Religious Right Split Over 2008 Presidential Election Deepens

Religious Right leaders continue to squabble among themselves over which Republican candidate to support for president.

Events took a surprising twist last month when TV preacher Pat Robertson endorsed former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Although Robertson and Giuliani have become close personally, many evangelicals were shocked that Robertson would back a candidate who supports legal abortion and gay rights.

Appearing with Giuliani at the National Press Club in Washington, Robertson brushed off concerns about abortion.

"To me, the overriding issue before the American people is the defense of our population from the blood lust of Islamic terrorists," Robertson said. "Our second goal should be the control of massive government waste and crushing federal deficits."

Giuliani welcomed the endorsement, the first he has received from a Religious Right leader.

"His confidence in me means a lot," Giuliani said. "His experience and advice will be a great asset to me and my campaign."

The Los Angeles Times reported that Theodore B. Olson, a former solicitor general in the Bush administration, may have helped bring about the endorsement. Olson is an advisor to Giuliani's campaign.

Robertson also said he was persuaded by Giuliani's pledge to appoint Supreme Court justices in the mold of Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. At the press conference, Robertson said Giuliani, "understands the need for a conservative judiciary, and with the help of the distinguished Ted Olson, who is here today, and other members of his team, has assured the American people that his choices for judicial appointments will be men and women who share the judicial philosophy of [Chief Justice] John Roberts and [Justice] Antonin Scalia."

The endorsement was a blow to Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, who had hoped to add Robertson to his team. Robertson's top attorney, Jay Sekulow, supports Romney.

Asked about the endorsement, Romney lashed out.

"I don't think the Republican Party will choose a pro-choice, pro-gay civil union candidate to lead our party," he told ABC News.

Another contender, Mike Huckabee, former Arkansas governor, also had strong words.

"Frankly, it's a little disturbing, if not frightening, that some have forgotten the essence of what Jesus taught, and that is, if you gain the whole world but lose your soul, what does it profit you?" he said.

Many Religious Right activists were also perturbed. Worldview Weekend, an extreme Religious Right group that urges people to adopt a "biblical worldview," ran an opinion column headlined, "Pat Robertson Has Lost His Mind? America's Pro-Family Leaders Selling Out Pro-Family Values: Latest Hypocrisy is Pat Robertson's Endorsement of Giuliani."

The Rev. Wiley Drake, a prominent Southern Baptist minister in California, called on supporters to stop watching Robertson's show.

"In light of Pat Robertson endorsing a pro-baby killer and pro-sodomite Giuliani, pro-life and pro-family real Christians should boycott CBN and let them know that untill (sic) Pat repents and returns to his first love we will not tune in to CBN or the 700 club," (sic) Drake wrote in an e-mail. "If real Christians will activate the phone lines etc. they will know how we feel."

The Family Research Council, a group that is eager to stop Giuliani, also attacked Robertson, even bringing up controversial comments Robertson made after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Speaking on his "700 Club" while interviewing Jerry Falwell two days after the attack, Robertson suggested it was God's vengeance on the nation.

"9/11 is what Rudy's campaign is fundamentally based on," Charmaine Yoest, vice president for communications at Family Research Council, told Talking Points Memo, a leading liberal blog. "This does beg the question - does Rudy agree with Robertson's comments about 9/11?"

Americans United noted there is some irony in Yoest raising this issue now. At the time Robertson made those comments, no Religious Right leaders condemned them.

In other news about the election:

* Long-time conservative activist Paul Weyrich has endorsed Mitt Romney. Although less influential these days, Weyrich is a dean of the Religious Right who helped form the Moral Majority.

* Former candidate U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) has endorsed U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). Brownback is a favorite of the Religious Right, but his campaign never took off.

Copyright Americans United for Separation of Church and State Dec 2007
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