As American citizens may have noticed over the last decade or two, utilizing social issues within the context of a campaign can get you some votes, but also leave other voters truly disgusted. “Polarizing rhetoric” is the common charge, and it can work on many levels — President George W. Bush famously used the culture wars to win re-election in 2004, and it was a huge part of the political clashes in the 1990s.
But with an economy still struggling to get off the floor, does it make sense for a political campaign to try the divisive track again? Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s campaign thinks so.
The Perry campaign has cut a new ad which doesn’t even attempt to sugar coat where he wants to take his message in the Republican primary. “I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a Christian,” Perry says in the spot. “But you don’t need to be in the pew every Sunday to know that there’s something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military, but our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school.”
Sure, GOP primary voters aren’t exactly on the side of gay rights. But after a prolonged recession, does it matter how anti-gay a candidate is?
A CBS/New York Times poll out Tuesday showed Perry in fourth place with 11 percent of Republican caucus-goers. But pollsters also delved into what GOP voters see in each of the candidates, and what issues they’d like to see them address. The culture war was not high on the list. From CBSnews.com:
Iowa-caucus goers don’t see social issues as paramount: 71 percent overall say candidates should be judged on economic issues, while just 14 percent point to social issues. (13 percent said the two are equally important.) Just 25 percent of white evangelical Republican caucus-goers and 18 percent of Tea Party Republican caucus-goers say social issues matter the most in their vote, while 55 percent of white evangelical Republican caucus-goers and 65 percent of Tea Party caucus-goers cite economic issues as paramount.
On one hand, Perry’s reasons for making social issues front and center are obvious — he’s lagging behind. A Public Policy Polling (D) survey showed that his personal favorability is underwater even among the GOP in Iowa, and he needs to get votes quickly. But according to the data and anecdotal evidence on the ground in the state, the biggest block of voters up for grabs aren’t concerned about reviving the social wedge issues. They want someone who can beat President Obama, and the heart of the argument is on the economy.
So Perry’s new ad doesn’t just look like a desperate campaign strategy — it’s also a curious one.
