Replies

Dr. Dobson is the principal surviving leader of the Christian Right of the 1980s and 1990s. Jerry Falwell and D. James Kennedy have passed away, and Pat Robertson has retired. For better or worse, the major evangelical oriented political groups never seriously looked at the issue of succession and replacement, for both leadership and followers. It would be as if Ford, Wal-Mart, and other companies based on a singular leader did not have succession plans. Henry Ford and Sam Walton had succession plans, even as their companies passed from family management. The Christian Coalition, Moral Majority, etc., did not.

Within the evangelical community, Dr. Dobson's voice still carries weight. His endorsement is a blow to Santorum and Huckabee, but they may actually be running for a Cabinet position. Dobson will not help Cruz in the general election, but the Texas senator is running for the Republican nomination. His main opponent is Donald Trump, who is a PINO (Protestant in name only), twice divorced and an advocate, until recently, of abortion on demand. Cruz's evangelical bona fides are strong; he speaks their language fluently. Trump is as clueless as any New Yorker is on the Southern/Lower Midwestern evangelical world, except for the minuscule number of evangelicals locally.

If and when Santorum, Huckabee, and Carson drop out, Cruz will likely inherit most of their votes, important in the case of Carson, less so for the other few. To have a chance to win, Cruz must win in his home state and the rest of the South, plus states like Kansas and Colorado. Being the main choice of evangelicals will be a great help.