Source: Chicago Tribune
On October 7, 2004 Chicago Tribune reported, "spurred by such issues as gay marriage, abortion, the war in Iraq and by expectations of a close election, religion has taken on an unusually bare-knuckled political role in the contest between President Bush, a Methodist and born-again Christian, and Sen. John Kerry, only the third Roman Catholic nominated on a major ticket to run for the presidency... In fact, the Democratic Party and progressive, or liberal, religious groups are playing an intense game of catch-up in an arena where the GOP has spent more than 20 years organizing and cultivating people of faith, especially conservatives, who particularly gravitate to the party's firm stands against abortion and gay marriage." Included in this report is a comparison of values between Bush and Kerry, with issues ranging from stem cell to the death penalty. For more on the values supported by the Kerry campaign see http://www.democrats.org/values/.