James Dobson is sick and tired of empty promises.
Fed up with what he sees as the U.S. Republican party’s failure to act conservatively on vital social and moral issues during the last few years (despite having a majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives), the respected founder and head of the influential Focus on the Family organization has served notice that Republican politicians had better start delivering, or some of their key supporters will search for greener pastures.
The Republicans “laid the foundation for revolt, and I don’t even think they know it because they’re so out of touch with the people I’m talking about,” Dobson said recently during a meeting of conservative leaders at the Council for National Policy. The Republican congressional leadership’s avoidance of key issues such as abortion is “unconscionable,” he said. “If they want our votes every two years and then say, ‘Don’t call me, I’ll call you,’ then I will take the next step … If I go, I’ll take as many people with me as possible.”
In the past, such ultimatums usually fell on deaf ears, but this time, there is evidence that politicians are listening. That’s because statistics showed that 43 per cent of voters in the 1994 Congressional elections identified themselves as being pro-life, conservative and evangelical.
And Dobson packs a political wallop because, in addition to being a child psychologist, a multi-million selling author of 14 books and a father of two children, he is able to claim a mailing list of 3.5 million and a daily radio listenership of six million.
In March, Dobson toured the halls of power in Washington, meeting with congressional leaders and activists. He pressed for movement on a number of points, including: cutting off public funding of Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion organizations; eliminating “safe sex” and condom distribution programs; passing legislation that would require parental consent for contraceptives and abortion within all federal programs; banning human cloning; stopping federal funding of fetal tissue experimentation; and defunding the National Endowment for the Arts (which once financed a painting of a crucified Christ in a bottle of urine).
Republicans are trembling because Dobson’s moves endanger their stranglehold on mid-term elections this fall and a possible capture of the presidency in 2000. Observers say Dobson’s power block is strong enough to sway the party. The concern is great enough to have prompted Republican national committee chair Jim Nicholson to call a meeting of head lobbyists for pro-family groups in Washington, to determine the extent of the threat and examine ways to maintain strength.
Some observers have speculated that Family Research Council head Gary Bauer, with whom Dobson has a close relationship, will run for the U.S. presidency in 2000. Dobson has indicated his intent to take periodic, short leaves of absence from Focus on the Family during this year’s elections, but has no intention of running himself.
In a recent, three-hour meeting with Republican Speaker Newt Gingrich and his lieutenants, Christian activists won a promise for a more conservative social agenda. Gingrich committed to pushing legislation that would restrict abortions (especially partial-birth abortions), encourage school prayer and block expanded rights for gays and lesbians. Gingrich and company also pledged to attempt to eliminate federal funding for the arts.
Focus on the Family, the Christian Coalition, Concerned Women for America, the Family Research Council, the Southern Baptist Convention and the Home School Legal Defence Association were among the groups represented at the meeting. “The leadership is committed, deeply committed, to making sure that what came out of this meeting actually happens,” said Republican whip Tom DeLay of Texas, who hosted the meeting.
Dobson emerged from the meeting with a heartened attitude. “I believe we’re going to see action on some of these items,” he said. “Only time will tell.”
Others were even more excited. “They gave us their commitment. We will hit the ball out of the park,” said Lou Sheldon of the Traditional Values Coalition. “You’re going to be seeing a lot more of us.”
One concrete, positive development that emerged was an agreement by House of Representatives leaders to establish a “values action team” headed by Representative Joseph R. Pitts of Pennsylvania. Pitts, along with six other lawmakers, will meet weekly with conservative leaders to plan legislative strategy.
The developments drew a predictably hostile response from liberal elements in the U.S. Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Citizens United for Separation of Church and State, said every American should be worried that “TV preachers and fundamentalist politicos” are setting the U.S. national agenda. “Leaders in Congress made a deal with the devil, and now they’re having to give the devil his due,” he said.
But Dobson remains unfazed. In a recent appearance on the Meet the Press television program, he said he is merely a voice for a lot of sentiment across the U.S. “I’m not the lone wolf here,” he said.
