# How secualr is the USA when it comes to elect a president.

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-secualr-is-the-usa-when-it-comes-to-elect-a-president/223206>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [January 7, 2004, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-secualr-is-the-usa-when-it-comes-to-elect-a-president/223206 "2004-01-07T14:27:05Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 4

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**Author:** ![Aldebaran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Aldebaran](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aldebaran)\
**Post date:** [January 8, 2004, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-secualr-is-the-usa-when-it-comes-to-elect-a-president/223206/61 "2004-01-08T21:50:41Z")

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If other members want to take this thread for starting debates on politics in other nations then refered to in the OP, may I ask you also to your own thread about it.  
Thank you.

Salaam. A

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**Author:** ![Mehitabel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mehitabel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mehitabel)\
**Post date:** [January 8, 2004, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-secualr-is-the-usa-when-it-comes-to-elect-a-president/223206/62 "2004-01-08T22:00:48Z")

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Hope it’s warmer in Riyadh than it is here. Brrrr!

Anyway, **asrivkin** wrote in his wonderful post:

> [@](#):
>
> …the only “official” statement on religion in the USA is in the Constitution where the government cannot establish a state religion or interfere with an individual’s freedom to worship or not worship. Religious figures are free to take part in politics, as people as distinguished as Dr. Martin Luther King (PBUH) did. Though he did not run for office, others have. In some cases, I personally believe being too associated with religion doomed some presidential campaigns, like Pat Robertson’s.
> 
> We are a secular country in that we are not a theocracy. And even if Pat Robertson were to become president with 100% of the vote, as long as he did not attempt to establish a theocracy, we would remain secular in that sense.

Perfect. Your questions is answered. Unless you wish again to discount the information provided by people who live in a country that you admit you have never been to and whose language you understand rather imperfectly. Since you have failed to give us an example of what you mean by a secular state, I don’t see what else we can do besides bring on examples of other countries to compare the US too.

I’m done too.

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