This article was written by ChrstiaNet, a Christian internet blog, prior to Perry declaring his candidacy for the Republican nomination. It describes Perry’s devotion to Christianity and his faith while serving as the Governor of Texas. While busy managing the affairs of over 23 million Texans, Perry strove to keep his family a major priority. He told ChistiaNet, “My son played high school baseball and I rarely missed a game. My daughter is a cheerleader, I’ve never missed a home game. I have an important job, but its not more important that being a father.” Obviously, Perry’s Christian beliefs helped him to live up the virtues and standards of being a good father. Those same religious ideals guided him to campaign for and pass the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage in the state of Texas and in the United States as between a man and a woman. Perry defended the Defense of Marriage Act by explaining that “another state by virtue of an activist judge, can create a gay-marriage situation where we would be forced in Texas to recognize that. “ He goes on the campaign for a national amendment where the laws about marriage in other states would not apply in Texas. The support of traditional marriage laws is a defining characteristic in Perry’s conservative political philosophy. As, the Governor, he had the power to enact these laws in the state of Texas, and should he become President, he could force his religious driven ideals on the entire nation.
The article’s description of Gov. Perry religiously and politically resembles Carty’s depiction of John F. Kennedy as a representative and senator of Massachusetts in this past week’s readings. JFK, as a representative, supported several bills that would provide federal funds for Catholic schools. As a Catholic, he saw it as his responsibility to help fellow Catholics and endorse the ideals of his constituents. The majority of JFK’s voters were Catholics, and thus he fought and campaigned for policies that would align with their beliefs. Perry, similarly, supported the Defense of Marriage Act in Texas, where the majority of his constituents are devout Christians whose definition of marriage comes from the Bible. Gov. Perry, like the early JFK, allowed his policy decisions to be influenced by religious ideals, those same ideals and beliefs held by the majority of voters.
I think you have an interesting idea by putting what we read about JFK and what we know about Perry in dialogue with each other. I think the difference in the two candidates is that while JFK played the "catholic candidate" in Massachusetts, and "not-the-catholic candidate" in the presidential elections, and Perry has, if anything, up-played his role as a "Christian candidate" now that his audience is the nation.
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