Mere Rhetoric: Evangelicals To Dobson, Media: Actually, We Really Like This Fred Thompson Guy

So we caught this news about how evangelicals are rallying around Thompson and against Dobson, and we wanted to do a "never contradict us in front of the children" told you so post. Because we remembered writing something about how evangelicals would come out against Dobson because of his irrational opposition to the Senator. Except we couldn't find that post, despite fifteen minutes of frustrating searches.

Turns out it was a Facebook message to a conservative friend. And now you know why we long for the days of email and Usenet. Because we're Luddites like that. Anyway:

Don't know what Dobson could be thinking. First of all, he's just being unfair. Fred's position isn't in support of gay marriage any more than his opposition to a federal ban on abortion is in support of abortion - it's a principled federalist position coming from the guy who was on the bottom of a 99-1 in the Senate because he was against giving the states anti-terrorism funds with strings attached. But even if that wasn't true, Dobson's standards are unreasonably higher than his congregation. This is going problem for him, because evangelicals are not the slavish caricatures that the MSM makes them out to be. Dobson speaks for evangelicals to them to the larger world, but he doesn't determine how they'll vote. If they disagree with him on Fred - and they do - they'll tell him to go pound sand. Who're evangelicals going to vote for? Mitt? Not if the recent polls are right. And they'll stay home in a general against Hillary? Not so much.

The Richard Land quote behind the link includes the phrase "furious at Doctor Dobson." Good stuff. And meanwhile, local and regional press outlets seem to have missed the memo from the national press that Fred is unexciting and that Jeri is manipulative:

Enbridge Energy Partners president Dan Tutcher and wife Kim rolled out the red carpet for presidential hopeful Fred Thompson last week, their impressive River Oaks spread packed with supporters of the former Tennessee senator. Accompanied by his wife, Jeri, who was "lovely, beautiful and articulate," according to Dan Tutcher, Thompson wowed the crowd of nearly 200. Among those already on board was Arthur Seeligson, who leads a group planning to raise big bucks for the candidate.

Could it be the case that evangelicals actually think for themselves and that a 6'2" movie star is good at lighting up a room? Stranger things have happened.

References:
* Southern Baptist Leader Defends Fred Thompson [CBN]
* A great time at the Bisso Corral [Houston Chron]

Previously:
* Fred08 Posting Embeddable Videos - Fred At Iowa State Fair: "I'm Tired Of Apologizing For America" [Video]
* Stupid Journalism Tricks: The NYT's Atttack On Jeri Thompson Is Sexist Even Though They Quoted Other People
* Fred Thompson Oppo Research Strongly Correlated With Fred Thompson Winning Polls. Which He's Doing.

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers