Chat Details

Tony Perkins, Family Research Council 08-13-08

This chat will begin at noon on Wednesday, August 13, 2008.

Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council takes questions from Washington Times staff and readers.

Transcript

2. • If the FRC is truely serious about the effects of divorce on children why isn't there an effort to make divorce illegal, not just to try to deter it? by
   • Answer: FRC has and continues to address the need for public policy that supports marriage. That includes reform of no-fault divorce. I authored the nation's first covenant marriage law while in public office in Louisiana. We continue to support Covenant marriage laws and other measures like mutual consent. by Tony Perkins
3. • Hi there, Why do you think so many women have the wrong impression that John McCain is pro-choice when he is not? by
   • Answer: What most people know of the candidates is based upon what the candidates say. Unfortunately, John McCain does not talk much about his pro-life voting record and therefore most people are not aware that other than his support of tax funded embryonic stem cell research, he has a good pro-life record. by Tony Perkins
4. • There has been a lot written about possible VP candidates for McCain that will be acceptable to the Christian value voters. Who are a few possibilities that you could see this coalition being comfortable with? by
   • Answer: To date I have resisted the temptation to play the name game. Rather, I have focused on the qualities we would like to see in John McCain’s running mate. His running mate needs to be strong where he is weak, someone who is not reluctant to talk about the issues that remain top priority for most social conservatives; the sanctity of human life, the preservation of traditional marriage and the strengthening of the family. Not only must this person be able to communicate a concern and a commitment for these issues, they have to have a record of delivering on these and other issues. by Tony Perkins
5. • Under what circumstances would you NOT vote John McCain for president, in November? by
   • Answer: I am not going to vote for John McCain by default. I am going to give my vote to the candidate who I believe will best lead this nation in the midst of both external threats to our freedoms and internal threats to our moral foundation. by Tony Perkins
6. • How acceptable would Mike Huckabee be, to you, as a Vice President? by
   • Answer: There is no question in my mind that Mike Huckabee would raise the intensity level of support for John McCain, something the Senator really needs. I do have some policy differences with Mike, but we share a common view on most, if not all, of the social policy issues. I think he would compliment John McCain and I would be supportive of him as John McCain's running mate. by Tony Perkins
7. • In your opinion, what are Barack Obama's best qualities? by
   • Answer: He is a very good communicator. by Tony Perkins
8. • The Senate race in your home state of Louisiana looks to be a tough one! How do you see this one ending and why? by
   • Answer: National Party leaders have made the mistake before of thinking you can beat a sitting liberal with a moderate in Louisiana. It didn’t happen in 2002 and I don’t see it happening in 2008. I see Mary Landrieu winning reelection. Conservatives are not motivated to support her opponent, a Democrat who just switched to Republican, because they gain little in advancing a conservative agenda if he wins. With the Democratic Party controlling Congress some in the state see Mary as better able to help in the post Katrina rebuilding process. by Tony Perkins
10. • On Saturday, Rick Warren, pastor of a megachurch in Orange County, California, is hosting on Friday at his church what's billed as the first joint campaign appearance by Obama and McCain. Warren was pictured in Time magazine praying with Obama, who is pro-choice on abortion and favors federal funding of stem cell research. A lot of evangelical leaders tell The Washington Times they fear Warren is giving Obama a sign of approval and rank and file evangelical voters who don't follow politics carefully will be misled into believing Obama thinks like them. They fear Pator Warren won't ask Obama or McCain the tough questions on abortion, marriage and stem cells that need to be asked. How to you feel about that? by
    • Answer: This would have been unheard of 20 or 25 years ago. This is the result of the influence of many evangelical leaders like Jerry Falwell, Tim LaHaye, James Dobson and others that have labored faithfully for many years. I am personally encouraged to see more pastors retaking their rightful role in the civic arena. Pastor Rick is an example of how pastors can and should have influence in today’s culture. With that role comes the responsibility of asking the hard questions and taking the difficult stands. I am praying that Pastor Rick will take this opportunity to ask all the pertinent questions of these candidates that bible believing Christians would like answer to. by Tony Perkins
11. • The writing of the Democratic Platform has been completed and calls for keeping Roe Vs. Wade intact and therefore supports a women's right to choose to have an abortion, but also says it supports a women's decision to choose to have a baby. The idea here is to try to grab prolife voters who have been voting Republican. Will the Democrat platform move work? by
    • Answer: What a novel idea - support a woman's right to have a baby! The following sentence is apparently what is being hailed as a conciliatory move toward pro-lifers as it speaks to comprehensive sex education: : “We also recognize that such health care and education help reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and thereby also reduce the need for abortions.” Says who? Just this week New York City, where you can find free condoms on almost every corner, last year the city handed out 36 million of them, reported that there is an abortion boom in the city. The City’s abortion rate per 100 live births is about 300% higher than the rest of the nation. The proposed Democratic platform, as it pertains to Life, may have increased its rhetorical flow, (increasing the plank from 60 words to 126 words) but still missing is a respect for all innocent human life. by Tony Perkins
12. • Paul M. Weyrich, founder of the Free Congress Foundation, said a few years ago that the anti-religion left has already won the cultural war in America and Christian conservatives might as well bow out of politics. Do you agree or is it accurate to say you have a Values Forum coming up soon, and like the one you had last year, it suggests you think religous conservatives should remain in the political arena, fighting for what they believe? by
    • Answer: For me it is not a matter of winning or losing, it is a matter of being faithful to what I know is true. As Christians, followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to be salt and light to the world around us. Christians can't do that if they never leave their church buildings or hide their convictions in public for fear of offending or even being shunned or persecuted. America still has a moral compass, from time to time we do get off course, but we have not totally lost our understanding of right and wrong. There must be those in every generation that are willing to be the path finders, to point the way for the nation. FRC is committing to identifying, equipping and encouraging those path finders, and that is a key focus of the Values Voter Summit being held September 12-14 www.frcaction.org by Tony Perkins
13. • As President Bush prepares to leave office, how do you think he will be regarded by historians? by
    • Answer: Time (chronological) will look more favorable upon than the present. by Tony Perkins