Is there a down-side to a Robertson endorsement? Some callers to yesterday's program proclaimed that point in very vigorous terms. They don't like many episodes in Robertson's career, and many of these callers are themselves evangelicals. They don't like the Robertson brand, whether it’s the hurricane episode, the 9/11 interview of Jerry Falwell, or the business deals.
James Dobson may be deeply disliked by the left, but he has very, very few enemies within evangelical circles. This isn't the case with Robertson, and thus a Robertson endorsement is a much different bit of information for the public to digest.
But it does have one great benefit to Rudy: The MSM has never, ever come close to understanding the evangelical voter. MSM thinks of the group as a sort of carnival of gap-toothed, snake-handling, rural post box owning weed chewers. They will assume that Robertson is a general with many divisions, and representative of a much more significant following than he has. Robertson's endorsement will thus be reported as a breakthrough for Giuliani, and a reassurance to fence-sitters that the mayor's got the momentum they were hoping to see.
It is thus among non-evangelicals that the Robertson endorsement will be of greatest value to Rudy. In a two man race --and it is a two man race between Giuliani and Romney-- getting the fence sitters to break for you matters a great deal. Thus both men had good weeks in drawing key endorsements, and a close race among well-matched top tier contenders got even closer.