http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/01/22/1473694/-Ted-Cruz-I-m-a-Christian-first-American-second-Imagine-if-Muslim-or-Jewish-politician-said-that?detail=email
His Christianity is probably the last thing Ted Cruz ever thought would give him problems. However, a new ad produced by Americans United for Values attacks him for being, get this, a “false prophet.” Among other slings and arrows hurled, the ad slams Cruz for not tithing—donating 10 percent of his income to charity—something many Christians believe is a sacred obligation. Cruz, it seems, has donated only about one percent of his income—which came to around $1 million annually—to charity between 2006 and 2010.
In response to the ad and other attacks on his Christianity as well as his conservatism, Cruz responded:
“I’m a Christian first, American second, conservative third and Republican fourth...I’ll tell ya, there are a whole lot of people in this country that feel exactly the same way.”
The politics of this aside, I want to highlight here something we might call Christian Privilege. Could you imagine, for example, a Jewish candidate for president saying that he or she was a Jew first and an American second? Now imagine the sheer outrage if a Muslim American of any prominence whatsoever declared that he or she was Muslim first and American second.
People’s heads would explode.
On a related note, imagine a presidential candidate saying he or she was black, white, or Latino (or any other ethnic group) first, and American second. President Obama—and, having done extensive research on his conception of ethnic and national identity, I believe he sincerely feels this way—made crystal clear before 2008 that his identification as an American took precedence over his blackness. Without doubt, he could not have been elected president without having done so.
okay let's just own up privilege does exist and always has as long as it was about Whites of any designation even criminals who serve fractions of time than other ethnic groups when do for same crime, politicians on the republican side it's protocol to be willing to exploit that privilege it is encoded in the pledge to enforce the constitution and other laws and though not said it is their general conception and why people like the supreme court feel it's okay to strip out voter rights and many other gifts to republicans with an occasional bone tossing so they can be perceived as fair.
i defy any republican politician or voter to point out the christian tenets within the platform and ideology in full of the republican party. i say full because they have made the claim based on half truths and usurped Bible verse show us your Jesus from head to toe and if you really believe or burn in hell for your blasphemy.
