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"There is no contradiction between support for faith-based initiatives and upholding our constitutional principles," ~ Hillary Clinton, January 2005.


Salon.com

Hillary Clinton and "moral values"
Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2005 14:36 EST

There's a lot of reason to doubt that "moral values" were the Election Day trigger that the press has made them out to be, but those doubts aren't stopping Democrats from moving to the middle -- or beyond -- on social issues that religious conservatives hold dear.

First Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi encouraged an anti-abortion red-stater, former Indiana Rep. Tim Roemer, to run for the DNC chairmanship. Now Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton seems to be stepping at least a little to the right. Last week in Boston, on the night before George W. Bush's second inauguration, Clinton delivered a speech in which she lauded the role of religious faith in public life and seemed to offer at least some kind of support for Bush's faith-based initiatives. Arguing that there is a "false division" between faith-based programs and the religious freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment, Clinton said, "There is no contradiction between support for faith-based initiatives and upholding our constitutional principles."

On Monday in Albany, in a speech tied to the 32nd anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, Clinton called on activists on both sides of the abortion debate to seek "common ground" and work together to reduce unwanted pregnancies. While Clinton didn't signal any change in her views about the legality of abortion, she called the practice a "sad, even tragic choice for many, many women." In arguing that the number of abortions should be reduced, Clinton advocated sex education -- including abstinence education, a favorite of the Christian right -- and said that "research shows that that the primary reason teenage girls abstain from early sexual activity is because of their religious and moral values." (Clinton didn't mention other research showing that teens who take abstinence pledges are less likely than other teens to use contraception when they do have sex.)

Clinton's middle-ground approach on abortion and family planning appears to have satisfied no one except the Democratic Leadership Council, which said her comments put her in line with most Americans' "yes, but" or "no, but" views about abortion. [...]

― Tim Grieve

"The Clintons, on faith-based solutions, have always been way ahead of the curve," - Rev. Eugene F. Rivers 3rd

Boston Clobe

Sen. Clinton urges use of faith-based initiatives
By Michael Jonas, Globe Correspondent | January 20, 2005

On the eve of the presidential inauguration, US Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton last night embraced an issue some pundits say helped seal a second term for George W. Bush: acceptance of the role of faith in addressing social ills.

In a speech at a fund-raising dinner for a Boston-based organization that promotes faith-based solutions to social problems, Clinton said there has been a "false division" between faith-based approaches to social problems and respect for the separation of church of state.

"There is no contradiction between support for faith-based initiatives and upholding our constitutional principles," said Clinton, a New York Democrat who often is mentioned as a possible presidential candidate in 2008.

Addressing a crowd of more than 500, including many religious leaders, at Boston's Fairmont Copley Plaza, Clinton invoked God more than half a dozen times, at one point declaring, "I've always been a praying person."

She said there must be room for religious people to "live out their faith in the public square."

[...]

The dinner was a fund-raiser for the National TenPoint Leadership Foundation and the Dorchester-based Ella J. Baker House. Both youth outreach programs are directed by the Rev. Eugene F. Rivers 3d, a leader of the clergy-based efforts to stem youth violence in Boston in the 1990s that has become a national model for community-police partnerships.

[...]

"The Clintons, on faith-based solutions, have always been way ahead of the curve," said Rivers, citing President Clinton's support of a 1996 law banning the federal government from discriminating against religious organizations seeking funding available to groups delivering social services.

In her speech, Clinton praised the efforts of Rivers and others working to curb youth violence, saying those of faith are often most willing to walk the streets of the country's most dangerous neighborhoods to try to reach young people. Where others "see trouble," she said, Rivers and faith-based soldiers "see God's work right in front of them."

Although the senator has insisted that she is focused only on her work in the Senate and constituents in New York (she faces reelection in 2006), talk of another Clinton seeking the White House seems to be a topic of speculation wherever she goes. [...]

2008:

College Democrats of America - Friday, May 16, 2008

Faith, Family and Values / Hillary Clinton’s Vision for Faith Based Organizations: Active, Growing and Living Out Their God-Given Callings

Faith Based Initiatives - Hillary Clinton supports the funding of faith-based programs that promote the common good – feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, bringing hope to those who hurt. Our tax dollars come from a great and diverse nation and we have a sacred trust to use those funds to help the least fortunate in our society in the best and most cost-effective way possible.

Senator Clinton believes that we cannot and should not use tax dollars to promote one religion over another and that our government should work with faith-based organizations in ways that are consistent with our Constitution.

An example of how we can do this well is Hillary Clinton’s Kinship Caregiver Support Act, which included support for faith-based partnerships that assist the growing number of grandparents and other relatives raising children.

Introduced: July 21, 2004:
S. 2706 [108th]: Kinship Caregiver Support Act (full text of bill)

March 12, 2007:

The Kinship Caregiver Support Act

Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) have introduced this legislation in the last two Congresses. Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS) was also an original co-sponsor. In the 109th Congress, the following Members were also co-sponsors: Senators Coleman, Jeffords, Johnson, Kerry, Landrieu, Lautenberg, Obama and Schumer.

Introduced May 07, 2007:
H.R. 2188: Kinship Caregiver Support Act 110th Congress (full text)

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WARNING: Signs and Wonders / Mark of the Beast Alert!

McCain -- See: Cain: First son of Adam, his works being evil, his offerings will be rejected by the faithful.

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