If Rick Perry is going down, he’s not going down quietly.
Perry has a new TV ad in Iowa, that doesn’t simply pitch him as a conservative Christian — it turns the culture war up to 11.
“I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a Christian,” Perry says. “But you don’t need to be in the pew every Sunday to know that there’s something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military, but our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school.
“As President, I’ll end Obama’s war on religion, and I’ll fight against liberal attacks on our religious heritage. Faith made America strong. It can make her strong again. I’m Rick Perry and I approve this message.”
The ad is running statewide in Iowa.
Interestingly, the ad has a clash of tone and emotion. Despite the negativity of Perry denouncing America’s cultural decline thanks to gays in uniform and children forbidden to celebrate Christmas, the candidate himself is standing on a beautiful green hill, with a slight camera blur and soothing musical accompaniment.
As such, the ad might have an unintended consequence: Suddenly, those gays in the military and the end of Christmas seem kind of reassuring.
Eric Kleefeld
Eric Kleefeld joined TPM as an intern for the final months of the 2006 midterm elections, and then kept showing up for work. His other interests include guitars, old comic books and the politics of various English-speaking countries.
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