October 7 2002

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Critical votes on human cloning, partial-birth abortion, faith-based legislation, and many of President Bush's judicial nominees are stalled in the Senate. Add to that fears of low voter turnout in November, and it's understandable why some Christian conservative leaders are worried.

"[Conservative voters] don't have many policy successes over the last 20 years to point to," said Gary Bauer, president of American Values and a 2000 GOP presidential candidate. "Roe v. Wade is still on the books. Gay rights are stronger than ever. Human nature being what it is, I don't know if they'll turn out."

Christian conservatives are the backbone of the profamily movement and were strong supporters of President Bush in 2000.

Fewer people vote in midterm elections than in presidential elections (CT, Feb. 4, p. 15). A near-record low of 36 percent of registered voters cast ballots in the 1998 midterms, compared with 51 percent in the presidential year of 2000, according to the Washington-based Committee for the Study of the American Electorate.

"The post-September 11 halo over Bush's head is rapidly fading," said Charlie Cook, National Journal political analyst, in mid-August. Recent opinion polls of registered voters reveal that Bush's approval rating among Democrats is weak at 40 percent, while approval among Republicans remains very high at 93 percent.

Domestic concerns, not Middle East politics or the war on terrorism, are proving to be a problem for the Bush administration. Ken Connor, president of the Family Research Council, criticized Bush for acquiescing on an expansion of homosexual legal rights. "This White House has shown remarkable concern for the gay community," Connor said, citing the administration's decision earlier this year ...