Posted on 09/19/2007 7:14:10 PM PDT by pissant
DENVER (AP) — James Dobson, one of the nation's most politically influential evangelical Christians, made it clear in a message to friends this week he will not support Republican presidential hopeful Fred Thompson.
In a private e-mail obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, Dobson accuses the former Tennessee senator and actor of being weak on the campaign trail and wrong on issues dear to social conservatives.
"Isn't Thompson the candidate who is opposed to a Constitutional amendment to protect marriage, believes there should be 50 different definitions of marriage in the U.S., favors McCain-Feingold, won't talk at all about what he believes, and can't speak his way out of a paper bag on the campaign trail?" Dobson wrote.
"He has no passion, no zeal, and no apparent 'want to.' And yet he is apparently the Great Hope that burns in the breasts of many conservative Christians? Well, not for me, my brothers. Not for me!"
The founder and chairman of Colorado Springs-based Focus on the Family, Dobson draws a radio audience in the millions, many of whom who first came to trust the child psychologist for his conservative Christian advice on child-rearing.
Gary Schneeberger, a Focus on the Family spokesman, confirmed that Dobson wrote the e-mail. Schneeberger declined to comment further, saying it would be inappropriate because Dobson's comments about presidential candidates are made as an individual and not as a representative of Focus on the Family, a nonprofit organization restricted from partisan politics.
Dobson's strong words about Thompson underscore the frustration and lack of unity among Christian conservatives about the GOP field. Some Christian right leaders have pinned their hopes on Thompson, describing him as a Southern-fried Ronald Reagan. But others have voiced doubts in recent weeks about some of the same issues Dobson highlighted: his position on gay marriage and support for the 2002 McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform legislation.
Dobson and other Christian conservatives support an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would bar gay marriage nationally. Thompson has said he would support a constitutional amendment that would prohibit states from imposing their gay marriage laws on other states, which falls well short of that.
Karen Hanretty, a spokeswoman for the Thompson campaign, said Wednesday in response to the Dobson e-mail: "Fred Thompson has a 100 percent pro-life voting record. He believes strongly in returning authority to the levels of government closest to families and communities, protecting states from intrusion by the federal government and activist judges.
"We're confident as voters get to know Fred, they'll appreciate his conservative principles, and he is the one conservative in this race who can win the nomination and can go on to defeat the Democratic nominee."
In his e-mail addressed "Dear friends," Dobson includes the text of a recent news story highlighting Thompson's statement that while he was baptized in the Church of Christ, he does not attend church regularly and won't speak about his faith on the stump.
U.S. News and World Report quoted Dobson earlier this year as questioning Thompson's commitment to the Christian faith — comments Dobson contended were not put in proper context. Dobson in this week's e-mail writes that suppositions "about the former senator's never having professed to be a Christian are turning out to be accurate in substance."
Earlier this year, Dobson said he wouldn't back John McCain because of the Arizona senator's opposition to a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.
Later, Dobson wrote on a conservative news Web site that he wouldn't support former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani should he win the Republican nomination. Dobson called Giuliani an "unapologetic supporter of abortion on demand" and criticized him for signing a bill in 1997 creating domestic-partnership benefits in New York City.
Last week, Dobson announced on his radio show that the IRS had cleared him of accusations that he had endangered his organization's nonprofit status by endorsing Republican candidates in 2004. The IRS said Dobson, who endorsed President Bush's re-election bid, was acting as an individual and not on behalf of the nonprofit group.
Tell me the truth! They are both products of GOD!
___________________________
No, my Mormon FRiend. Christ is not a “product of God.” Christ is God.
John 1
The Word Became Flesh
1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning.
3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
6There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.
10He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
14The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, ho came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
“You cannot legislate moral values.”
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We can and we do. What we can’t do is change people’s hearts. Only God can do that.
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I’ve never seen anyone respond with a basis other than moral values for legislating anything . . . and yet this “you can’t legislate moral values” is persistent, in every thread like this one. Sometimes a libertarian steps in and says legislation should be to protect freedom (which imposes his “moral value” in the preference for freedom).
oh please take you over grown ego somewhere else and your frogy ramblings!
You have no idea how blessed my life has been in the Last 25 years because I am in the Lord Church.
If you were blessed in yours life you would not be spending your time trying to tear down that which you feel uncomfortable with.
If your faith bless you would be spending time building up the Lord Kingdom not tearing it down
I’m labeled Mormon now. Get a grip and understand Jesus always had a Father to pray and get answers.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1899326/posts?page=913#913
Good to see you tonite. :^) I hope everything is well.
You ought to know that the woman who answered the phone at Focus on the Family flat out lied to me when I told her to remove me from the mailing list, along with my reason. She told me that the story had been twisted, that the email didn’t say what was reported, and implied that Dobson didn’t even write the letter.
When I asked point blank if she was claiming it was a hoax, she passed me to another department, which gave me the standard “He’s a private citizen, blah, blah, blah.” but did NOT denounce the story.
Dobson retract a statement as being taken out of context?
Never have seen it. Of course, I’m blind as a bat too.
Prove I called Dobson an anti-Semite and I’ll give value to your reply.
While I find Dobson lacking, I do respect those of the Falwell, Graham and Pope John-Paul II caliber.
As for Christians I respect, they are legion. Especially my own pastor.
Thank you hope the same for you!:)
I did not criticize Dr. Dobson.
Perhaps you should save some disdain for the apparent feeling of Mr. Dobson that Thompson isn't Christian enough to be worthy of his most precious support.
Bookmark.
“Get a grip”
That’s always the start of a sensible discussion about theology. Quit hiding the ball, please. What doctrine do you follow that sees Christ as a created being and has no problem with the Mormon view that Christ and Satan are brothers? And what is your purpose in fragmentary posts about it, rather than speaking openly if you want to share your beliefs (or keeping quiet if you don’t?).
I'll grant this much, present unpopular comments and the very un-Christian-like responses prove, very clearly, the lack of understanding of Christ's word and whom it is who sleeps through the sermons.
Putting cash in the collection plates won't save your carcasses, people.
You know just who you are.
What is fragmentary about the Bible? I don’t have patience for meaning of words. Do your own homework. (C.S. Lewis did and it really helped!)
No reason why Dobson should support Fred T; he is not an evangelical fundamentalist Christian (and neither is Mitt Romney, incidentally). As for Rudy, he is simply beyond the pale in the rating system of Dobson and his followers.
Fine. Y’all can go sit in the corner and have a temper tantrum insisting on something that will NEVER happen. The rest of us social conservatives will work to get Roe V Wade struck down and then work in our states to get as many restrictions on abortion as possible.
We’ll save many, many babies. You’ll pout.
Mother Theresa had more love of the Christ in her pinkie nail than the Dobson/Bakker/Benny Hinn crowd ever will.
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