Religion and Politics in America: A Study of the Evangelical Influence on the Bush’s Successful Presidential Election in 2004

Ahmad Isa, S.Pd., Prof. Ratno Lukito, M.A., Ph.D

2012 | Tesis | S2 Pengkajian Amerika

Tesis ini membuktikan adanya keterkaitan antara Agama dan Politik pada pemilihan Presiden Amerika tahun 2004. Perkawinan sejenis, aborsi bertentangan dengan nilai nilai agama dan ini menjadi isu utama pada pemilihan Presiden saat itu. George Walker Bush dan tim pada kampanyenya menggunakan isu tesebut untuk bisa meraih suara dari pemilihnya, dan cara tersebut sangat efektif untuk mengusung sekalian memenagkan Bush sebagai Presiden Amerika. Evangelish selaku bagian dari kelompok ini sangat mendukung Bush. Pidato para pemimpin Agama di Gereja merupakan cara yang tepat dan efektif untuk mempengaruhi pemilih karena Gereja dianggap tempat yang suci sehingga tepat untuk mendapatkan informasi, dan informasi tersebut diterapkan dalam pemilihan presiden. Calon pemilih akan memilih calon Presiden yang taat, peduli dengan nilai nilai moral dan Agama karena calon prmilih cenderung memilih pimpinannya yang taat dengan perintah Agama dan menjunjung tinggi nilai moral dan ini terbukti pada kemenangan George Walker Bush pada pemilihan Presiden di Amerika tahun 2004. Amerika adalah Negara sekuler yang memisahkan antara Agama dan Negara, tetapi dalam kenyataannya sehari-hari Amerika masih mempertahankan nilainilai tradisi yang juga diajarkan dalam Agama. Bush sebagai bagian dari Evangelis sangat mengandalkan dan mengkedepankan nilai nilai moral dalam kampanye dan dia sangat cerdas dalam menggunakan isu moral, Agama untuk kepentingan kemenangannya pada Pemilihan Presiden tahun 2004. Isu Agama dan moral menjadi isu utama G.W Bush daripada isu pengguran, isu ekonomi, politik luar Negeri, isu perang, dan pada akhirnya dia berhasil meyakinkan para pemilihnya untuk memilih dia sebagai Presiden terpilih pada pemilihan Presiden Amerika tahun 2004.

This thesis showed the correlation between the influence of Evangelical values and politics in the Presidential election. Same marriage, guy and lesbian movement, and abortion were considered as bad values for Evangelical. George Walker Bush and his team in 2004 Presidential election used those issues to get the sympathy from voters. They used those issues as the effective ways to reach voters to appoint G.W Bush as their President. Evangelical as a part of religious group could not be separated from its members. It means that the political issues that had been connected with the moral and religious values and it is became the effective issues to influence the members. If the leaders of this group gave the sermons related to the moral values and politics, those members who attend to churches more would be easy in getting the information and then executing their decision in politics. If the president candidate was concerned more about the moral and religion values, those members would tend to appoint him. This happened to George Walker Bush as the president candidate in 2004 presidential election. Based on the history and values from this group of religion, United States of America can be considered as a secular country which separates country and religion but the country still can be considered as a consistent country which keeps the tradition in religious values based on the Scripture. As a member of Evangelical, Bush was eligible and smart enough to use those issues rather than to use other issues such as Iraq and Afghanistan War, Economics, and also unemployment issues in America for reaching his goal in his candidacy. Bush get sympathy especially from Evangelical in which the population of this group was almost 25 % from the whole American population. As a result, George Walker Bush became the president in 2004 presidential election because of his ideas about those issues.

Kata Kunci : This thesis showed the correlation between the influence of Evangelical values and politics in the Presidential election. Same marriage, guy and lesbian movement, and abortion were considered as bad values for Evangelical. George Walker Bush and his team