THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT PUTS DEMOCRATIC SENATORS IN THE BULLS-EYE FOR 2006

Thanks to Mark Lane at Flablog for the heads up on this...

Although Senate Democrats have allowed 204 of President Bush's appointments to the federal judiciary clear sailing during the past four years, that just doesn't seem to be enough to the religious right. The evangelicals want a rubber stamp placed on every nominee that the President puts in front of the Senate, basically asking the upper chamber to forget it's constitutional responsibility to insure that nominees are qualified and well-suited for the position.

The New York Times is reporting that Dr. James C. Dobson, the child psychologist and founder of Focus on the Family, is sending a message to more than one million supporters promising a "battle of enormous proportions" if the President does not appoint what he calls "strict constructionist" judges, or if Democratic senators attempt to block such appointees.

Dobson's message focuses on six senators that he says will be "in the bulls-eye" if they attempt to thwart Bush's appointments:

Ben Nelson (D - Nebraska)
Mark Dayton (D - Minnesota)
Robert C. Byrd (D - West Virginia)
Kent Conrad (D - North Dakota)
Jeff Bingaman (D - New Mexico)
Bill Nelson (D - Florida)

This plunge into the political arena is a new tactic for Dobson, who is considered one of the nation's most influential Christian leaders. He supported Bush in the recent election, the first time Dobson has endorsed a presidential candidate. According to the Times story:

In an interview in his office in Colorado Springs, Dr. Dobson acknowledged that his plunge into partisan politics had irrevocably changed his public image. "I can't go back, nor do I want to," he said. "I will probably endorse more candidates. This is a new day. I just feel a real need to make use of this visibility."

He said that despite initial concerns, his political activities did not appear to have diverted donations from Focus on the Family. He created a sister lobbying organization during the last election, and the two organizations' combined budgets grew to a projected $146 million in 2004, from about $130 million in 2003, with a target of $170 million for 2005.