The absence of one word from the Democratic Party platform could raise some conservative hackles.
The word “God” is notably missing from this year’s 40-page document, as David Brody of the Christian Broadcasting Network first pointed out.
“We need a government that stands up for the hopes, values, and interests of working people, and gives everyone willing to work hard the chance to make the most of their God-given potential,” the party's 2008 platform said.
This year, a similar paragraph instead states, “We gather to reclaim the basic bargain that built the largest middle class and the most prosperous nation on Earth—the simple principle that in America, hard work should pay off, responsibility should be rewarded, and each one of us should be able to go as far as our talent and drive take us.”
The 2004 Democratic Party platform serves as an even more stark contrast: It mentions “God” seven times.
Republicans haven’t jumped on the omission quite yet. GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney and the Republican National Committee instead trained their ire on the fact that any mention of Jerusalem and its status was dropped from the 2012 platform, another departure from the 2008 version.
Sen. Joe Lieberman, ID-Conn., a former vice presidential nominee, speaking to the Washington Post’s Michael Gerson, nonetheless said he fought to have “God” included when he worked on the party’s platform in 1996.
“It is part of who we are as a people," Lieberman said. "I asked, have you checked any polling lately? God is running ahead of any living politician. So we put in a reference.”
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