Religious progressives prepare to mount case against Ryan

9 hours ago CNN Chief White House Correspondent Jessica Yellin and CNN White House Producer Gabriella Schwarz (CNN) - Religious progressive groups are scheduled to hold a conference call with the Obama campaign Saturday morning as they prepare their case against Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney's newly minted Republican vice presidential pick.

The Democratic organizations, including progressive Evangelical Christian groups, have criticized Ryan's principles and his budget proposals they say will negatively impact the poor's safety net.

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A video released by American Values Network linked Ryan, the Wisconsin congressman, to author Ayn Rand to make their point.

While Rand supported individual rights and limited government, she also largely rejected faith and religion.

The spot quotes Rand saying "I don't approve of religion, it's a sign of a psychological weakness."

Ryan, a practicing Catholic, is subsequently quoted praising the writer, who passed away in 1982.

"Ayn Rand more than anyone else did a fantastic job of explaining the morality of capitalism, the morality individualism and this to me is what matters most," Ryan says in the commercial.

The narrator then asks, "What matters most to you?"

Although much earlier in his career he gave her book "Atlas Shrugged" as a Christmas gift, according to the Weekly Standard, more recently he called his interest in her philosophy an "urban legend."

"I reject her philosophy; it's an atheist philosophy," he told National Review in April.

Evangelical Christians, a key voting block, have disproportionately supported Republicans in previous elections, something liberal religious groups hope to chip away at in the lead up to the November election.

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