No more perverts in the White House!
I’m not sure they had that much “clout” to begin with. What they had was creted by the media trying to discredit them. Christian Conservatives wil vote their principles whether Dobson et al tell them to or not. I seriously doubt that most Christians will vote for rudy (unless he is the only alternative to hillary). They won’t vote for him in the primary.
The President is not my spiritual leader.
His basic premise is totally flawed. Rudy Giuliani is leading the Republican pack because the pack is so large. He’s only getting the support of about 20%-25% of the GOP voters in any given poll. If the field weren’t so crowded he’d be nothing more than a leftist side-show who is the Republican version of Dennis Kucinich.
Dobson etc do not really lead people to the polls so to speak, IMO most Evangelicals and conservative Christians would never put up with a single person speaking completely for them.
What the Dobson’s of the world are able to is to align issues and make them important, “if” Dobson or whomever makes abortion or gay marriage an issue for a few weeks before an election, that is what will be on Conservative Christian’s minds heading into the polls.
But endorsements may not be what they really are able to use to influence voters.
Since liberals are people who believe in totalitarian enforced behavior and are suckers for the cult of personality they mistakenly assume that social conservatives are also mindless followers of some anointed demi-god. Libs will mindlessly follow Hitlery over the cliff by the millions but Dobson’s influence is more in the minds of liberals than in the minds of values voters.
This article is just more lib projection. Imagine Frank Rich, the demoRATS running dog, accuse any one else of being a hack. LOL!
Any time the NYT says anything in defense of or in support of a candidate, any candidate, I am immediately disposed to look unfavorably on that candidate.
Based on a previous post by you, I think that would be your wish. I mean, to post Frank freakin' Rich!!
LOL
Of course that moroon wants the Christians to lose clout. He's probably a pillow cruncher like everyone else at the nyt.
You'll see what's happen to the Christian vote soon enough, my guess is that its right where its always been.
No more perverts in the White House!
He may, and probably will, get the Republican nomonation for Presidental Candidate.
But he will never bear Hillary in the General election.
He knows and the Republican hierarchy know this.
Frank Rich couldn't think his way out of the back of a Volkswagen. Rooty is the only one running exclusively on his 9-11 experience. Look where he is. He's not getting anywhere near a majority. He's pretty much tied with Thompson and Romney who AREN'T playing that "I was so changed by 9-11" card every time they appear in front of a reporter.
Gimme a break.
And...for what it's worth...none of the candidates' views are well known, because few are yet paying attention.
“One is that 9/11 and terrorism fears trump everything”
Democrats won’t like it, but the War on Terror is THE central issue of 2008, which is why Rudy will win.
I read the whole article and it seems mostly a hit piece on Christians, primarily because of our anti-homosexuality doctrine.
The question: “Is the political clout of Dobson et al declining is his question?”
has been well answered by others—they don’t really have political clout. They have persuasive influence as far as they are rational and scriptural with Christians. Ultimately Christians are motivated to please God. So naturally we would oppose abortion to save the lives of babies, and naturally we would oppose homosexuality to save the lives of homosexuals. Yes, we love homosexuals and want them to be saved, physically and spirituall—and many have been.
I am amused that people that these polls as some sort of entrail reading of the the future—the majority of the likely voters don’t know much about the candidates (even yet!) let alone the registered and unregistered voters they poll.
Rather, I go by the 2004 election—the war, and the character of President Bush, lead Christians to vote for him by a large majority over Sen Kerry.
Time, obviously, is the crucible here. If Rudy gets the nod (I predict he won't), it will prove that conservatives are but a minority in this country, and I am wasting my declining years fighting against that tide.
The fact that his peak popularity has been about 30%, it suggests his strength is limp wristed at best.
The field will surely narrow soon. Let's see where the Hunter supporters and that ilk go when the dust settles.
Rudy’s number one right now because of name value and some goodwill from 9-11.
Who knows? I’m a Catholic, so he doesn’t speak for me, yet I am a “social” conservative. This entire issue, it seems to me, is simply another way for the Left to try to divide us.
Get the Shovel, we need a hole over here to bury the Christian Conservatives...
Rich is only dreaming that this will happen. Like you and I might dream about winning Powerball.
As several have already said, all these television and radio preachers have never had the influence attributed to them by the MSM. Most Christians attend their local church and live their lives without ever tuning in to a television preacher. Many consider them a sort of weird, half-assed way to be a Christian.
It’s the MSM who’ve for years sought out people like the late Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson to be a ‘spokesman’ for a group they never really spoke for except in small numbers. It’s due to the ignorance and bigotry of people like Frank Rich that such importance was ever given to the radio and television personalities. Christians hold their views on morality without the assistance of these ‘spokesmen’.