I'm not an expert at reading these particular tea leaves but my wife used to be in a fundamentalist Christian sect and she has me well-trained enough that some of the dog-whistle terms here stood out to me:
But even more important is that world view that I share with John McCain. That world view that says that America is a nation of exceptionalism. And we are to be that shining city on a hill, as President Reagan so beautifully said, that we are a beacon of hope and that we are unapologetic here. We are not perfect as a nation. But together, we represent a perfect ideal. And that is democracy and tolerance and freedom and equal rights. Those things that we stand for that can be put to good use as a force for good in this world.
I didn't want it to go without note -- pretty obviously Sarah Palin got to the 75-minute mark in the debate, didn't know what an Achilles heel was, and used the opportunity to pull the trigger on her "I'm with ya, you church people, you know who you are" (*wink*) index card. It was very important for her to be able to do this, and Ifill had not asked explicitly about faith up till then.
Look at the passage again:
But even more important is that world view that I share with John McCain. That world view that says that America is a nation of exceptionalism. And we are to be that shining city on a hill, as President Reagan so beautifully said, that we are a beacon of hope and that we are unapologetic here. We are not perfect as a nation. But together, we represent a perfect ideal. And that is democracy and tolerance and freedom and equal rights. Those things that we stand for that can be put to good use as a force for good in this world.
Nothing very sinister, right?
I invite comment from folks who know this lexicon and its implications better than I do.