Focus on the Family kingpin James Dobson was outed, so to speak, as harboring some some strong anti-Fred sentiments yesterday. From the AP:

DENVER (AP) — James Dobson, one of the nation’s most politically influential evangelical Christians, made it clear in a message to friends this week he will not support Republican presidential hopeful Fred Thompson.

In a private e-mail obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, Dobson accuses the former Tennessee senator and actor of being weak on the campaign trail and wrong on issues dear to social conservatives.

“Isn’t Thompson the candidate who is opposed to a Constitutional amendment to protect marriage, believes there should be 50 different definitions of marriage in the U.S., favors McCain-Feingold, won’t talk at all about what he believes, and can’t speak his way out of a paper bag on the campaign trail?” Dobson wrote.

“He has no passion, no zeal, and no apparent ‘want to.’ And yet he is apparently the Great Hope that burns in the breasts of many conservative Christians? Well, not for me, my brothers. Not for me!”

The founder and chairman of Colorado Springs-based Focus on the Family, Dobson draws a radio audience in the millions, many of whom who first came to trust the child psychologist for his conservative Christian advice on child-rearing.

Strong words indeed, from this self appointed kingmaker whose Christianized Communism is held forth as some sort of example of middle American, Christian conservative values. As if there’s anything conservative about an organization claiming pornography is a public health hazard, or that legalized gambling “exploits the poor” among the host of other crimes it supposedly causes.

In fact if you listen closely just underneath the Thumping of Dobson’s Bible you’ll hear a constant stream of Stalinist propaganda vomited forth from him and his cell of so-called conservatives, and find that Focus on the Family has less in common with the G.O.P. and are more with C.P.U.S.A.

Especially when it comes to the “issue” of homosexuals in America. Dobson’s desire to give the gay community the shaft, so to speak, on everything from marriage rights to gay churches, is suspiciously similar to communist states dealings with gays.

And that’s what this is about isn’t it? Dobson doesn’t like that Thompson’s not goose stepping along to Focus on the Family’s gay bashing drum:

Dobson and other Christian conservatives support an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would bar gay marriage nationally. Thompson has said he would support a constitutional amendment that would prohibit states from imposing their gay marriage laws on other states, which falls well short of that.

Karen Hanretty, a spokeswoman for the Thompson campaign, said Wednesday in response to the Dobson e-mail: “Fred Thompson has a 100 percent pro-life voting record. He believes strongly in returning authority to the levels of government closest to families and communities, protecting states from intrusion by the federal government and activist judges.

So Fred takes the actual conservative stance, allowing communities to decide for themselves how to address the issue of Marriage rights for gays without being pressured one way or another by the Federal government. That’s not good enough for Dobson though, because people like Dobson (or more precisely the suckers he milks for money) won’t be satisfied until the American government really oversteps their bounds and starts making theological decisions regardless of what the public wants.

Sorry jimmy, but that’s not conservatism, that’s communism. It’s almost like Dobson doesn’t care about conservatism at all.
Let’s be honest, Dobson’s group is no different than N.O.W., G.L.A.A.D. or Code Pink. They’re all in the business of collecting money from marks to fight a never ending battle over some issue that would, sans activists like themselves, work themselves out.

Groups like Dobson’s work to prolong the issue by demanding unreasonable measures (like denying 5-10% of Americans the right to marry the person they want) aimed not at getting accepted by the country at large, but at agitating the opposing side into action thus creating a fund raising opportunity.

Fred’s commonsense approach to this issue would cut into Dobson’s bottom line, thus the attack. Dobson doesn’t care if any G.O.P. hopeful becomes president, in fact he probably hopes a democrat wins, because it’d ensure his organizations would have plenty to “work on” with all the money the people who think Focus on the Family looking out for them will send in.

As a Republican who is neither Christian, nor by Focus on the Family’s standards conservative, I say screw James Dobson, I’m with Fred!

UPDATE: Allahpundit thinks Dobson’s “private e-mail” reads a lot like a fund raising letter. Also, why is a spokesman for Focus on the Family confirming the contents of Dobson’s private correspondence?

JunkYardBlog thinks this will help Fred more than hurt him.

Over at Hot Air the best analysis of the situation comes from the comments section:

Actually it wouldn’t be be so bad if Dobson had done that. A preacher has just as much right as anyone else to express a political opinion.

But that’s NOT what Dobson is doing. He is (apparently as a tax dodge) explicitly REFUSING to directly and honestly endorse any individual politician.

Instead, Dobson has publically (albeit back-handedly) proclaimed that he reviles all the leading Republican candidates. And I’m going out on a limb and assuming he’s not all that crazy about any of the Democrat candidates either.

So basically Dobson is just screeching that one sinner after another has failed to meet his ever-so-very lofty standard of righteousness. What does that leave? I suppose we are now supposed to sit around and try to puzzle out who among us Dobson DOESN’T think is a witch….

Well, sorry, but I’m just not in the mood to play that particular game. And frankly it’s kinda hard to see how that’s a good way for a so-called “evangelical” to reach out and show all of us lost sinners the way, the truth and the light.

If the guy has something to say, then he should have the guts to come out and SAY it. Otherwise, he’s not really Testifying very well is he?

logis on September 20, 2007 at 2:02 PM

Well said indeed.

Good News, DailyKos celebrates Dobson’s snubbing of Fred.