one-issue voters and other oddities

The little lady told me that she and a few friends from church were recently discussing politics. She commented that her friends all agreed that they didn’t understand how someone could be a Democrat and consider herself a good Mormon. This didn’t surprise me at all. I’ve been hearing this sort of thing for years—when I went to church, when I was a student at BYU, family gatherings, etc. Democrats are, in the mind of most Mormons I’ve known, out of step with Mormon beliefs and values.

I recently read an article about extremism in Esquire magazine. An expert on extremism did a study and found that the greater the amount of time a person spent with like-minded people, the more extreme their views on a particular subject tended to get. He performed experiments with both Democrats and Republicans. Each group moved further in the more extreme direction of its ideology as it met together—Democrats became more liberal, and Republicans became more conservative. What I read in the article reminded me of Becca’s discussions with her Mormon friends, and of my own experiences with Mormons over the years. Mormons are a fairly insular crowd. Many fear the “bad” influences of their non-Mormon neighbors, and thus primarily count only Mormons among their friends. Few non-Mormons attend Mormon universities. Each of these characteristics is a recipe for homogeneity, and thus for extreme views.

I suspect much of the Mormon viewpoint on Democrats has to do with a focus, nay, an obsession with one or two issues. Mormons are, like many people, one-issue voters. No matter how great a candidate’s proposed policies might be, that candidate isn’t going to get the one-issue voter’s vote if he, say, supports gay marriage or is opposed to challenging Roe v. Wade. That would make him too moderate. Or, worse yet, too liberal. And we can’t have that. This kind of narrow focus is a hallmark of extremism.

I find this strange when I consider the views and policies of both the right and the left. Christians are fond of asking “What would Jesus do?” If I look at the policies of each party, I can’t say that he would join either. For example:

- Socialized health care: Somehow I have a hard time believing that Jesus would only want those people with good jobs to have access to great health care. Socialized health care would have to be paid with higher taxes. Would Jesus say that the ends justified the means? I think so. Would he support our progressive tax system, however? It’s hard to say.

- The Bush Doctrine: Would the originator of the “turn the other cheek” and “love one another” concepts support a policy of preemptively attacking another country as an exercise in self-defense? I don’t think so. He wouldn’t hesitate to retaliate, however. He did a pretty fair job of getting money-changers out of the Temple of Solomon, if you ask me.

- Capital punishment: Debatable. Read the Old Testament, and you’d think that capital punishment would pass the WWJD litmus test with flying colors. Read the New Testament, however, and I’m not so sure.

- Abortion: I believe Jesus would take a measured view. The scriptures paint a picture of a God that is a moral relativist, not a moral absolutist. Read the ten commandments, and you’d disagree with me. Read about Noah’s ark and Sodom and Gomorrah, however, and you might think differently. In my view, the God of the Bible supports the greater good. Would Jesus frown on an abortion that would save the life of a mother? I don’t think so.

- Gay marriage: Jesus didn’t say a whole lot on this one, but his disciples did. Leviticus is also pretty harsh on this point. Jesus did, however, say that the law was fulfilled in him. Is Mosaic law not found in Leviticus? How do we choose which parts of the law we no longer follow and which we do?

- Guilt by association: Jesus surrounded himself with the dregs of society—the poor, the plain, the sinners. This was despite his perfection, or maybe because of it. Would he decry an association with a former terrorist or a fiery minister? I can’t imagine he would.

I could go on and on and on. It’s impossible to know which way a deity would vote, and the scriptures suggest that Jesus wouldn’t belong to either party. They do suggest, however, that Jesus might vote in favor of the greater good. And that greater good is not always going to be found on the right side of the aisle.

I didn't write this post to criticize anyone. I did write it, however, to emphasize the value I see in understanding and evaluating multiple perspectives. I was once a lock-step Republican. Long ago, however, I decided to check out what the other side was saying. Not because I really cared, but because I wanted to know my enemy. And you know what I found? They weren't my enemy. They weren't crazy. Well, not all the time, anyway. Many of their criticisms of my side were completely accurate AND legitimate. I quickly learned that neither Republicans nor Democrats had a patent on the truth. The truth, surprisingly enough, was often to be found somewhere in the middle. This realization led me to vote for Democrats for the first time in my life during the last election. I never thought I would do that.

I realize that it is not easy to see beyond buzzwords, stereotypes and dogma, or to follow one's conscience despite the critics. I have much respect for those of you who can and do.