It's impossible to imagine the conservative counter reformation that began with Ronald Reagan, one of the crucial events of our time, ever occurring if the religious right had not led the way.
The "conservative counter reformation" at this point seems all but dead. Even so-called conservatives on this very site are not really conservative. Our society has debased to such a level that conservatives are now pushing agendas that one would not expect. And here at a conservative site - we have the pro drug crowd, the pro aborts, the pro "choice"ers, the pro-porn crowd, the libertarians (who pretend they are conservatives), the euthanasia crowd, etc etc. What does it mean to be a conservative if you're not going to uphold conservative values? What ARE conservative values? That's something we need to think about.
It takes all kinds to defeat the left. I'm registered as a Conservative in NY, but some of my positions would be viewed as libertarian, a philosophy that mainly prefers limited government, not statist authoritarianism. The war on drugs has empowered the war on guns and other civil liberties. The ban on online gambling, sponsored by Jim Leach (R - IA) IIRC, recently passed by the GOP Congress last October caused gamblers to target GOP office holders last November. Leach lost. The loss of Senate seats from Montana and Virginia can be explained by the margin of votes that the Libertarian candidates received.