Obama courts evangelicals with stress on faith

By John Whitesides, Political Correspondent ZANESVILLE, Ohio (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama promised a more active approach to faith-based social programs on Tuesday in a bid to bolster his support among evangelical and religious voters. Obama visited a community ministry in a conservative region of the election battleground state of Ohio to unveil a plan to reinvigorate faith-based community programs first pioneered by President George W. Bush. The Illinois senator, who will face Republican John McCain in November's presidential election, said he would put more money and emphasis on strengthening the link between government and community faith programs. "The fact is, the challenges we face today -- from saving our planet to ending poverty -- are simply too big for government to solve alone," Obama... [read full story]