This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
PRINCETON, N.J. - While a group of religion experts huddled here Friday night to dissect the impact of Mitt Romney's Mormon faith on his presidential run, the mother of a rival candidate raised the issue of Romney's religion on MSNBC, blaming Mormons for the 2002 Olympic bid scandal.
Roberta McCain, the 95-year-old mother of GOP Sen. John McCain, dismissed Romney's leadership of the Winter Games in Salt Lake City during an interview with pundit Chris Matthews.
Asked whether she thought Romney had done much "heavy lifting for America" with his government service and as head of the Olympic committee in Utah - Roberta McCain said no.
"I think being a senator, a congressman whatever it was - a governor for four years and as far as the Salt Lake City thing, he's a Mormon and the Mormons of Salt Lake City caused that scandal and to clean that up - it's not even - it's not a subject," she replied.
Romney was tapped to return credibility to the Salt Lake City Games after a bid scandal erupted in 1999.
He is credited for "saving" the Olympics, a position he used to launch a political career.
McCain, who was sitting next to his mother, smiled during the exchange and quickly added - with a tinge of laughter - that, "The views of my mother are not necessarily the views of mine."
The candidate later added during the broadcast that Mormons are "great people" and that should not be a factor for or against Romney. "I think that it should never be a consideration and I know that he'll be judged on his record," the senator said.
Romney's campaign spokesman Kevin Madden responded to Roberta McCain's comment saying that no one should be attacking someone's personal faith.
"I would disagree with any candidate or any campaign surrogate that chooses to disparage someone based on the faith that they hold, and instead implore other candidates and their campaigns to make a case to voters based on the important issues facing the nation," Madden said.
Despite John McCain's distancing himself from his mother's attack, the comment raised the idea of Romney's religion as a negative in his presidential bid, one of the subjects of the forum at Princeton University, where religious scholars are holding a two-day meeting to discuss the intersection of Mormonism and politics.
The forum is sponsored by the university's Center for the Study of Religion and not affiliated with the LDS Church.