In 1979, Jerry Falwell and his Moral Majority burst onto the political scene. After spending a few decades in the political wilderness, evangelical Christians had once again found their voice. They used their voice to argue that the culture had gone morally insane, and that it needed healing. The secular elite were terrified of these audacious Christians who dared to speak in the public square, and their terror only grew as Ronald Regan won two elections with "majoritarian" support. A flood of books sounded the alarm: "The theocrats are coming!" Under increasing scrutiny and criticism, the Moral Majority began to struggle, Falwell lost public support, and by the late 1980s the media, with a sigh of relief, reported that the Christian Right was dead.
Then it happened again. In the early 1990s Pat Robertson and Ralph Reed burst onto the scene with their Christian Coalition. Though Bill Clinton won in 1992, the Republicans, with the Coalition's support, came roaring back in 1994 to capture the House of Representatives. In 1998, outspoken Christians helped to impeach the President of the United States. The secular elite grew scared, books were published ("The theocrats are coming!"), and by the late 1990s Pat Robertson and his Christian Coalition lost support. The media reported the death of the Christian Right.
Nothing is new under the sun. Despite the Christian Coalition's decline, evangelicals have refused to be shut out of the political debate. In the early 2000s they once again mobilized to support George W. Bush, but this time they were less centralized (though there were prominent voices, such as James Dobson). In 2004 the evangelicals helped President Bush win a second term. Right on cue, the secular elite are terrified. You've seen the books they're publishing...it's the same as what they published in the '80s and '90s. The media, one notices, is now wondering whether the Christian right is dying.
It is true that many of the criticisms against the Christian political movement were accurate, both in the 1980s and now. I know I've had my share of critiques. Back in the 1980s I thought the Moral Majority left much to be desired. Their rhetoric was often over-the-top and they lacked political sophistication. I, like so many others, simply sat back and complained.