Faith & the Common Good July 8, 2011

The religious right is at it again, once more under the direction of a conservative figure who has been a major behind-the-scenes strategist in previous campaigns, televangelist James Robison, according to articles on two respected religion sites, EthicsDaily and Religion Dispatches.

Last month EthicsDaily, which is operated by the moderate Baptist Center for Ethics, Brian Kaylor posted a two-part report "Behind Closed Doors," about some 80 conservative pastors conferencing together to promote Texas Gov. Rick Perry to unseat President Barack Obamain 2012. The first part ran June 22. The second part ran June 23.

Meanwhile, at Religion Dispatches Sarah Posner takes the story – which she calls "the most under-noticed religion story" of the campaign season – a step farther, outlining what's really going on with Robison's push of Perry. In brief,

According to Posner, Robison's group is connected to Perry's plans for a major "prayer rally" scheduled to take place in August in Houston. TPC has reported previously that a coalition of progressive pastors in Houston has already denounced the "prayer rally" as a political ploy and plans to stage a counter-demonstration of sorts.

Robison is an old hand at this kind of theo-political campaigning. He organized the religious backing of Ronald Reagan in 1980 and George W. Bush in 2000.

Posner summarizes the potential dangers thus:

"Kaylor points to Robison's June 3 blog post, which reads like a theo-economic merger of a religious right and Tea Party wishlist (a merger Robison endorsed last year while helping Ralph Reed promote the launch of his Faith and Freedom Coalition). In a nutshell: America should be ruled by God, not government, with no abortion, gay marriage, or jurisprudence Robison disagrees with; the market should be kept 'free, healthy, and under the influence of people who understand that importance of personal responsibility,' as 'out of control spending' and 'intrusive regulation' are 'as wrong and immoral and stealing;" and the the tax code should be revamped "so we can rejoice together because it would stimulate economic growth.'"

TPC's Take: Keep an eye on these developments, folks. It's the vanguard of a religious right backlash to the people's movement expressed in Obama's 2008 election. And you're not likely to read about it in mainstream media, so stay in touch with alternative publications such as Religion Dispatches, EthicsDaily and The Progressive Christian. We're not letting the religious right out of our sights.