A Voice in the Wilderness In Defense of "Mere Conservatism"

Paul Ryan and the Catholic Vote

I wrote a piece of the website "Religion & Politics" this week about the impact that I think the selection of Paul Ryan will have on the Romney campaign's ability to win the "Catholic Vote."

An excerpt:

Mitt Romney’s selection of “The Man with the Budget Plan” from Janesville, Wisconsin has energized his campaign and brought discussions of things like “worldview” and “vision-casting” unmistakably to the forefront of this presidential race. In all the ways Governor Romney is perceived as being, shall we say, “fluid,” in his various political positions, Paul Ryan is not. If you want to know what the man thinks—to borrow a tired Apple advertising line—“there’s a YouTube for that.”

Congressman Ryan is a man of conviction. He is a man of ideas, and specific ones at that. He is a man who proudly wears his “God, Family, Country” ethos on his well-groomed sleeves. But what does his VP nod actually mean to the all-important Catholic vote? Will his Catholic bona fides translate to votes at the ballot box come November 6th?

How's that for a cliff-hanger of my own!  Read the entire thing right here, and let me know what you think.

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