The Culture War is Back

Worth Clicking: Blasts from the past wound Romney

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February 08, 2012

The Culture War is Back

First Read: "You know the economy must be improving when cultural and social issues come roaring back into the national spotlight. Just days after the unemployment rate decreased to 8.3%, we've seen a raging debate over funding to Planned Parenthood, a skirmish between the Obama administration and Catholic Church over contraception, and now the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that California's Prop. 8 -- which outlawed gay marriage in the state -- is unconstitutional. As we've said before, the economy will likely remain the top story in November's general election. But events overseas, as well as inside this country, can change the issue matrix in the blink of an eye."

Brad Phillips says the issue of religious freedom in particular is a dangerous one for President Obama because he "is already viewed by millions with skepticism over his own religious faith" and the "most dangerous moments for politicians are often the ones that reinforce a widely-held narrative."

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Taegan D. Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including the Washington Post, USA Today, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer and Christian Science Monitor.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

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February 08, 2012