Christian
Leaders
to
Challenge
Candidates
on
Hunger, Poverty
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of 1 > |
(l to r) Fr. Larry Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA; Rev. Sekinah Hamlin, director of the Ecumenical Poverty Initiative, Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World; Jim Wallis, founder and CEO of Sojourners; Rev. Carlos Malavé, executive director of Christian Churches Together; and Galen Carey, vice president for government relations at the National Association of Evangelicals. |
"This
has
to
be
a
top priority." - Jim Wallis
Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World, said the objective is "to reach out to all the serious candidates...in a rigorous and fair way." Jim Wallis, founder and CEO of Sojourners, noted that, "The state of the union is not good for a lot of people." "This has to be a top priority," Wallis said. Galen Carey, vice president for government relations at the National Association of Evangelicals, cited Psalm 72, and said that "silence on poverty is inexcusable." Several of the speakers noted that "churches and charities can't do it all." Rev. Carlos Malavé, executive director of Christian Churches Together, stated "the quality of life of poor people will not be elevated by charity alone." Although there has been a lot of maneuvering by potential 2016 presidential candidates in recent weeks, there are as of yet no formally announced major candidates. Circle of Protection is moving early to see that the issues of hunger and poverty are among the first questions the candidates face. |
In Sept. 2012 the two major
party nominees, former Gov. Mitt
Romney and President Barack Obama, made three-minute videos for
Circle of Protection (>), but
overall during the course of the campaign the issues of poverty and
hunger were largely pushed to the margins in the broader discussion
about jobs and the economy. A speech on poverty by Rep. Paul
Ryan, the Republican vice presidential nominee, at Cleveland State
University on Oct. 24 did get a fair bit of attention. Ryan, who
recently announced he will not run for president in 2016, has continued
to advocate for an overhaul of the federal government's anti-poverty
efforts, although his approach has its critics (1, 2)
Sen. Marco Rubio, a potential 2016 candidate, has also delivered a
major speech on the subject (+). |
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Commissioner David Jeffrey,
national commiander of The Salvation Army, talked with Jim Wallis after
the press conference. |