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A new survey by the Public Religion Research Institute found that contrary to the GOP’s belief, a majority of Catholics agree with Obama on contraception coverage.

A majority of Catholics polled (58%) in The Public Religion Research Institute survey believed that employers should be required to provide health care plans that cover contraception, but if you really want to know more about why Republicans are making an issue out of this consider that, “Only half (50%) of white Catholics support this requirement, compared to 47% who oppose it,” and only 36% of Republicans agreed that employer provided healthcare coverage should include contraception.

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When the question was asked if religiously affiliated colleges and hospitals should be required to provide healthcare plans that cover contraception, the Republicans’ intentions become obvious. While a majority of Catholics (52%) believed that religiously affiliated colleges and hospitals should be required to provide healthcare plans that cover contraception, only 45% of Catholic voters, and 41% of white Catholic voters supported it.

The issue at hand isn’t one of religious liberty, but whether or not a religious institution has to play by the same rules in terms of employee benefits. Since employee benefits issues don’t get Republicans out to vote, they have warped this into a “war on religion.” The reality that most Catholics agree with president’s position is irrelevant, because Republicans are courting white, Catholic, conservative voters with their latest trumped up war.

What this survey reveals is that Republicans are using Obama’s war on religion as a dog whistle to get their base out to vote. The Republican Party has developed a big enthusiasm problem. None of their candidates are getting the base fired up to go out and vote in the primaries, which hints a potential turnout disaster in the fall, so the GOP is manufacturing a bit of fear to light a fire under their base.

The war on religion charge is also another shameless election year attempt to attack Barack Obama. The ugly step child of Obama’s war on religion is the claim that Obama hates Christians because he is a Muslim. In case anyone hasn’t figured it out yet, that is where this fake war on religion ends up. By the fall, Republicans all across America will be telling voters that Obama hates America and doesn’t understand American values because he declared war on religion.

Meanwhile, a majority of Americans and Catholics will be in agreement with the president. As they pander to their base, the Republican Party (version 2012) is once again delivering a textbook case study on how to lose an election.