Introduction to The Christian Coalition
A number of national organizations have been monitoring and fighting the political influence of Far Right organizations such as the Christian Coalition. People for the American Way has been following their progress for many years. Read their analysis of the Christian Coalition.
I did my own research in 1991 and assembled a slide show based on their goals and organizational strength. Here are some images from that presentation...
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The Christian Coalition raised a ton of money. They
used Pat Robertson's base of support
from his 1988 Presidential bid and combined t with the
constituents of his ministries, which included The Christian
Broadcasting Network and The 700 Club. Years later,
Robertson purchased The Family Channel and later old it to Disney
for billions! |
Robertson early on proclaimed his goal of political
organizing and electoral politics. This material dates
for 1992. Channel and later old it to Disney for billions!
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You couldn't make this stuff up! |
But
it's no laughing matter when the Christian Coalition's
efforts starting winning elections for anti-choice,
anti-arts, anti-labor, pro-gun candidates. |
From
The Chicago Tribune, Nov. 17, 2000. It's a nightmare.
And it's just going to get worse unless we do something... |
One
of their most effective election tactics was, and is,
the distribution of voting guides that purport to be
neutral but, in fact, are clearly biased. In the example
to the left, any vote to fund the National Endowment
for the Arts was recorded as a vote that favored "Tax
Funds for Obscene Art." These guides were distributed
in Congressman Cox's district - in church order -of-service
and under windshields in church parking lots. Ralph Reed, who was the Christian Coalition's dynamic executive director for many years, founded and runs Century Strategies, a public relations and public affairs firm with offices in Atlanta and Washington. He advises numerous Fortune 500 companies. As chairman of the Georgia Republican Party in 2002, he helped elect U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss, Sonny Perdue as the first GOP Governor in 130 years, and gained control of state Senate for first time since Reconstruction. During his tenure, the state party budget increased from $5 million to $10.7 million, the donor base increased from 12,000 to 34,000, and the grassroots network grew to over 3,000 volunteers. Reed has worked on seven presidential campaigns and currently serves as Chairman of the Southeast Region for the Bush-Cheney ’04 and campaign manager in Georgia. He has advised 88 campaigns for U.S. Senate, Governor and Congress in 24 states. |
This
is no fringe operation. Over the past few years every
major Republican figure has courted the Christian Coalition.
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The
Far Right raised millions of dollars bashing the arts
and labeling artists as un-American and amoral. This
letter was one of three generated by the |
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In
1991, the Christian Coalition established its Illinois
Chapter and began organizing chapters in counties throughout
the state.