Student no: 42779006

Callum Craigie

American Politics Major Essay:

Discuss the influence of the Christian Right on the modern Republican Party,

from President Reagan to President George W. Bush.

The Christian Right is influential towards the modern Republican Presidency as

social movement. The Democratic Lyndon Johnson Presidency led the creation

and future influence of the Christian Right upon the modern Republican Party.

The 1964 Civil Rights Act was the trigger for disenchanted Southern

conservatives to entrench a ‘Southern Backlash’ vote to the Republican Party in

the 1964 Presidential elections. The ‘Southern Backlash’ organised as a social

movement into the Christian Right with the growth of the liberal administrative

state and the emergence of politicised preachers. As a social movement the 1980

election victory of Reagan reflected how the Christian Right became influential

with the modern Executive of Office. Furthermore the election fallout of

President George H. W. Bush and the President Bill Clinton victory was the

reflection significantly influential the Christian Right had become upon the

Modern Republican parties hold of the Oval Office. The Christian Right lacks

further influence with no official leadership or successful political organisation.

Furthermore key policies of the Christian Right’s have failed to achieve success

under a modern Republican government.

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The Christian Right is influential towards the modern Republican Presidency, as

the modern Executive Office has become intertwined with social movements.

According to Arthur Schlesinger in his analysis of American leadership,

traditionally the executive office would shy away from close relationships with

controversial social movements and sometimes openly attack them1. However

the role of the executive changed into the 20th century, with the nation according

to Milkis and Tichenor receiving ‘glimpses’ of transformational possibilities.

Examples of Presidential collaborations with social movements are given during

the both Roosevelt, Wilson, Truman and Kennedy administrations2. Sidney

Milkis, Daniel Tichenor and Laura Blessing in a historical study of the rallying

forces for political transformations in American politics, conceives the

relationship between the modern Presidency and social movements to be

instrumental. The emergence of the modern Presidency was the ‘recast’ of the

role of the President as an executive. A modern Presidency in order to guarantee

their next term survival and primary elections will collaborate with social

movements3. Furthermore it is argued by Milkis, Tichenor and Blessing the

modern Executive power and social movements being intertwined, is

problematic. The Executive power in appealing to the social movement is

constrained constitutionally by the separation and division of powers4. The

Christian Right is therefore problematically influential to the modern Republican

1 Schlesinger. M. Arthur, ‘The Imperial Presidency’, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2004, p. 542.2 Milkis. M. Sidney and Tichenor. J. Daniel, ‘Reform’s Mating Dance: Presidents Social Movements and Racial Realignments’, Journal of Policy History, vol. 23, no. 4, 2001, p. 451-490.3 Milkis. M. Sidney, Tichenor. J. Daniel, Blessing. Laura, ‘The Rallying Force: The Modern Presidency, Social Movements, and the Transformation of American Politics’, Presidential Studies Quarterly 43, No. 3 September, Center for the Study of the Presidency, 2013, p. 642.4 Ibid.

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Presidency, as the role of the Executive has transformed to collaborate with

social movements.

It was the Democratic Lyndon Johnson Presidency’s collaboration with the social

movement of Civil Rights, which led the creation and future influence of the

Christian Right upon the modern Republican Party. Johnson in appealing to

another social movement been Civil Rights, proved to be a critical action to the

Democratic Party5. In launching the biggest Presidential wave of federal

expansion since Roosevelt Johnson’s in his Great Society programs of the 1960s,

clashed with the traditional American conceptions of rights. Traditionally

characters such as Strom Thurmond were popular within the Deep Southern

Democratic Party, on the grounds of his refusal of schoolhouse access of black

children6. However following the introduction of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

considerable backlash occurred within the demographic of Southern,

conservative, Christian and working class whites from the Democratic Party7.

The collaboration of Johnson with the Civil Rights social movement was the

trigger to disenchantment with Southern conservatives.

Christian Right influence after Johnson’s collaborations with Civil Rights caused

further backlash into Republican Party. Characters in the Republican Party with

similar views to the previously mentioned Strum Thurmond, such as Barry

Goldwater gained the political momentum. The disenchanted Southern

5 Schoenberger. A. Robert, ‘The American Right Wing: Readings in Political Behavior’, Hold, Rinehart and Winston INC, The University of Michigan, 1969, p. 247.6 Busch. E. Andrew, ‘Regan’s Victory: The Presidential Election of 1980 and the Rise of the Right’, University of Kansas, 2005, p. 9.7 Ibid, p. 17.

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conservatives voted for Barry Goldwater. Backlash flow into the Goldwater

Presidential campaign in 1964. The Republican Party gained several Deep South

states, for the first time since the civil war8. Busch in his analysis of factors that

led up to Reagan’s victory considers the Democrats although morally correct to

have “paid a heavy price for this position, alienating both southern whites and

white ethnic blue collar workers”9. The introduction of Civil Rights led to the

influx of disenchanted Democratic voters into Republican politics.

With the 1964 Civil Rights Act, 1964 Presidential elections and the following

Republican gain of disenchanted Southern conservatives the Republican Party

became a destabilised environment. The Republican convention of 1964 caused a

split among liberal and conservative Republicans over the civil rights issue,

drawn primarily along the dimension of federal intervention on the behalf of the

civil rights movement. A disenchanted group been the ‘Southern Backlash’, came

to infest and influence the previously liberal Republican Party10. Conservative

Republicans appealed to the ‘Southern Backlash’ destabilising the influence of

the liberals within the Republican Party.

The ‘Southern Backlash’ evolved into the Christian Right with the growth of the

liberal administrative state, following 1964 and the emergence of politicised

preachers. The ‘Southern Backlash’ demographic already been conservative

Christians became further radicalised with the social and political changes into

the 1970s. Christian fundamentalists, evangelicals and Pentecostals evolved or

8 Ibid, p. 16.9 Ibid, p. 16.10 Schoenberger. A. Robert, 1969, p. 247.

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contributed to organisations such as the fundamentalist American Council of

Christian Churches and the less absolutist National Association of Evangelicals11.

Previously the Christian fundamentalist, evangelicals and Pentecostal preachers

were political non participants or would vote Democratic, however the 1970s

was the emergence of politicised preachers12. The assembly of ‘Southern

Backlash’ with the emergence of politicised preachers caused gradual emergence

of a Christian Right in the 1970s.

The assembly of the emergence of politicised preachers that caused gradual

emergence of a Christian Right was in the rejection of the liberal political

changes of the 1970s. According to Diamond in her analysis of what forces led up

to Reagan’s emergence to the Presidency, preachers such as Jerry Falwell, James

Robison, Pat Robertson, and Jim Bakker entered politics in the 1970s in revolt

against of culturally liberal government policies that favoured ‘secular

humanism’ over their faith-based moralities13. Falwell and other Christian Right

preachers been particularly outraged by abortion. In 1973 following the Roe vs.

Wade Supreme Court decision, abortion was in legalised, causing considerable

public outcry for the Christian Right. Furthermore similar outrage was expressed

with threats to the tax-exempt status of some Christian schools, the Senate

passage of the Equal Rights Amendment in 1972 and the emergence of other

11 Wuthnow. Robert and Liebman. Robert, ‘The New Christian Right: Mobilization and Legitimization’, Transaction Publishers, 1983, p. 168-172. 12 Weyrich. Paul, ‘Building the Moral Majority’, August, 1979, p. 114-117. Cited Story. Ronald and Laurie. Bruce, ‘The Rise of Conservatism in America: 1945-2000’, Bedford St/ Martin’s Publishing, 2008.13 Diamond. Sara, ‘Roads to Dominion: Right Wing Movements and Political Power in the United States’, Guilford Press, 1995, p. 246.

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social movements such as gay rights14. The Christian Right as a social movement

rejected liberal political change led by the new politicalised preachers.

Christian Right as a social movement became influential to the modern Executive

office in the 1976 elections, which led to the success of the modern Republican

Party. In 1976 Democratic nominee Jimmy Carter won office, with the support of

the Christian Right. Ronald Reagan ran for the Republican primaries in 1976

losing to Gerald Ford. Reagan appealed to the Christian Right in the primaries as

an advocate for Barry Goldwater15. Jimmy Carter was a ‘born again’ Southern

Baptist and won the support of the Christian Right in the 1976 election against

Gerald Ford. Reagan, the dark horse insurgent Republican candidate of 1976

later proved to be alternative for the Christian Right16. In Carter’s short time in

office, his administration angered Christian Right leaders on a variety of issues.

The Christian Right were once again disenchanted by the expansion of social

policies. These include the school prayer, abortion and particularly the

administration’s stance to deny tax-exempt status to religious schools that failed

to integrate racial minorities from their local communities17. The Christian Right

was influenced the modern Republican Party with alternative candidate of

Reagan following the dissatisfaction of Carter’s expansion of social policies.

14 Pierson. Paul and Skocpol. Theda, ‘ The Transformation of American Politics: Activist Government and the Rise of Conservatism’, Princeton University Press, 2007, p. 55. 15 Ibid, p. 96.16 Reichley. A. James, ‘Religion in American Public Life’, Brookings Institution Press, 1985, p. 78-79.17 Diamond. Sara, ‘Not by Politics Alone: The Enduring Influence of the Christian Right’, Guilford Press, 2000, p. 65-66. Edsall. B. Thomas and Edsall. D. Mary, ‘Chain Reaction: The Impact of Race, Rights and Taxes on American Politics’, Norton, 1992, p. 132-134.

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The 1980 election victory of Reagan reflected the Christian Right’s anxieties with

a shifting to a collaborative Executive Office. Reagan according to Milkis appealed

to the Christian Right in advancing a more centralised party system that defied

national consensus and enduring reform, with the promise of conservatives

gaining authority over liberals for control of the modern executive office18.

Reagan used the modern executive as an institution through the emergence with

a social movement, however appealing to a social movement that previously

evolved in the disenchantment of Johnson’s emergence with a social movement.

Hence the electoral success of the Republican Party in 1980 led by Reagan was a

“critical”, realignment of presidential contest”19. Following the Reagan

presidency Christian Right consistently has made up a third of all registered

voters, with half identifying to be Republican, and around 80 per cent voting

Republican up to 200420. The Christian Right following 1980 election became

influential into how the modern Republican’s won the Executive office.

The election of President George H. W. Bush and the following election of

President Bill Clinton, reflected the how influential the Christian Right became

upon Republican Presidential campaigns. In 1988 Bush senior gained the Oval

Office after been the Vice President to the Reagan administration, however only

maintaining one term. Bush senior unlike Reagan and Carter was not an avid

campaigner of the Christian Right. Bush senior although in the Reagan

administration contrary to the Christian Right’s objectives was a moderate to

liberal Republican, endorsing abortion rights and the Equal Rights amendment.

18 Milkis. M. Sidney, Tichenor. J. Daniel, Blessing. Laura, 2013, p. 643.19 Ibid, p. 656.20 Ibid, p. 643.

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The following 1992 election loss further explained how critical the Christian

Right and their objectives had come to influence the Republican hold on the Oval

Office. Following the Christian Right swing of President Reagan was the

emergence of the New Democrats. New organisations emerged with the Reagan

landslide, forming around the reform party initiatives. Examples such as the

Democratic Leadership Council founded in 1985 chaired by Bill Clinton,

advocated a ‘Third Way’ as an antidote to Reagan’s success21. Clinton unlike

previous Democratic candidate Michael Dukakis excised the ‘Third Way’. The

‘Third Way’ meant appealing to the Christian Right, promoting his Southern

Baptist religious beliefs and exploiting Bush’s Episcopalian beliefs22. The absence

of the Christian Right in Bush’s senior’s campaign meant the considerable

absence of votes, particularly in the Southern Baptist South23. In no longer

supporting the Bush senior administration, the Christian Right proved to be an

essential for Republican Presidential hold in the Oval Office.

The Christian Right lacks any official leadership or the organisation social

movement to influence within the Republican Party. In an analysis of the

Christian Coalition mainstream (an advocacy group formed in 1989 of

conservative Christians and evangelicals led by Pat Robertson), the Christian

Right is considered by James Jasper to be an incorporation of the Republican

Party, rather than a social movement. Jasper defines a social movement to be the

“conscious, concerted, and relatively sustained efforts by organised groups…. To

21 Duncan. Russell and Goddard. Joseph, ‘Contemporary States and Societies: Contemporary America’, Palgrave McMillian, Second Edition, 2005, p. 83.22 Ibid, p. 11223 Cooke. Alistair, ‘Letter From America’, The Penguin Group, 2004, p. 353.

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change some aspect of their society by using extra-institutional means”24. An

attempted organisation of the Christian Right emerged in 1995 with Republican

senators, congresspersons; the Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and

Christian Coalition leaders announcing a 10-point contract with the American

family. The media perceived the contract and leaders of the Christian Coalition

such as the executive director Ralph Reed to had gained immediate political

influence. Within the same month Time Magazine named Reed “The Right Hand

of God”, but later in 2006 the article was mocked the Washington Post to be a

shrinking organisation25. The 10-point contract proved to be a failed successful

organisation of individuals and groups. The Christian Coalition in 2001 had debts

exceeding its’ assets by $983000 and Pat Robertson resigned as its’ president26.

Jasper is therefore correct to proclaim the Christian Right as an incorporation of

the Republican Party, as the Republican element of the original organisation of

individuals and groups remains.

The Christian Right’s key policies have not been achieved under Republican

government. As previously stated, Falwell and other Christian Right preachers

were outraged by abortion. The 1973 ruling of Roe vs. Wade in the Supreme

Court decision legalised abortion27. Since the Reagan and George Bush Senior era

24 Jasper. James, ‘The Art of Moral Protest: Culture, Biography and Creativity in Social Movements’, University of Chicago Press, 1999, p. 5.25 Cooperman. Alan and Edsall. Thomas, ‘Christian Coalition Shrinks as Debt Grows’, The Washington Post, 10 April 2006.26 Schnabel. L. Paul, ‘When Fringe Goes Mainstream: A Sociohistorical Content Analysis of the Christian Coalition’s Contract with The American Family and the Republican Party Platform’, Politics, Religion and Ideology, Vol. 14, No. 1, 2013, p. 110. 27 Scheidler. Ann, ‘An interview with Norma McCorvey: The “Roe” of “Roe vs. Wade” and Sandra Cano, the “Doe’ of “Doe vs. Bolton”’, Chicago Pro-Life Action League, Interview Audio transcript, April 20, 1996.

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the Supreme Court has been under the influence of the Republican Party, with

majority of Supreme Court Justices been appointed by Republican Presidents.

Previous rulings such as the 2000 Bush vs. Gore Supreme Court decision reflect

the Republican Party’s control over the Supreme Court, with five conservative

out of nine Judges voting in Bush’s favour28. Controversially no rulings have

succeeded in the Supreme Court under Republican influence to overturn the

1973 Roe vs. Wade decision29. Therefore the Christian Right’s influence upon

modern Republican Party has to achieve key policy outcomes, with a Republican

controlled Supreme Court.

In conclusion the Christian Right has little influence on the modern Republican

Party. It is influential upon modern Republican politics, as it is the disenchanted

‘Southern Backlash’ demographic who rejected Johnson’s Civil Rights reforms. As

a social movement the Christian Right is influential, as it the collaboration of

modern Republican Presidency. The Carter and Reagan 1980 election’s reflected

this this, with Reagan appealing the Christian Right and winning the election.

Thus it became problematically influential to the modern Republican Presidency

survival in the Oval Office. As social movement however is an incorporation of

the Republican Party as it lacks any clear leaders ship and successful political

unification. Furthermore the Christian Right’s influence upon modern

Republican Party has failed to achieve their key policy outcomes such as

abortion. Thus the Christian Right is influential on the Modern Republican

28 Toobin. Jeffery, ‘Too close to Call: The Thirty Six Day Battle to Decide the 2000 Election’, Random House Publishing, 2002, p. 66.29 Doan. Alesha, ‘Opposition and Intimidation: The Abortion Wars and Strategies of Political Harassment’, University of Michigan Press, 2007, p. 57.

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Presidency holding the Oval office, however lacks the organisation and authority

to achieve its’ policies.

Bibliography:

Books:

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Busch. E. Andrew, ‘Regan’s Victory: The Presidential Election of 1980 and the

Rise of the Right’, University of Kansas, 2005.

Cooke. Alistair, ‘Letter From America’, The Penguin Group, 2004.

Diamond. Sara, ‘Roads to Dominion: Right Wing Movements and Political Power

in the United States’, Guilford Press, 1995.

Diamond. Sara, ‘Not by Politics Alone: The Enduring Influence of the Christian

Right’, Guilford Press, 2000.

Doan. Alesha, ‘Opposition and Intimidation: The Abortion Wars and Strategies of

Political Harassment’, University of Michigan Press, 2007.

Duncan. Russell and Goddard. Joseph, ‘Contemporary States and Societies:

Contemporary America’, Palgrave McMillian, Second Edition, 2005.

Edsall. B. Thomas and Edsall. D. Mary, ‘Chain Reaction: The Impact of Race,

Rights and Taxes on American Politics’, Norton, 1992.

Jasper. James, ‘The Art of Moral Protest: Culture, Biography and Creativity in

Social Movements’, University of Chicago Press, 1999.

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Pierson. Paul and Skocpol. Theda, ‘ The Transformation of American Politics:

Activist Government and the Rise of Conservatism’, Princeton University Press,

2007.

Reichley. A. James, ‘Religion in American Public Life’, Brookings Institution Press,

1985.

Schlesinger. M. Arthur, ‘The Imperial Presidency’, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt,

2004.

Schoenberger. A. Robert, ‘The American Right Wing: Readings in Political

Behavior’, Hold, Rinehart and Winston INC, The University of Michigan, 1969.

Toobin. Jeffery, ‘Too close to Call: The Thirty Six Day Battle to Decide the 2000

Election’, Random House Publishing, 2002.

Wuthnow. Robert and Liebman. Robert, ‘The New Christian Right: Mobilization

and Legitimization’, Transaction Publishers, 1983.

Journals:

Milkis. M. Sidney, Tichenor. J. Daniel, ‘Reform’s Mating Dance: Presidents Social

Movements and Racial Realignments’, Journal of Policy History, vol. 23, no. 4,

2001.

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Milkis. M. Sidney, Tichenor. J. Daniel, Blessing. Laura, ‘The Rallying Force: The

Modern Presidency, Social Movements, and the Transformation of American

Politics’, Presidential Studies Quarterly 43, No. 3 September, Center for the Study

of the Presidency, 2013.

Schnabel. L. Paul, ‘When Fringe Goes Mainstream: A Sociohistorical Content

Analysis of the Christian Coalition’s Contract with The American Family and the

Republican Party Platform’, Politics, Religion and Ideology, Vol. 14, No. 1, 2013.

New Paper Articles:

Cooperman. Alan and Edsall. Thomas, ‘Christian Coalition Shrinks as Debt

Grows’, The Washington Post, 10 April 2006.

Weyrich. Paul, ‘Building the Moral Majority’, The Conservative Digest, August,

1979, p. 114-117. Cited Story. Ronald and Laurie. Bruce, ‘The Rise of

Conservatism in America: 1945-2000’, Bedford St/ Martin’s Publishing, 2008.

Audio Recordings:

Scheidler. Ann, ‘An interview with Norma McCorvey: The “Roe” of “Roe vs. Wade” and Sandra Cano, the “Doe’ of “Doe vs. Bolton”’, Chicago Pro-Life Action League, Interview Audio transcript, April 20, 1996.

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