A previous diarist has asserted that one of the biggest problems that the Dems have is that the GOP can potentially split off one of the party's most reliable demographics -- American Jews -- by pandering with "support for Israel."
I definitely think that this is a problem. But Jews make up a tiny fraction of the country's population.
A bigger problem is that the GOP has its eyes on another prize: White Catholics.
Catholicism is the largest religion in the United States by a factor of many multiples. Unlike other demographics, however, Catholics do not tend to vote as a bloc. While Catholics still skew Democratic, a sizeable minority vote for Republicans -- especially white Catholics.
Still, however, Catholics retain a great affection for Catholic candidates -- a sentiment that I believe could cause many to cross party lines to vote for a national leader.
A Catholic, Republican candidate with a moderate face could make huge strides in pulling the last remaining white Catholic Democrats across the party line -- if only for one election. This person would not even have to be credibly orthodox or faithful. He or she could simply "be" a publicly identified Catholic and swing -- in my view -- five or ten extra percent of Catholic voters over to the GOP side.
I've watched with astonishment at how President Bush, the GOP and his administration have gone absolutely gah-gah over the Pope and Catholicism in general during this last week. I mean, as I sit here, Laura Bush is in Rome with a freaking veil over her head like some pre-Vatican II Sicilian mama. Comparisons to The Godfather aside, doesn't this strike anyone as a bit weird?
It used to be that the GOP would have to work really hard to find a credible presidential candidate who was of the Roman Catholic faith.
Fortunately for them, Jeb Bush converted to Catholicism after his first campaign loss running for governor of Florida in 1994.