Thursday, October 13, 2011 

In case you missed it, the so-called "Value Voters Summit" took place this past weekend in Washington, DC. Ron Paul won the straw poll that was conducted at the end of the convention, beating out fellow GOP candidates who had likewise come to DC to speak at the VVS in their efforts to woo voters and raise money. Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, Herman Cain joined GOP stalwarts like Eric Cantor, John Boehner and others at the three-day meeting to "champion traditional values," among other things.

I guess one of the traditional values the VVS likes to champion is the hatred of religious minorities. Here is what Bryan Fischer, one of the speakers at the VVS, had to say at the conference about Muslims:

"Christians and Muslims do not believe in the same God."

"I believe it's important that we have a president who understands that Islam is not a ...religion of peace, but a religion of war and violence and death."

"Every single Mosque in America is a potential recruiting or training cell for Islamic terror."

"The greatest long-term threat to our security and liberty is not radical Islam, but Islam itself."

Excuse me, but why is it considered okay for one of our two major political parties to be associated with conferences like the VVS where this kind of hate speech is produced? While these words would have been abhorrent no matter where they were uttered, it's worth noting that Fischer was not speaking in some far-off ballroom hidden from view. He spoke on Saturday morning, right after Ron Paul, Bill Bennett, and Mitt Romney, of all people.

Watch the video. Fischer is speaking in a large, apparently well-filled room, and people are applauding every one of his hateful, ignorant, and fear-mongering sentences:



Of course, Fischer's words about Islam did not constitute the only instance of religious bigotry on public display at the VVS conference. Earlier in the weekend, a supporter of Rick Perry, a pastor named Robert Jeffress, had called Mormonism a "cult." 

Romney, in response, quickly called upon Rick Perry to repudiate these comments. In the days which have followed, moreover, a number of pundits and personalities associated with the GOP have likewise, and rightly, criticized this form of bigotry.

But not a word about what Fischer said about Islam on the exact same weekend. At the exact same conference.

Why the silence?

Keep in mind, Fischer was not simply criticizing Islam, he was saying that the very existence of Islam, and of "believing Muslims," constitutes a threat to the rest of us.

Is this a view that the GOP endorses? Is this the sort of GOP that Mitt Romney identifies with?  

If not, then why not say something about it?