NYT’s Adam Nagourney had this to say:
1) Who will be the most effusive in paying tribute to the Rev. Jerry Falwell, the founder of the Moral Majority and a great power in the evangelical wing of the party? Will Mr. Falwell be to this debate what Ronald Reagan was to the Republican presidential candidates debate 12 days ago at the Ronald Reagan Library? Watch Senator John McCain of Arizona in particular: as part of his overall move to the right earlier in the campaign, he made a point of publicly embracing Mr. Falwell after having criticized him as an agent of “intolerance.”
I don’t think that Nagourney quite gets it right. As many have noted Dobson and Colson have much more influence with today’s voters.
I suspect that this will work as a retrospective. People will talk about the contributions of the Moral Majority and the links with Ronald Reagan. By talking about the partnership people get to state their support for the role of conservative Christians in politics without saying things on the record that are more difficult to quote.
