Bismarck was promoting a certain kind of state; for example, he tried to suppress Catholicism. Bush, at least, has conservative principles in this regard: letting the nation's non-governmental institutions do some heavy lifting for the culture.
I don't like it at all that the recipe for wielding political power requires the parties to spend, spend, spend. The public would be correct to hammer all three branches of government on this account.
The only way to lesson the power and influence of religion is to co-opt it. Look at the Scandinavian Countries where the State funds the church, nobody goes to church and the Church is impotent.