OttawaWatch: Why does one Democrat want George Bush re-elected?
By Lloyd Mackey
AT LEAST one card-carrying Democrat thinks United States president George W. Bush -- a Republican -- could get four more years in office.
The Democrat in question might have some reason to want Bush re-elected this November. Jim Towey would likely lose his job if W. is turfed out.
Towey occupies works just a few steps from the Oval Office. He holds the dual role of deputy assistant to the president and director of the White House office of faith-based and community initiatives.
Speaking May 3 in Minneapolis, to 300 attending the Evangelical Press Association convention, Towey said the faith-based initiative needs four more years of Bush in order to become a permanent fixture in the American federal social service funding scene. There is enough animosity among Democrats, especially those who are suspicious of a religious influence in politics, that the program would likely be killed if John Kerry were to be elected as president, he indicated.
This writer was at the event as one of a group of Christian newspaper editors and publishers from throughout North America, whose publications were being recognized as a new division of the EPA, known as the Fellowship of Christian Newspapers. Two Canadian publications received honors at the event. More about that later
Towey is a lawyer and a Roman Catholic who was legal counsel to Mother Teresa for 12 years. But it was his decision to live as a full-time volunteer in the late nun's Washington, DC, home for people with AIDS, that brought him to Bush's attention.
The faith-based initiative brings presidential muscle to the concept that religious organizations can carry out certain social services that traditionally have been handled by governments on various levels, and can receive government assistant -- specifically federal aid -- for the work they do.
Towey's Democrat status is an obvious plus for the initiative, given that he is able to bring a bipartisan approach to the office that blunts potential criticism from people who see it as a sop to right wing fundamentalism.
Towey points out that opposition to the faith-based initiative comes mainly from the American Civil Liberties Union, who in his words, "scream about breaching the wall between church and state." He took issue with the ACLU contention that the program is an excuse for religious proselytism.
A serious need, in the world of social service and action, he suggested, is the opportunity to integrate the prophetic mission of the church.
That said, he recognized the dangers of becoming like a "Taliban" with its "poisonous" potential for repression.
Organizations ranging from the Salvation Army to Teen Challenge to the Brooklyn Tabernacle are among those with strong Christian outreach traditions that work with the initiative. But Bush has made it clear, says Towey, that organizations with misgivings about how much they can say about their own faith perspective, are "free to walk away from the grant."
Towey also responded to apparently erroneous suggestions coming from Public Broadcasting documentaries, that suggested non-Christian organizations could not get money.
"I am sure that is going to come as a shock to Jewish Family Services," he quipped.
Faith-based organizations are often well-equipped to work with the mentally ill, develop job training programs and set up battered women's shelters, Towey noted.
And he cited the Salvation Army as one organization that understands the limits with respect to initiative-backed programs. They know they cannot preach on "Uncle Sam's dollar" and neither can they discriminate in their job training programs, on the basis of religion. But they can maintain their identity.
Towey cited one inner city program where an SA rehab initiative is located across the hall from a secular-based 12 step addiction program.
"A lot of people want to go to (the SA) program," he pointed out.
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Before putting a wrap on this, just a note about the EPA and the recognition of two Canadian newspapers, during the Minneapolis meeting.
The EPA is representative of around 400 publications, serving a cumulative circulation of 21 million. That means about one in every five people in North America (assuming three readers for each copy) reads an EPA-related publication.
And the two Canadian publications that did well were ChristianWeek and BC Christian News.
CW received the award of excellence in the newspaper category of the EPA competition and BCCN was named newspaper of the year in a parallel FCN evaluation. I am happy to bask in the glow of their recognition, having long associations, direct and indirect, with both publications. Kudos to BCCN editor Flyn Ritchie as well as CW editorial director Doug Koop and managing editor Kelly Rempel.
