Scattered Work

Religious Party

During the election, Obama worked hard to win religious (even evangelical) voters over to the Democratic ticket, and made significant strides, especially among younger evangelicals. Not surprisingly, Obama did this largely by emphasizing his personal relationship with faith, rather than softening his positions on major social issues, such as abortion. As a result, his gains among this demographic came largely from those evangelicals who were already social moderates. Still, the gains were significant, despite controversies swirling around his church and rumors that he is a “secret Muslim.”

Now I hear (via Democracy in America) that some influential conservative commentators have launched a new blog called Secular Right. This trend, it seems to me, is pretty important. To the extent that we can decouple a single political party from its monopoly on the devout Christian vote, we can have a richer discussion of the relationship between faith and public policy in America. For one thing, it opens up space for organizations such as this.

Tags: Barack Obama, election, environment, evangelicals, religion

“Now it makes sense”

The victors were many in last night’s election. It was a victory for democracy, as I’m hearing the United States saw 64% of its eligible citizens go to the polls. It was a victory for the pollsters, whose projections proved largely correct. It was a victory for those of us who have cringed at the politics of cultural division as we saw a campaign built on unifying themes triumph over one that deigned to tell us what constitutes the “real America.” It was a victory for patriotism, as Obama used this moment to reinvigorate and give new meaning to the ideals of service and sacrifice and love of nation.

In the midst of all of this, I will offer just one small moment from last night. I had decided to watch the election with some friends at a bar called Tucker’s on the east side. For those not familiar with San Antonio, the east side is the black neighborhood. The back wall of Tucker’s is covered with framed pictures of black leaders from the covers of magazines. Bill Cosby, Michael Jordan, Colin Powell, and from an Ebony cover at least a year old, a photo of Michelle and Barack Obama with the words “The next first couple?”

By the time I got to the bar, Ohio had already fallen for Obama, and in my mind the election was over. Although the mood was upbeat, many of the folks in the bar still wouldn’t quite let themselves believe it was true. Obama was stuck at 207 electoral votes for what seemed like hours. Once the polls closed on the west coast, his total jumped to 289, and the bar errupted in chants of “Yes we did!”

Eventually, Obama came on, and the bar became hushed as he gave his victory speech. Of course, his poignant lyricism was out in full force, but at one point Obama delivered a simple line, which politicians have delivered, in one form or another, for 200 years: “[This campaign] drew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation’s apathy, who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep. It drew strength from the not so young people, who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on doors of perfect strangers, and from the millions of Americans who volunteered and organized and proved that more than two centuries later a government for the people, of the people, and by the people has not perished from the earth.” At this point I heard an old black man sitting next to me turn to his friends and say, “Now that makes sense. Now it makes sense.”

UPDATE: Justin just posted some photos and video of the night over at Emvergeoning. Here’s the video:

Tags: Barack Obama, east side, election, Tucker's

This. Fucking. Election.

Pretty good, but where’s Ashley Todd??

[hat tip]

UPDATE: Oh, there she is. I missed “B Mutilation” a little bit up from the bottom.

Tags: Ashley Todd, election

How to Watch the Election

In a sign that Nate Silver has deservedly broken into the mainstream of political commentary, Newsweek published his hour-by-hour guide to watching election returns. He’ll tell you what states to pay attention to as the polls close tomorrow night, and how to interpret the results.

Tags: election, Nate Silver