Iowa Straw Poll Reveals Role of Religion in Politics

Ethics Daily ran my latest article today, which is entitled "Iowa Straw Poll Reveals Role of Religion in Politics." It covers the role religious outreach played in the Iowa Straw Poll on Saturday. I attended both the Straw Poll and the Republican presidential debate sponsored by Fox News and Washington Examiner two days earlier (and got to be in the post-debate "spin room"). The weekend in Iowa demonstrates the continuing consequences of our age of confessional politics. Pictures of both events are below.

During the events, I also shot several videos. On the night of the debate, I shot a video of Mitt Romney arriving at the last minute, a video of Herman Cain attacking Sharia during the debate, a video of presidential candidate Thaddeus McCotter talking about his time with the "Values Bus" religious-political effort, a video of former U.S. Senator Jim Talent praising Romney's debate performance, a video of U.S. Representative Steve King talking about Iran and nuclear weapons, a video of Family Research Council President Tony Perkins talking about the "Values Bus" effort, a video of U.S. Senator Rand Paul talking about the TEA Party and the national debt as a moral issue, a video of presidential hopeful Rick Santorum attacking his opponent Michele Bachmann on the issue of same-sex marriage (even comparing her to President Barack Obama), a video of the head of "Americans for Perry" talking about how Rick Perry's prayer rally helped his presidential campaign, and a video of the head of "Americans for Perry" expressing his excitement for the satirical Colbert SuperPAC ads promoting "Rick Parry." During the Straw Poll, I shot a video of a TEA Partier in colonial garb chanting for Bachmann to be elected "Mother-in-Chief" so she can "spank" Congress, a video of religious-political activist Rick Green campaigning for Bachmann, and a video of presidential hopeful Ron Paul speaking.