Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
<div><div style="overflow: ; color: rgb0, 0, 0; : transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; border: medium none;"><h2 id="article-title" ="entry-title">New headline, same tired old worn out BS story.
</h2><h2 id="article-title" ="entry-title">'Christian Conservative' Should Replace Jewish Speaker, Some Texas Pols Say</h2>
By Judson Berger</span>
Published December 09, 2010</span><div id="introduction"><div ="entry- Kona">
<div ="hmedia related-media at-6">
</span>
Shown here is Texas House Speaker Joe Straus. (AP Photo)
</div>
The race to lead the Texas House of
Representatives has taken a religious turn, with some conservatives in
the state suggesting that the speaker of the House</span></font>, who is a Jewish Republican, should be replaced by a "Christian conservative."
Over the past month, in a spate of e-mails
and political pitches, conservative opponents of incumbent Speaker Joe
Straus have said they want him replaced not because of his Jewish
religion, but because of his betrayal of Republican principles.
But several of Straus' critics have noted
how important it is that a Christian be named to take his place. These
discussions have been made public by a series of media reports, drawing
condemnation from some corners and making others in the GOP more than a
bit uncomfortable.
In one e-mail conversation between two members of the State Republican Executive Committee, official John Cook stressed the need for a Christian to lead other Christians in the legislature.
"We elected a house</span></font>
with Christian, conservative values. We now want a true Christian,
conservative running it," Cook said in the Nov. 30 e-mail, first
published by the Texas Observer.<div ="sect vert">
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Cook, confirming the e-mail's authenticity,
told FoxNews.com that his conversation was not about Straus' religion
and that he didn't even know until recently that Straus was Jewish. But
he stood by his belief that Christian conservatives should lead.
"My e-mail said nothing about Jewish people. I just want Christian conservatives in office," he said.
Griping that Straus had aligned himself with
Democrats since they helped him get elected to the speaker post nearly
two years ago, Cook said Straus has appointed moderate-at-best committee
chairs who stonewall conservative legislation. Straus has appointed
both Democrats and Republicans to chairmanships since taking office</span></font>.
By contrast, Cook said, the two Christian
conservatives who are challenging Straus -- Rep. Ken Paxton and Rep.
Warren Chisum -- have "pro-life values" and "pro-family values." He said
those values brought the state to where it is, suggesting God would
want the Christian conservative coalition to expand.
"I think God has blessed our state," Cook said. And he rejected the way he's been portrayed, saying he's not anti-Semitic.
"It's not true at all. I have friends who are Jewish," he said. "I have no racial bigotry."
Paxton and Chisum could not be reached for
comment, though Paxton is on the record condemning the comments that
have been made. Straus did not reply to requests for comment.
Some Tea Party
activists in the state suggest the controversy is just a case of
Texans, perhaps carelessly, weaving religion and politics as they are
wont to do.
Felicia Cravens, founder of the Houston Tea </span>Party</span></font> Society, said "intellectual laziness" may be to blame for the controversy.
"I think people have been intellectually
lazy in using 'Christian' and 'conservative' interchangeably ... and
there's a lot of that in Texas," she said.
Cravens last month signed a letter alongside
dozens of other conservatives and Tea Party activists calling for a
"more conservative speaker," but that letter did not mention religion.
She said Wednesday that religion should not be a factor, noting that her
organization's board has Muslim and Jewish members.
She said most of Straus' critics are not
focused on his faith, and she lamented that a handful of conservatives
decided to "dig their heels in" regarding calls for a Christian to
assume the post.
Over at the Kaufman County Tea Party,
Chairman Ray Myers sent out an e-mail last month saying "we finally
found a Christian Conservative who decided not to be pushed around by
the Joe Straus thugs."
Asked about the comment, Myers told FoxNews.com he may have used a "loose term" in describing the competition.
"That is a term that we use here in Texas quite a bit," he said. "We're in the Bible Belt. I grew up a Christian."
He said his complaints about Straus have to
do with fiscal and social issues, not his religion, and that other Tea
Partiers feel the same way.
"No one ever even breathed or ever even
thought about that," Myers said. "We are just common folks out here
trying to ... affect this speaker's race."
At least one conservative activist has
directly referenced Straus' religion. Peter Morrison, who publishes a
newsletter, wrote in a recent dispatch that Straus' rabbi sits on the
board of San Antonio Planned Parenthood. Morrison wrote that Straus
lacks the necessary "moral compass" to hold his office</span></font> and called his competitors "Christians and true conservatives."
Asked about the column, Morrison said in an
e-mail that he was "simply making factual statements" about Chisum and
Paxton. "My problem with Speaker Straus is his 100% rating with
pro-abortion groups like NARAL and his teaming up with Democrats in the
last session to kill conservative legislation</span></font>," Morrison added.
Chris Elam, spokesman for the Republican Party
of Texas, distanced the party from the entire debate, noting that the
state GOP does not involve itself in the internal race for speaker. He
said the views expressed by members of its executive committee "do not
reflect any views of the state party."
In a reference to Cook, he said the official
does not view religion as his top issue but has been "a little too
zealous" in trying to explain himself.
Meanwhile, other anonymous comments invoking
religion have swirled through cyberspace, keeping the controversy
alive. News 8 Austin reported that robocalls have gone out calling for a
Christian speaker.
Tammy Blair, co-founder of the Tyler Tea Party, said the comments have been blown out of proportion.
Citing one anonymous e-mail that said
"Straus is going down in Jesus' name," she suggested Straus' critics
were just getting clumsy and that many didn't even know he was Jewish.
She noted that Tea Partiers are staunchly pro-Israel.
"The principles (of this country) are
Judeo-Christian," said Blair, who also signed the letter last month.
"Somebody shortened it and just said 'Christian values.'"
After the controversy over the e-mails erupted, she said the activists she knows have tried to ignore it.
"The rest of us are going, 'What? He's a Jew? I didn't know that,'" she said. "It became something it wasn't."</div></div>Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/12/09/christian-conservative-replace-jewish-speaker-texan-pols-say/#ixzz17eppfG6D</span></div></div>
</h2><h2 id="article-title" ="entry-title">'Christian Conservative' Should Replace Jewish Speaker, Some Texas Pols Say</h2>
By Judson Berger</span>
Published December 09, 2010</span><div id="introduction"><div ="entry- Kona">
<div ="hmedia related-media at-6">
</span>
Shown here is Texas House Speaker Joe Straus. (AP Photo)
</div>
The race to lead the Texas House of
Representatives has taken a religious turn, with some conservatives in
the state suggesting that the speaker of the House</span></font>, who is a Jewish Republican, should be replaced by a "Christian conservative."
Over the past month, in a spate of e-mails
and political pitches, conservative opponents of incumbent Speaker Joe
Straus have said they want him replaced not because of his Jewish
religion, but because of his betrayal of Republican principles.
But several of Straus' critics have noted
how important it is that a Christian be named to take his place. These
discussions have been made public by a series of media reports, drawing
condemnation from some corners and making others in the GOP more than a
bit uncomfortable.
In one e-mail conversation between two members of the State Republican Executive Committee, official John Cook stressed the need for a Christian to lead other Christians in the legislature.
"We elected a house</span></font>
with Christian, conservative values. We now want a true Christian,
conservative running it," Cook said in the Nov. 30 e-mail, first
published by the Texas Observer.<div ="sect vert">
<div style="" id="baynote-recs-js">
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Cook, confirming the e-mail's authenticity,
told FoxNews.com that his conversation was not about Straus' religion
and that he didn't even know until recently that Straus was Jewish. But
he stood by his belief that Christian conservatives should lead.
"My e-mail said nothing about Jewish people. I just want Christian conservatives in office," he said.
Griping that Straus had aligned himself with
Democrats since they helped him get elected to the speaker post nearly
two years ago, Cook said Straus has appointed moderate-at-best committee
chairs who stonewall conservative legislation. Straus has appointed
both Democrats and Republicans to chairmanships since taking office</span></font>.
By contrast, Cook said, the two Christian
conservatives who are challenging Straus -- Rep. Ken Paxton and Rep.
Warren Chisum -- have "pro-life values" and "pro-family values." He said
those values brought the state to where it is, suggesting God would
want the Christian conservative coalition to expand.
"I think God has blessed our state," Cook said. And he rejected the way he's been portrayed, saying he's not anti-Semitic.
"It's not true at all. I have friends who are Jewish," he said. "I have no racial bigotry."
Paxton and Chisum could not be reached for
comment, though Paxton is on the record condemning the comments that
have been made. Straus did not reply to requests for comment.
Some Tea Party
activists in the state suggest the controversy is just a case of
Texans, perhaps carelessly, weaving religion and politics as they are
wont to do.
Felicia Cravens, founder of the Houston Tea </span>Party</span></font> Society, said "intellectual laziness" may be to blame for the controversy.
"I think people have been intellectually
lazy in using 'Christian' and 'conservative' interchangeably ... and
there's a lot of that in Texas," she said.
Cravens last month signed a letter alongside
dozens of other conservatives and Tea Party activists calling for a
"more conservative speaker," but that letter did not mention religion.
She said Wednesday that religion should not be a factor, noting that her
organization's board has Muslim and Jewish members.
She said most of Straus' critics are not
focused on his faith, and she lamented that a handful of conservatives
decided to "dig their heels in" regarding calls for a Christian to
assume the post.
Over at the Kaufman County Tea Party,
Chairman Ray Myers sent out an e-mail last month saying "we finally
found a Christian Conservative who decided not to be pushed around by
the Joe Straus thugs."
Asked about the comment, Myers told FoxNews.com he may have used a "loose term" in describing the competition.
"That is a term that we use here in Texas quite a bit," he said. "We're in the Bible Belt. I grew up a Christian."
He said his complaints about Straus have to
do with fiscal and social issues, not his religion, and that other Tea
Partiers feel the same way.
"No one ever even breathed or ever even
thought about that," Myers said. "We are just common folks out here
trying to ... affect this speaker's race."
At least one conservative activist has
directly referenced Straus' religion. Peter Morrison, who publishes a
newsletter, wrote in a recent dispatch that Straus' rabbi sits on the
board of San Antonio Planned Parenthood. Morrison wrote that Straus
lacks the necessary "moral compass" to hold his office</span></font> and called his competitors "Christians and true conservatives."
Asked about the column, Morrison said in an
e-mail that he was "simply making factual statements" about Chisum and
Paxton. "My problem with Speaker Straus is his 100% rating with
pro-abortion groups like NARAL and his teaming up with Democrats in the
last session to kill conservative legislation</span></font>," Morrison added.
Chris Elam, spokesman for the Republican Party
of Texas, distanced the party from the entire debate, noting that the
state GOP does not involve itself in the internal race for speaker. He
said the views expressed by members of its executive committee "do not
reflect any views of the state party."
In a reference to Cook, he said the official
does not view religion as his top issue but has been "a little too
zealous" in trying to explain himself.
Meanwhile, other anonymous comments invoking
religion have swirled through cyberspace, keeping the controversy
alive. News 8 Austin reported that robocalls have gone out calling for a
Christian speaker.
Tammy Blair, co-founder of the Tyler Tea Party, said the comments have been blown out of proportion.
Citing one anonymous e-mail that said
"Straus is going down in Jesus' name," she suggested Straus' critics
were just getting clumsy and that many didn't even know he was Jewish.
She noted that Tea Partiers are staunchly pro-Israel.
"The principles (of this country) are
Judeo-Christian," said Blair, who also signed the letter last month.
"Somebody shortened it and just said 'Christian values.'"
After the controversy over the e-mails erupted, she said the activists she knows have tried to ignore it.
"The rest of us are going, 'What? He's a Jew? I didn't know that,'" she said. "It became something it wasn't."</div></div>Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/12/09/christian-conservative-replace-jewish-speaker-texan-pols-say/#ixzz17eppfG6D</span></div></div>
