for skewering Protestant evangelicals in his 1927 novel "Elmer Gantry." Then in 1935, Lewis' "It Can't Happen Here" took one step further, envisioning a fascist takeover of the United States, led by a cornpone politician in league with religious-radio demagogues.
In other words, Paul, by citing Lewis, must have known he was invoking the name of a fiercely biting critic of religion in America. Faith-minded Republicans might take note, as they ponder Paul.
But what about the larger question: Is the public airing of Christian-oriented political themes some sort of leading indicator of fascism?
If so, then virtually all of our American presidents have been "fascists." A look through "Willmington's Guide to the Bible" reminds us that George Washington, for example, declared: "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without the Bible." And here's Ulysses S. Grant: "The Bible is the Anchor of our liberties." And Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was, come to think of it, notable for fighting fascism: "It is a fountain of strength ... a comprehensive study of the Bible is a liberal education for anyone."
OK, but what about fundamentalist Protestants with a preachery background, such as Huckabee - are they, perhaps, a special threat? Do Baptists deserve comparison to Hitler?
I put that question to Michael Kazin, professor of American history at Georgetown University, self-described liberal Democrat and the author of a well-regarded biography of William Jennings Bryan, the Democratic nominee for president in 1896, 1900 and 1908.
Here's Kazin: "Huckabee is no more a fascist than is Hillary Clinton - or Ron Paul. Mussolini, Hitler and Franco believed in and practiced one-man rule ... made aggressive nationalism into a militant equivalent of religion, and revered military force." And none of that, Kazin concludes, fairly describes Huckabee.
Contacted on Wednesday, the Paul presidential campaign stuck to its verbal guns. Too many Christian leaders, communications director Jesse Benton argued, were complicit in "big government." So, then, is it fair to suggest that Huckabee is a fascist? Benton said "no," but then in the same breath he insisted that "the movement in general" was drifting ominously away from "the Constitution."
The bottom line was that Benton had no apologies for Paul's televised insinuation of a fusion between fascism and Christianity.
Here's what's really going on: Paul & Co. despise the federal government so much they can barely see the difference between the modern welfare state and incipient fascism. Fair enough.
That's their right - and that's their problem. But it's not right for Paul to hurl fighting-word epithets at his political rivals. Republicans, and all Americans, should reject such reckless rhetoric.
Michael Kazin, professor of American history at Georgetown University, obviously doesn't understand that fascism is just another word for corporatism and that it isn't a one-man show. Huckabee is just a puppet to his owners.
Strike that. I'm sure Kazin probably does understand that. He just ain't telling.
Op-ed: Paul's smear of Huckabee a low blow
James P. Pinkerton
December 20, 2007
Is Mike Huckabee a fascist? That's the insinuation from Ron Paul, one of Huckabee's rivals for the Republican presidential nomination.
And it's a cheap shot. One needn't agree with, or even like, Huckabee to know that throwing around the f-word "fascism" is a low blow.
This story is important, because it speaks to the larger question of whether Christians can fully participate in politics without being slurred. Here's the context: Huckabee ran a TV spot in which the former Arkansas governor wishes Americans a "Merry Christmas." And in the background, there's a windowpane, or some shelving, that looks a bit like a cross.
On Fox News Tuesday morning, Paul was asked his opinion of the spot. The Texas congressman declared: "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.'"
Then, Paul caught himself a little: "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." It's hard to know if Huckabee was pitching his Christianity. But it's easy to know that Paul smeared Huckabee.
The author Sinclair Lewis is remembered for skewering Protestant evangelicals in his 1927 novel "Elmer Gantry." Then in 1935, Lewis' "It Can't Happen Here" took one step further, envisioning a fascist takeover of the United States, led by a cornpone politician in league with religious-radio demagogues.
In other words, Paul, by citing Lewis, must have known he was invoking the name of a fiercely biting critic of religion in America. Faith-minded Republicans might take note, as they ponder Paul.
But what about the larger question: Is the public airing of Christian-oriented political themes some sort of leading indicator of fascism?
If so, then virtually all of our American presidents have been "fascists." A look through "Willmington's Guide to the Bible" reminds us that George Washington, for example, declared: "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without the Bible." And here's Ulysses S. Grant: "The Bible is the Anchor of our liberties." And Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was, come to think of it, notable for fighting fascism: "It is a fountain of strength ... a comprehensive study of the Bible is a liberal education for anyone."
OK, but what about fundamentalist Protestants with a preachery background, such as Huckabee - are they, perhaps, a special threat? Do Baptists deserve comparison to Hitler?
I put that question to Michael Kazin, professor of American history at Georgetown University, self-described liberal Democrat and the author of a well-regarded biography of William Jennings Bryan, the Democratic nominee for president in 1896, 1900 and 1908.
Here's Kazin: "Huckabee is no more a fascist than is Hillary Clinton - or Ron Paul. Mussolini, Hitler and Franco believed in and practiced one-man rule ... made aggressive nationalism into a militant equivalent of religion, and revered military force." And none of that, Kazin concludes, fairly describes Huckabee.
Contacted on Wednesday, the Paul presidential campaign stuck to its verbal guns. Too many Christian leaders, communications director Jesse Benton argued, were complicit in "big government." So, then, is it fair to suggest that Huckabee is a fascist? Benton said "no," but then in the same breath he insisted that "the movement in general" was drifting ominously away from "the Constitution."
The bottom line was that Benton had no apologies for Paul's televised insinuation of a fusion between fascism and Christianity.
Here's what's really going on: Paul & Co. despise the federal government so much they can barely see the difference between the modern welfare state and incipient fascism. Fair enough.
That's their right - and that's their problem. But it's not right for Paul to hurl fighting-word epithets at his political rivals. Republicans, and all Americans, should reject such reckless rhetoric.
Michael Kazin, professor of American history at Georgetown University, obviously doesn't understand that fascism is just another word for corporatism and that it isn't a one-man show. Huckabee is just a puppet to his owners.Strike that. I'm sure Kazin probably does understand that. He just ain't telling.
