Very poor word choice on the part of a Republican Congressman in South Carolina:
“I told him, you cannot equate Mormonism with Christianity; you cannot say, `I am a Christian just like you,’’’ said Representative Bob Inglis of South Carolina, which is scheduled to hold the first primary among the Southern states. “If he does that, every Baptist preacher in the South is going to have to go to the pulpit on Sunday and explain the differences.’’
I understand Inglis meant to give Romney helpful advice, but I think the former governor has probably heard more than he’ll ever need to hear about how to handle “the Mormon factor.”
Ramesh has some more thoughts on Mormonism and electability here. He points out polling showing evangelical voters were only slightly more hostile to Mormon candidates than the population at large, while Democratic voters were much more hostile.
On that note, I realize Mike Huckabee has only been in the top tier for a short time, but I wonder if we soon hear questions about “the Baptist preacher factor” in his bid.