When things get tough, politicians look to the 'amen corner'
Campaigns occasionally get compared to religious movements, so it鈥檚 not surprising to see the term 'amen corner' in greater use.聽
Campaigns occasionally get compared to religious movements, so it鈥檚 not surprising to see the term 'amen corner' in greater use.聽
鈥淎men corner.鈥�聽In a church, the section of a congregation hosting the most vocally devout worshipers; in politics, the most fervent supporters of a candidate or issue.
Because campaigns occasionally get compared to religious movements, it鈥檚 not surprising to see this term in greater use. The late language expert William Safire said the phrase predates the Civil War and first surfaced in the Congressional Record in 1884. 鈥淭rouble in the Amen Corner,鈥� based on a poem, became a popular country gospel song in the 1960s. (Among those who recorded it: Wink Martindale, who later became a TV game-show host.)
Discussing right-wing pundits鈥� fondness for Sen. Marco Rubio (R) of Florida, The New York Times鈥檚 Jonathan Martin said Sunday on CNN: 鈥淢arco has a great advantage in this campaign 鈥� he has got an amen corner in the conservative press. It is so revealing when he鈥檚 under attack from the left, or from folks inside the primary, the people that rally to his side.鈥�
The Seattle P-I鈥檚 Joel Connelly in September noted the GOP field鈥檚 enthusiastic response to Kentucky clerk Kim Davis鈥� refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples: 鈥淒avis has found an 鈥楢men Corner鈥� among Republican presidential candidates.鈥� And The Nation鈥檚 John Nichols has used it to dismiss pro-free trade news media outlets as well as new House Speaker Paul Ryan (R) and other deficit-cutters resisting Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders鈥檚聽plans to increase government spending on education and other services.
Former GOP presidential candidate and international isolationist Patrick Buchanan popularized the expression in a controversial 1990 blast at plans for Operation Desert Storm. 鈥淭here are only two groups that are beating the drums for war in the Middle East 鈥� the Israeli Defense Ministry and its amen corner in the United States,鈥� Buchanan said.
Since then, it has come up again in the context of Israel. When that country鈥檚 prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, spoke to Congress earlier this year in forcefully arguing against a nuclear deal with Iran, Bloomberg Politics ran a piece headlined: 鈥淎t Netanyahu鈥檚 Speech, Scenes From the Amen Corner.鈥澛� More recently, longtime GOP national-security hawk Elliott Abrams, writing in the Weekly Standard, referenced Buchanan鈥檚 comment in accusing President Obama of being unwilling to stand strongly with Israel.
The popularity of 鈥渁men corner鈥� extends to other areas. It鈥檚 best known in golf as the 11th, 12th and 13th holes at Augusta National, the site of the Masters, which are seen as so challenging that they require prayerful meditation. And it was the name of a 1960s British psychedelic-rock band.
Chuck McCutcheon writes his "Speaking Politics" blog exclusively for Politics Voices.