The Christian Coalition threatens to mobilize 15 million evangelical Christian voters in the year 2000 elections, as Pat Robertson continues in his quest to make America One Nation Under God. Our analysis shows that reports of the Coalition's demise are dangerously exaggerated...

an money buy everything?

Pat Robertson seems to be hoping that it can, including the kind of political muscle and organization to deliver Christian activists a winning hand in the 2000 national elections. At a Washington, DC press conference yesterday, Christian Coalition founder Robertson unveiled his organization's latest program which includes raising a record $21 million to finance the effort.

   "We are launching, effective today, the most massive effort to mobilize the grass roots in our history," Robertson gushed to a gathering of reporters at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center near the White House. He described the new program as "the largest voter education effort in the history of the organization, and possibly in the history of grassroots politics."

   The latest Christian Coalition program comes amidst reports that the organization is reeling from a spate of resignations involving key personnel, and a more widespread disenchantment with the political process which is percolating through the ranks of the religious right. When queried by reporters, the avuncular Robertson dismissed concerns over the resignations of key Coalition officials and operatives. In recent months, the group has lost its president, director of national operations and press secretary. Robertson said that the turnover was "no big deal."

   "This organization will continue to be a permanent fixture on the American scene," Robertson added.

   The 2000 elections push comes within days of the latest departure of key official from the Coalition, including national field director Dave Welch and operations director Chuck Cunningham. In recent months, the group has also lost chief executive Donald Hodel. Contradicting reports that Hodel, a former cabinet member during the Ronald Reagan administration, had left for financial reasons, the Washington Times newspaper said that he had resigned "over ongoing policy disputes with Mr. Robertson..."

   Another interesting development concerns Ralph Reed, the polished boy- wonder who took over the organization in 1989 at Robertson's behest and quickly transformed it into a major player on the American political landscape. Reed left the Coalition to form his own political consulting firm in Atlanta, Georgia, but remained on the organization's board of directors. He was replaced by a two-man team which consisted of Don Hodel and the Christian Coalition's present executive director, Randy Tate. With Hodel's departure, though, founder Robertson stepped in to fill the post of President. According to the Times, Reed resigned last fall from the CC board.

   The Times also reports that State Christian Coalition heads are contemplating resignation or disaffiliating from the national group. Winnie Spence, a Republican operative with years of experience in the Delaware House and state Senate, has resigned as Delaware CC director. "The California coalition executive director is another state leader who has resigned," notes the Times. "Still others are contemplating resignation..."

   None of this has prevented Robertson, though, from setting an ambitious goal for the next 21 months. It includes:

   ¶    Distribution of 75 million voters guides in the 2000 election. That's an increase of 19 million over than the number the Coalition pumped out in 1996. The guides which purport to show candidates' positions on issues like school prayer, vouchers, and abortion have come under attack from critics who say that they are simplistic, often misrepresent a candidate's real stand, and are distributed within days of balloting so that candidates are often unable to respond. Still, the guides have proven to be a lethal political weapon wielded by the Christian Coalition network of over 125,000 participating congregations across the nation.

   ¶    Underwrite a "tenfold expansion" in the group's political field staff, especially in key states. Robertson told reporters that his group will put extra resources into the presidential and other races in five swing states: New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Illinois.

   ¶    Train 1.5 million field volunteers "to mobilize evangelical voters," according to the Virginia-Pilot newspaper.

   ¶    "Energize" a political base of 15 million fundamentalist and evangelical Christians to trek to the polls in 2000, and follow the Coalition line in choosing candidates and referendum issues.

   How is this lofty objective to be financed? Robertson proposes to have 500,000 of the 1.9 million claimed CC members contribute $10-$20 each month until the November, 2000 elections. That should raise at least $21 million. Executive Director Randy Tate claimed at yesterday's press gathering that a trial mailing to 50,000 supporters had produced gratifying results.

   The shift inside of Christian Coalition reflects Robertson's own determination to remain a key player inside of Republican Party politics, even if means parting companies with other religious right groups that have grown increasingly disenchanted with the electoral system. Case in point: a letter circulated last month by Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation, which calls upon social and religious conservatives to abandon their roll of political activism in favor a strategy of "seceding" from the wider culture. Weyrich declared that trying to restore a sense of national morality in light of the impeachment acquittal of President Clinton has failed. He recommended instead a focus on building "parallel" organizations such as home schools, religious radio outlets and more churches. A similar "death of politics" message was made by James Dobson, head of Focus on the Family, who in speeches to key groups like the Council for National Policy. has expressed his disapproval with the give-and-take of the political arena.

   Robertson attempted to counter these doom-and-gloom messages, though, saying that the 2000 elections were too important for Christian evangelicals to dismiss. He reminded his audience that the next president could be in a position to appoint three justices to the US Supreme Court, and up to 180 federal judges. Robertson also predicted that the mood of voters regarding the Clinton administration would change. "The American people are going to turn on those (members of Congress) who let him go scot-free." He added that outrage over Clinton would also focus on the expected presidential candidacy of Al Gore.

   As for the Republican Party, the question is how much of a role Robertson and Christian Coalition will play when the GOP huddles next year in Philadelphia for its convention. Nearly every candidate running is an ideological ally of Robertson, and would receive high marks on Christian Coalition voters guides. Robertson had "kind words," according to the Virginia-Pilot newspaper for early GOP front-runners, including Texas Gov. George W.Bush who has annoyed some conservatives with his remarks on abortion. Declaring that abortion was not going to be abolished soon in the United States because of Roe v. Wade, Bush has promoted a brand of pragmatic conservatism that appeals to many party faithful. Hard core religious right activists aren't as assured, though, and within the Christian Coalition sentiment seems to favor Steve Forbes, Dan Quayle and others. Robertson nevertheless defended the governor as "profoundly on the pro-life side," and also praised Elizabeth Dole. Addressing those tempted by the secessionist call of Weyrich and others, Robertson declared, "People must understand that a party platform is not the creedal position of a church. There has to be give and take ... We are not talking about sin and salvation here. We must be realists."

   Since helping the Republicans capture both ends of Capitol Hill in 1994, the "death" or implosion of the Christian Coalition has often been anticipated. Rev. Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State told the Virginia-Pilot that Robertson's group was in "a critical time," adding "The question is whether the Christian Coalition will catch its breath or collapse. I believe they will collapse..." Reporter Dan Balz, writing in today's edition of the Washington Post, spoke of how "staff turnover and organizational changes could frustrate the group's ability to meet it goals." And a GOP strategist, noting the changes within the Coalition staff, compared Robertson's organization to the Chicago Bulls after the retirement of superstar Michael Jordan. Robertson's predictions were "like the current coach of the Bulls saying we're going to repeat again..."

   We consider all of these observations flawed; they ignore the crucial fact of Robertson's enormous wealth and ability to simply purchase whatever political resources he requires. There are several indications that Robertson, if he chose to, could meet the $21 million warchest requirement -- and more -- by literally writing out a personal check.

   ¶    Robertson's personal fortune is considerable. In 1997, he spun off his International Family Entertainment, Inc., the company that operated the highly successful Family Channel, in a multi-hundred million dollar deal with Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch. We estimated that the windfall for Robertson, his son Timothy, and various proprietary entities he controlled (including Regent University and Christian Broadcasting Network) to be somewhere between $250 million and $400 million. Simply put, the sale of IFE, Inc. to Murdoch's cash-bloated NewsCorp was a stroke of financial genius, displaying Robertson's uncanny ability in mastering the "art of the deal."

   ¶    Robertson has recently struck a lucrative deal with the Bank of Scotland to establish a branchless, "virtual" banking system in the US. Transactions would be handled by phone or the internet. Despite his antediluvian religious ideology, Robertson has often been ahead of the technology curve; his CBN operation is an example. In addition, Robertson is now on the board of directors of the troubled Laura Ashley company; his arrival coincided with a cash transfusion in the form of stock purchase from Malayan Unified Industries, MUI. That same company is in business with Robertson and the powerful Riady family of Indonesia (Lippo Group) in operating China Entertainment Broadcast Television, Inc. which pumps out "no news, no sex, no violence" throughout Asia and even into the Peoples Republic of China. The lesson from this is that Robertson has "deep pockets" and access to plenty of money. Either or both of these operations can make Robertson millions of dollars is disposable income to spend on political organizing.

   ¶    The Coalition has become adept at exaggerating its role and painting defeats as victories. In the 1996 election, for instance, despite whipping Christian conservatives into the unsuccessful effort to back Sen. Robert Dole for the White House, the Coalition announced that because of its efforts it had prevented a "Republican meltdown."

   ¶    No significant movement within the Republican Party seems capable of dethroning religious conservatives from their positions of influence. Abortion rights has indeed become a litmus test for political correctness, one which any moderates such as N.J. Governor Christine Whitman are simply unable to pass. Yesterday, New York Gov. George Pataki told a newspaper that the GOP should remove the antiabortion plank from the party platform. "A plank that says we have to all believe or act one way or the other is inappropriate... Yes, I would take it out,"declared Pataki.

   The plank in question says, "The unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed." It calls for passage of a Human Life Amendment to ban all abortion.

   Efforts to even discuss the possibility of removing the plank, though, have in the past elicited threats and retaliation from Christian Coalition. We predict that the plank will remain in the GOP platform; simply put, if it is removed, too many of the party's religious right activists would bolt in favor of a third-party effort, one that could be catastrophic for Republicans in the short run.

   Thus, we see Pat Robertson as capable of buying whatever expertise and other resources he needs for the 2000 election. The Christian Coalition remains the 900-pound gorilla on the religious right, a fact which even Paul Weyrich and James Dobson must acknowledge. Some Christian evangelicals and fundamentalists may opt for Weyrich's "secession" calls, but most likely will stay in the system, and active in electoral politics. They still comprise the backbone of Republican precinct workers. And they will still follow the person who has the money and organization -- Pat Robertson and his Christian Coalition.

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