No Margaret Mead questions. Journalists sometimes write about faith communities as if they are exotic tribes, focusing on details that accentuate the “otherness.” This is why we end up reading about Mormon holy undergarments. And how Hillary Clinton ended up on a CNN set in 2008 answering questions about whether she had “ever felt the Holy Spirit.” Again, if the question doesn’t relate to how a candidate would discharge the duties of his of her office, it should remain unasked.
Allow degrees of separation. Candidates shouldn’t have to answer for the theological and political beliefs of every religious leader who supports them or shares a stage. If a candidate publicly endorses the statements or writings of a religious leader, that’s a different story–they should be required to explain what they agree with and why.
Ask about Jeremiah Wrights. When a candidate has been affiliated with a religious leader or community for a long period of time, the rules change. It was legitimate to ask Sarah Palin in 2008 about the Pentecostal church she attended for much of her adult life in Alaska. It is legitimate to question Michele Bachmann about the anti-Catholic views of a church where she was a member for more than a decade. And it was legitimate to question Barack Obama about the radical statements of the man who had been his pastor for 18 years.
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