Governors shy away from using 'Christmas'

President Bush isn't the only government leader taking the politically correct step of not wishing friends and supporters "Merry Christmas" instead of the more secular "Season's Greetings" or "Happy Holidays" in his yuletide cards this year.

Only ten of the nation's 50 governors are using the word "Christmas" or "Christ" in their cards, according to a survey by Stateline.org. Thirty-six others are sending "holiday" tidings while four others fall in the "bah, humbug" category, including Louisiana's hurricane-battered Kathleen Blanco (D), and aren't sending any official cards.

The ten governors offering "Christmas" wishes include two Democrats - Brad Henry of Oklahoma and Phil Bredesen of Tennessee - and eight Republicans: Bob Riley of Alabama, Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, Linda Lingle of Hawaii, Mitch Daniels of Indiana, Ernie Fletcher of Kentucky, Robert Ehrlich of Maryland, John Hoeven of North Dakota and Mark Sanford of South Carolina.

Riley's card is the only one that names "the risen Christ," but Huckabee, a former Baptist minister, pictures the baby Jesus in a cr