Bogus Gold

Seems we have another Justice Sunday event coming up. That's one of those things where conservative politicians do a closed-circuit simulcast to conservative churches and religious groups across the country talking about judicial nominations. Last time it was over the "nuclear option" showdown over the appelate court. This time it's over John Roberts' nomination to the Supreme Court.

Though I didn't see it, I wasn't all that fond of the last one. Not that I objected to the idea. Church groups have just as much right to make their voice known in Washington as anyone else. But the timing and media announcement of the event seemed to be offering a PR gift for the Democrats to pounce on. And pounce they did. Except, despite my misgivings, some people seem to think the GOP was mighty pleased with that pounce and wouldn't mind seeing another one...

In leading up to Justice Sunday I, critics had the gall to accuse Republicans of injecting religion into the public debate over judges. After it was over, they claimed victory. One leading reporter told me that Mr. Frist had been "humiliated" by the news coverage over the event. Even some conservatives thought that Christian leaders should be muzzled from talking about nominations. I thought that Mr. Frist had been brilliant and the Family Research Council's Tony Perkins had scored a slam dunk.

This Sunday, they will do it again. This time organizers will headline Democratic former senator Zell Miller and House Majority Leader Tom Delay. Liberals will not even think to ask either of those men to back out. (Some have attributed Mr. Frist's absence from this telecast to a supposed falling out with evangelical leaders over stem cell research, but in fact he had never planned to participate this time.)

Why do it again? Why was the first event successful? Two reasons. Since the ads in July 2003 by the Committee for Justice and Ave Maria List first came out with the resonant banner "Catholics Need Not Apply," the religious test issue has proved to be the most successful single catalyst of the judicial nominations fight to the greatest number of people. It has taken an inside-the-Beltway issue and placed it at family dinner tables and pews throughout the country. It has gotten people to the polls in two elections.

And then there is the second reason. We saw it best in the lead-up to Justice Sunday I as the event garnered reaction from the secular left that got more news media registered to watch the telecast than churches. The religious right wins whenever it can get the secular left to utter the word "religion," because it is invariably preceded or followed by something condescending, untruthful or offensive.

This week religious conservatives are keeping their fingers crossed, hoping (no need to pray) that Harry Reid or the New York Times editorial board will mock them again.

It has frequently caught my attention how quickly and heavily bile and vitriol pour from the left whenever the the topic of religion is raised by anyone to the political right of Reverend Jesse Jackson. It's a problem some - Howard Dean included - seem aware of to some extent. But darned if they know how to fix it.