Church and Politics Don't Mix

The Saddleback "civil forum" really did leave a bad taste because Pastor Rick seemed to play everyone the fool -- John McCain too -- he just looked like a panderer. The days of evangelical influence on government is going out with Bush. Hallelujah and Amen!

The Fix: Voters don't mind discussing their faith but they're tired of religion and politics.

Days after both presidential candidates attended a nationally telecast forum at an evangelical megachurch, a survey shows that voters are growing wary of the mix of faith and politics.

In a 63-page report out today the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life found that 50 percent of conservatives now believe that churches and other houses of worship should stay out of politics. Four years ago, only 30 percent agreed. Across the entire political spectrum, 52 percent of voters said churches should keep out of politics. Forty-five percent said they should express their views.

CNN: "Overall, the number of people who say churches should not endorse political candidates is up slightly, but among Republicans it is up 11 points, and among white evangelical Republicans it is up 19 points," said Greg Smith, a research fellow at the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

"There is a slight uptick, from 40 percent to 46 percent, among people who are uncomfortable to have politicians talking about religion, but it is up 10 points among Republicans," he added.

Here's the full report from the Pew Forum