The Arena

Insights from the Express-News Editorial Board.

Obama’s religious echo chamber



The 1994 edition of the Almanac of American Politics cited the Frost map for its “partisan effrontery which enabled the Democrats to protect all but one of their incumbents and to capture the state’s three new seats as well.”

Frost, who lost to Howard Dean in a bid to become chairman of the Democratic National Committee, is a solid partisan, who infamously compared the tea party to the Taliban and is happy to gin up fables of GOP suppression of minority votes.

Frost can also be an astute political observer.  His most recent column for Politico is a case in point.

Even those people who believe the Obamacare contraception mandate is both constitutional and a public good agree that the way the White House initially handled the matter was disastrous, leaving liberal Catholics to twist in the wind. The Washington Post’s E.J. Dionne wrote, “Obama threw his progressive Catholic allies under the bus and strengthened the hand of those inside the Church who had originally sought to derail the health-care law.”

Frost has an explanation for the ham-handed way the normally smooth Obama political machine botched the contraception mandate controversy and in doing so draws a connection to the dust-up last year over Israel returning to its pre-1967 borders:

On the issue of contraception and the Catholic Church, he tended to listen to liberal Democrats who happen to be Catholic — rather than to Catholic Democratic politicians dedicated to his reelection. When seeking counsel, Obama also seems to listen to liberal Democrats who happen to be Jewish on Israeli-Palestinian negotiations — rather than to Jewish Democratic politicians dedicated to his reelection.

There’s a big difference between liberal Catholics or Jews (“cultural” Catholics and Jews, as some of them self-define themselves) and Catholic or Jewish Democratic office holders and activists who are invested in their groups’ issues.  That includes groups such as Democrats for Life, a consistent supporter of Obamacare, which felt betrayed by the initial version of the mandate.

Frost notes that Obama’s political background gives him limited experience with either Catholics or Jews, who constitute two crucial Democratic voting blocs.  His misstep on the contraception mandate created problems for some Democrats facing tough races, including Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, former Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine who is running for the U.S.  Senate in Virginia, and House Democratic Caucus Chair John Larson of Connecticut.

Three years into a presidential term is a little late to be learning about the basics of the Democratic Party’s coalition politics.  Republicans will be happy to school the president on the subject between now and Nov. 8.

Jonathan Gurwitz

Jonathan Gurwitz