The "God"-less Debates

From TIME's Massimo Calabresi:

In the nearly sixteen thousand words uttered last night in the debate between John McCain and Barack Obama, one was noticeably absent: God. The deity got not a single mention, not even a perfunctory “God Knows,” or “Good God,” or “God Bless America”. In fact, in the three presidential debates, McCain and Obama have completed a surprising sweep: no mention of “God”, the “Lord”, or even a higher power.

In contrast, the word “God” was invoked twice during the first Bush-Kerry debate (both times in closing God Bless Americas by the candidates), twice in the second debate (once in a Kerry reference to the Pledge of Allegiance, and again by Bush with a departing GBA), and fully nine times in the third Bush-Kerry debate, seven times by Kerry and two by Bush. Sprinkled throughout the Bush-Kerry debates were the occasional “Lord”, “heaven” or other divine references.

Why the God-free gab fest this time? A few possible reasons leap to mind. First, the country’s focus is very much on real-world problems of everyday Americans right now. The economic crisis has eaten up much of the time in these debates, with lengthy exegeses on plans for job creation, tax plans and the $700 billion bailout plan. If there are no atheists in foxholes, perhaps there are agnostics amid bank runs.

Just as important, though, are the individual candidates. John McCain believes religion is a private matter. He was raised an Episcopalian but now occasionally attends Baptist churches. Various political consultants, including Karl Rove, have encouraged McCain to wear his religion on his sleeve, but McCain is resolute about not faking it. That goes for his top campaign advisers as well.

Obama has his reasons for not bringing the subject up. If he did, it could remind people of his pastor problem: the fact that he attended for 20 years the church of the firebrand preacher Jeremiah Wright, whom Obama was forced to repudiate last spring after a variety of offensive comments surfaced.

The personal reasons may, in fact, be more important than the larger political context. Neither Joe Biden nor Sarah Palin were so restrained in invoking the deity. “God” was mentioned seven times, five by Biden, twice by Palin. And in some ways, both running mates have been carrying the religion ball for their candidates since they were chosen in August.

The last reason why neither Obama nor McCain may have elided “God” in the debates is that the issue was to some degree taken off the table by the “summit” on faith and politics hosted at Saddleback Church by the Rev. Rick Warren. That gave both candidates time to air out the extent to which religion informed their positions on public policy.

Still, the fact that both Obama and McCain chose so assiduously not to invoke “God” in any form in any of their debates is noteworthy, not least to people who care about the presence of religion in politics. "Whether intentional or not the discussion of God and the role of faith appears to have been relegated to the Saddleback forum in this general election,” says Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council, who calls the development “troubling.”