Once the GOP was a voice of reason

And former senator and current minister, John Danforth, in an article in today's NY Times gives one hope that one day it will again be known as the party that had a balanced view of the world and was able to keep religion out of politics.

Danforth laments that conservative Christians have taken over his party. He fears that the GOP will become the political extension of a religious movement. In his view the job of the government is to "hold together as one people a very diverse country". If politicians become an arm of a particular religious cause, that job becomes impossible.

A quote I really love: "As a senator, I worried every day about the size of the federal deficit. I did not spend a single minute worrying about the effect of gays on the institution of marriage. Today it seems to be the other way around."