James Dobson

Last week, we noted that James Dobson, despite his claim that he doesn't endorse many political candidates, seemed to be ... well, endorsing a lot of candidates.  

Among the candidates he had endorsed was Trey Grayson in the Republican primary for a Senate in Kentucky.

But now Dobson has withdrawn his endorsement of Grayson, calling it an "embarrassing mistake" and instead endorsed Rand Paul:

Dr. James Dobson has changed his endorsement in the Republican primary for United States Senate in Kentucky. Below is the text of Dr. James Dobson's endorsement of Dr. Rand Paul in the race for U.S. Senate.

Dr. James Dobson: "Have you ever made an embarrassing mistake? I did just that last week. I was given misleading information about the candidacy of Dr. Rand Paul, who is running in the Republican Primary for the U.S. Senate. Senior members of the GOP told me Dr. Paul is pro-choice and that he opposes many conservative perspectives, so I endorsed his opponent.

“But now I've received further information from OB/GYN's in Kentucky whom I trust, and from interviewing the candidate himself.

“I now know that he is avidly pro life. He believes that life begins at conception.

“He opposes earmarking and supports Israel. He identifies with the Tea Party movement and believes in home schooling. Sounds like my kind of man.

“If I lived in Kentucky, I would vote for Dr. Rand Paul. Would you consider sending him to the U.S. Senate to shake things up in Washington?"

This message from Dobson has been turned into a radio ad for Paul, which can be heard here.

Back in February, James Dobson announced his endorsement of Rep. Todd Tiahrt, who is running for the vacant US Senate in Kansas, claiming that while he normally didn't endorse candidates, 2010 was so important that he had to make an exception: 

As you know, I do not personally endorse many political candidates. However, with the stakes so high in the 2010 elections, I believe it is imperative that we elect Christian leaders who will fight for the principles that promote strong family values. That is why I am enthusiastically endorsing Todd Tiahrt in his race for the United States Senate.

If the idea that Dobson was reluctant to endorse candidates seemed odd to you, you were not alone, considering that he endorsed Mike Huckabee back in 2008 and then all but endorsed John McCain after explicitly and repeatedly declaring that he would not vote for McCain under any circumstances.

Since then, Dobson has gone on to endorse several other candidates heading into the 2010 elections: 

Rick Perry

Gov. Rick Perry today received the endorsement of Dr. James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, for re-election in 2010.

“Over the years, Gov. Perry has established a record that is consistently pro-life, pro-marriage and pro-religious liberty,” said Dr. Dobson. “He has demonstrated his deep regard for the sanctity of life by signing more pro-life bills into law than any other governor in Texas history. He demonstrated his support for the God-given institution of marriage by strongly supporting the Texas Marriage Amendment. And he has helped lead the effort to establish the strongest protections for religious liberty in the state of Texas. No other candidate in this race measures up to the high standards established by Gov. Perry on these critical issues of our day.”

Dan Coats

Dr. James Dobson, the influential evangelical and founder of Focus on the Family, is endorsing Republican Dan Coats in the race for Senate in Indiana, the Coats campaign said Monday.

“I have long respected former Senator Dan Coats for his integrity and his legislative influence in the Congress,” Dobson said in a statement. “I also admire his personal commitment to his Christian faith in public life. Dan has been a consistent leader of pro-family causes and a stalwart defender of unborn children. If my wife Shirley and I were Hoosiers, we would definitely vote for Dan Coats in the May 4th primary.”

In addition to the endorsement, Dobson cut a radio ad on Coats’ behalf that is set to run starting on Tuesday.

Trey Grayson

Dr. James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, announced today that he is endorsing Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate.

“Trey Grayson is the only candidate with the conviction to lead on the issues that matter to Kentucky families. His unwavering commitment to the sanctity of human life and the family resonates with me. I know that he will be a leader on these issues, not just another Senator who checks the box. As a matter of conscience, I encourage Kentuckians to support Trey Grayson on May 18th,” said Dobson.

You know, for someone who claims not to "personally endorse many political candidates," James Dobson sure does seem to be personally endorsing a lot of political candidates.

• Behold: "The Definitive Paper Showing Homosexuality at Root of the Sex Abuse Crisis."
• James Dobson has endorsed Dan Coats.
• The Family Research Council "announced plans to raise and spend $500,000 to target the districts of 20 Democratic incumbents who voted for President Obama's abortion-funding health care bill."
• Michelle Duggar will receive the "Mother of the Year Award" at Vision Forum Ministries' "Baby Conference: A Historic Family Summit on the Triumph of Life Over the Culture of Death."
• Regent University is apparently going to be featured in Forbes Magazine piece about schools facing financial pressures and is pre-emptively disputing its inclusion.

• Tomorrow, Ralph Reed will announce whether or not he has decided to run for Congress in Georgia.
• Last week, Marco Rubio joined Tony Perkins, Harry Jackson, and others for a Watchmen on the Wall event in Florida entitled "iMPACT 2010: Unleashing the Voice of the Church."
• It looks like WorldNetDaily's conference is out to bring all of the right-wing crazies together under one roof.
• Someone is running robocalls in Iowa accusing Rick Santorum of being a "pro-life fraud."
• Ken Hutcherson blasts Focus on the Family for supposedly forcing James Dobson out and for not hiring him to take over, even though he wouldn't have taken the job anyway.
• Quote of the Day I from the Liberty Counsel's Steve Crampton regarding LC's fight to prevent a lesbian high school student from taking her girlfriend to the Prom: "In all candor, while we know nothing about the complaining student here, we believe this is part of a larger agenda to implement homosexual rights in the schools."
• Quote of the Day II from Janice Crouse on gay marriage: "In actuality, homosexual unions have a very short lifespan; many of the same-sex “marriages” in Massachusetts are already being dissolved. Further, the health risks associated with homosexual practice are very real and very much in evidence in the emergency rooms of hospitals. There is no denying: Homosexual sex is dangerous and destructive to the human body. Both HIV and HPV are epidemic among homosexual men. Domestic violence is a common problem — twice as prevalent among homosexual couples as in heterosexual ones. Indeed, legally creating a union does not enable two men or two women to become “one flesh,” nor does a legal ceremony give the union sanctity. Instead, the ceremony creates a sham that will devalue all marriages."

When I saw this article this morning reporting that Obama Administration aides were scheduled to meet with representatives of the Secular Coalition for America today, I wondered how long it would take for some Religious Right group to throw a fit that the Administration was meeting with atheists.

Turns out, it took about an hour:

The advocacy group In God We Trust today ripped the Obama administration for meeting to plot political strategy with 60 atheist activists representing organizations comprising the Secular Coalition of America.

"It is one thing for Administration to meet with groups of varying viewpoints, but it is quite another for a senior official to sit down with activists representing some of the most hate-filled, anti-religious groups in the nation," says In God We Trust's Chairman Bishop Council Nedd.

...

"President Obama seems to believe that it is a good idea to have a key senior aide plan political strategy with people who believe faith in God is a disease," Nedd says. "Some of the people in this coalition believe the world would be better off with no Christians and no Jews and they aren't shy about it. The fact that this meeting is happening at all is an affront to the vast majority of people of all faiths who believe in God."

...

"The President should tell the American people whether he believes these groups' hate-filled views to be 'mainstream' and worthy of his supposedly inclusive administration," Nedd says.

Outrageous! 

President Bush would never have met with anyone who esposed "hate-filled views" ... would he? 

• For the period April 2001 through June 2006, Focus on the Family Founder and Chairman Emeritus James Dobson visited the White House 24 times; 10 of those visits were to President Bush.

• Andrea Lafferty, Executive Director of the Traditional Values Coalition, made an astonishing 50 visits to the White House starting on February 1, 2001, and continuing through March 16, 2008. Six of those visits were to President Bush.

• Wendy Wright, President of Concerned Women for America, made 43 visits to the White House between May 2001 and August 2006. Four of those visits were to President Bush.

• Gary Bauer, President of American Values, made 10 visits to the White House, starting with a January 6, 2003 visit to Vice President Cheney and ending with a July 20, 2006 visit to President Bush.

• The late Jerry Falwell, of Jerry Falwell Ministries, made eight visits to the White House between May 2001 and September 2004. Three of those visits were to President Bush.

• Tony Perkins, President of Family Research Council, visited the White House 14 times between February 2001 and June 2006, including two visits to President Bush.

• Louis Sheldon, Chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition, made 19 visits to the White House between March 2001 and September 2006, including two visits to President Bush.

• The late Paul Weyrich, the Founder of Free Congress foundation, made 17 visits to the White House between May 2001 and July 2005, including six visits to President Bush and one to Karl Rove.

• Donald Wildmon, Founder of the American Family Association, made three visits to the White House between July 2001 and March 2003, including one visit to President Bush. 

Of course, this is different because it is Obama Administration officials who are meeting with the Secular Coalition of America today at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building while these Religious Right leaders only got to meet with President Bush at the White House.

• James Dobson has endorsed Gov. Rick Perry.
• Speaking of Perry, he's gone full-on Tenther in his latest ad.
• Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell says he can't rule out the prospect of accepting a Vice Presidential slot if offered.
• RNC Chair is just burning through money.
• Concerned Women for America is accused of being insufficiently pro-life.
• Prosecutors are worried they will be unable to find jurors who don't have an opinion about murdered anti-abortion activist James Pouillon as they make their case against Harlan Drake because Pouillon's protests and antics had made him notoriously unpopular.
• Apparently, Ken Blackwell got a book deal.  The title of his tome? "THE BLUEPRINT: Barack Obama’s Secret Plan for an Imperial Presidency and a Permanent Liberal Government."
• Finally, Quote of the Day from Gary Cass: "Thankfully, many principled Christian organizations pulled out of CPAC and they should be commended for standing up for truth. We cannot allow anti-Christian groups like GOProud to infiltrate and corrupt the conservative movement."

• Norm Coleman and others are seeking to create a right-wing version of the Center for American Progress and hoping to exploit the Citizen's United ruling to fund it.
• Mike Huckabee will be heading to Iowa to campaign for GOP gubernatorial candidate Bob Vander Plaats.
• James Dobson has endorsed Kansas GOP Senate candidate Rep. Todd Tiahrt.
• Apparently both the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints have players who are deeply religious.  Who knew? 
• According to campaign finance reports, the Alabama Christian Coalition has been accepting money from gambling interests.
• Finally, here is an argument that you don't see every day, from Bev Ehlen of Concerned Women for America: "I believe people are discriminated because of their age, because of their sexual practices, because of their weight, they have a speech impediment, because they're ugly, maybe because they're good looking. I know that people are being discriminated against. That's still not a reason to change law."

There are certain articles that seem to pop up on a semi-regular basis that I just can never understand. The first are the obligatory "The Religious Right is Dead" articles that get written every time the GOP loses an election ... and they are inevitable followed a few years later by articles marveling at the Right's miraculous resurrection.

The other articles I don't understand are more recent, beginning back when Mike Huckabee was running for president, in which it is asserted that the Religious Right is getting toning down its rhetoric and somehow broadening its agenda.

Articles like this:

Fire and brimstone evangelicalism has simmered down into a broader movement of cooler approaches.

Yet much of what has been said about the expanded political agenda and softer tone of evangelical Christians has missed the point, say observers of the Christian right.

"Every time a Democrat gets elected they say: 'That's the end of the Christian conservatives. They're gone,' " said D.C.-based Ethics and Public Policy Center vice president Michael Cromartie. "But they're not. Broadening their agenda doesn't mean they are suddenly liberal Democrats."

And evangelicals, Cromartie said, are not abandoning their core issues: traditional marriage and sanctity of life. "Climate change does not trump pro-life issues."

Although the rhetoric is gentler, the politics are the same. The money is going to lobby for the same things. The basic voting structure was largely unchanged in 2008, pollsters say.

"We want to be relevant to a new generation, but we plan to stay strong on the pillars Dr. James Dobson built at Focus on the Family," said Tom Minnery, the ministry's senior vice president of government and public policy.

...

Jim Daly, the 48-year-old head of Focus on the Family media ministry, is seen inside the conservative Christian organization as less authoritarian and more approachable than his predecessor, the 73-year- old Dobson.

Outside the organization, Cromartie said, Daly is seen as more affable and willing to seek common ground.

"As (Focus on the Family) tries to reach the next generation of young families, we're trying to use words that work," Minnery said.

What evidence is there that "fire and brimstone evangelicalism has simmered down"?  The article provides none.  

Have they even been paying attention to anything the Religious Right has been saying lately? 

As for the idea that Focus on the Family is moderating its tone, that remains to be seen.  James Dobson is still, for all intents and purposes, the voice of the organization and will remain so until he finally leaves next month.  If the organization does become more willing to seek common ground and less confrontational under Daly, that will certainly be newsworthy, but for now it is impossible to say.

If journalists want to declare that the Religious Right is moderating its tone and broadening its agenda, they ought to at least provide some evidence, because I haven't seen any.  If anything, the Right is getting more radical and its language more strident under Obama than it has ever been in recent years.

Last February, it was announced that James Dobson was stepping down from his position as Chairman of Focus on the Family.  Following that announcement, we started seeing lots of articles claiming that Dobson had conceded the culture wars and was throwing in the towel, a claim which Dobson vigorously disputed, saying that even though he was stepping down as Chairman, we would maintain his presence as the voice of Focus on the Family's flagship radio program and continue to speak out on moral and political issues.

Then Jim Daly took over as Chairman for the organization and began hinting that we'd see a different tone from them ... but that proved to be easier said then done, with Dobson remaining that voice of the organization and agenda.  Which is why, in October, it was announced that Dobson would be leaving the Focus radio program in February.

As Dobson made clear, the decision to leave was not his, but came to him from the Board of Directors, which Dobson only accepted because God told him that he had bigger plans in mind.

Now it looks like those plans are beginning to take shape because when Dobson leaves Focus in February, he's striking out on his own and setting up a new organization and radio program that will seemingly compete directly with his former organization because, as he explains, he just cannot sit on the sidelines at a time of such "moral decline":

This is the first announcement of a brand new 30 minute daily radio program to be carried on numerous stations, beginning in March, 2010. It is called JCDs Family Forum, and will be changed soon to James Dobson on the Family. The program will be much like what you have heard on Focus on the Family for the past 33 years. It will deal with marriage, child-rearing, family finances, medical and psychological concerns, national issues, the sanctity of human life, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. My son, Ryan Dobson, will co-host the program with me, which will be a exciting adventure.

...

From one perspective, it would be pleasurable for Shirley and me to get up in the morning and go to breakfast, read the newspaper, travel and be with friends. That prospect of an easy life is attractive to us. On the other hand, the institution of the family continues to be in deplorable condition, and children are growing up in a culture that often twists and warps their young minds. Furthermore, our nation is facing a crisis that threatens its very existence. We are in a moral decline of shocking dimensions. I have asked myself how I can I sit and watch the world go by without trying to help if I can. That is what motivates me at this time.

It is not fame or fortune that drives this new effort. I will not take a salary from the ministry and I have had more than my share of fame. My purpose is much like it was all those years ago when I made the most dramatic career move of my life, transitioning from a coveted professorial position in academia to a lowly little Christian radio program heard once a week on 34 stations. Tyndale House Publishers gave us a grant of $35,000 to get us started, and when that money ran out, we almost closed our doors. But then, the Lord's people reached out to us generously and the ministry caught fire. Perhaps it will happen again.

If you wish to help us get started, send your contributions to JCD's Family Forum, which will later be called James Dobson on the Family. Gifts are tax deductible and will be receipted. The address is 7150 Campus Drive, Suite 150, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 80920. Contributions can also be made through the website. Your participation will be greatly appreciated, especially during this time when startup costs will be very expensive. The budget for the first year, including the costs of radio airtime, will be about two million dollars. Even a small gift for that purpose will be significant.

Once again, we will build from the ground up in a shared venture.

Please be in prayer for us as we take this step. We don't want to get ahead of or behind the Lord. If He doesn't bless our efforts to serve Him, it will all be for naught. Thank you for reading along with me today. Once again, my heart is pounding with the excitement of doing something that could be significant for others. I invite you to take the journey with us.