The single biggest winner of the mid-term elections was President George W. Bush. He showed determined courage in directly campaigning to change the make-up of the Senate. The President personally campaigned in key states for GOP incumbents, as many former Presidents have done during mid term elections, but then he went further. President George W. Bush took great political risk by campaigning against strong Democrat incumbents in states such as Missouri, Minnesota, and South Dakota. Had the President not changed the make-up of the Senate with his hands-on approach to this election, his next two years in office would have been ineffective. This is a President who faces up well to challenge, both international and political.

The next biggest winner from election night is Karl Rove who planned the Bush strategy. If Karl Rove had power in the Administration and the GOP before this election, now he is the undisputed king maker.

The political action committee chaired by myself, Government Is Not God did well in the Senate campaigns in which it was active. GING-PAC won three out of four elections, having supported John Cornyn in Texas, Lindsey Graham in South Carolina, and Jim Talent in Missouri. The fourth race, in South Dakota, may yet be won. As of 3:00 PM Thursday John Thune was only 527 votes behind incumbent Senator Tim Johnson. My contacts in the Republican Senatorial Election Committee tell me they know there was massive voter fraud on the Indian reservations in South Dakota. News reports indicate at least 1,700 fraudulent voter registrations. This is going to court and I believe the election results will be overturned and that John Thune will be the next Senator from South Dakota.

Government Is Not God - PAC did not do as well on the House side as on the Senate side, but there is a different philosophy in backing House candidates. Of the ten candidates GING-PAC supported financially, several were from minority groups. GING-PAC supported three African-Americans and one Hispanic. Of these GING-PAC lost all three of the races with black candidates. GING-PAC helped black Republicans tell their districts and the nation that the GOP is not for whites only! Family values and the conservative message are not for whites only. Most church going blacks are social conservatives, yet they still vote for pro-abortion Democrats. Only social conservative black candidates can get the message across to this demographic group that the GOP stands with them in their value system.

In Florida Jennifer Carroll chalked up 40% of the vote in a predominately black district. That is impressive for a Republican, even a black Republican! Ron Greer received more than a third of the vote in Wisconsin, as did Buster Soares in New Jersey. Tim Escobar could have beaten left-wing socialist nut case Linda Sanchez in California if the GOP had just given him the help he needed.

Every candidate endorsed by GING-PAC received funds from GING-PAC. The organization is a real PAC, not a pretend organization that merely lists candidates on a web site. During this election cycle candidates received anywhere from $500 to $5,000 depending upon the race.

I now move on to the Louisiana race. The December 7th run off is a must win for the Republicans and GING-PAC will pull out all the stops to support Suzanne Haik Terrell.

(The above information is not intended to influence any election and is presented for educational purposes only.)

“GODLESS MARCH ON WASHINGTON”

The “Godless March on Washington” on Saturday, November 2, 2002 was a far greater success than the first two attempts the atheists made at invading Washington, DC.

American Atheists first came to Washington, DC as an organization during Easter weekend of 1983. The group, then led by Madalyn Murray O’Hair, held an “Atheist Convention” in the city, but less than one hundred people participated in the weekend event. Their demonstration in front of the White House Easter Sunday morning drew less than fifty participants. During their event I reserved Lafayette Park across the street from the White House for a prayer vigil, and more than five hundred Christians came to pray and witness.

Madalyn Murray O’Hair died in 1995 but the atheist organization she founded lives on. American Atheists was taken over by Ellen Johnson, who almost immediately began operating it more as business than as a cause oriented organization. Unlike O’Hair, Ellen Johnson does not fill the airwaves with profanity and sexual innuendo. Her promotion of sexual freedom to the point of social anarchy by way of denial of God is more rational than was O’Hair’s, just as Karl Marx was a more rational man than Joseph Stalin in his sales pitch for communism.

Even with her businesslike approach the sale of organized atheism is difficult. Selling organization to those who do not believe in a controlling Universal Force is akin to selling Federalism to Anarchists. After just a few years in control of American Atheists, Ellen Johnson attempted to make a mark in Washington, DC in 1998. Her handful of people were met with a full page advertisement I had placed in the Washington Times. My film crew went to their convention and actually interviewed Ellen Johnson.

(Video clips of their 1998 atheist convention and my comments are still available on a video tape titled, The Atheists, What They Really Believe. The tape is no longer available at our Internet site, but if you have an interest please call our office during business hours at 800.650.7664. The tapes are $20.00 including shipping.)

This year Ellen Johnson tried a new approach. She attempted to gather together every godless organization in America, regardless of whether they refer to themselves as atheists or not, to give a show of power in Washington. As a result, there were almost 2,000 people in her “Godless March on Washington” this year.

While her organization skills may be getting better, her political understanding is next to nil. She brought these groups to Washington three days before a major election, when not a single elected official was in Washington! The Beltway media was on the road with the President and other politicians. As a result, Johnson and her conglomeration of atheist groups including “Maggot Punks” and “Queers for Racial and Economic Justice,” received virtually no coverage from the media.

Oddly, at this event that was so ill timed for political endeavor, Ms. Johnson announced the formation of the Godless Americans Political Action Committee. I presume that this organization is intended to counter the efforts of social conservative PAC’s such as one of which I am chairman. (See www.govnotgod.org)

This new brand of atheism is far more dangerous than the fringe movement led by Madalyn Murray O’Hair before her murder at the hands of a fellow atheist and former employee. The sales pitch is the same: “If you believe what I preach you are more evolved in the Darwinian sense that those who believe in God. You can do anything you want to do because you don’t have the primitive restraints of a god.” However, the pitch is in a better package and it appeals to youth whereas the Madalyn O’Hair version never did.

ATHEIST NEWDOW AND “UNDER GOD” IN THE PLEDGE

The highlight of the “Godless” event was the appearance of Michael Newdow, 49, of California. It was Dr. Newdow who filed the fraudulent lawsuit on behalf of his daughter to have the words “under God” removed from the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. The nation’s leaders up to and including President George W. Bush were shocked when the 9th Circuit Federal Court of Appeals agreed with Newdow.

Newdow had previously brought other nuisance lawsuits against the government, including one to bar President Bush from using his trade mark “God bless America” at the end of major speeches. The lawsuit against “under God” in the Pledge, as I said, was fraudulent. He claimed in the lawsuit that his daughter was offended by the words “under God” in the Pledge. After the court agreed with Newdow and found the Pledge “unconstitutional” it was revealed that his daughter was a born again Christian who attended the Calvary Chapel. Indeed he had no legal right to bring the lawsuit, since he had never married the girl’s mother and did not even have custody of the child. The court has since put a stay on its own order pending a full review.

The Newdow lawsuit and the court’s original decision did have positive ramifications. Resolutions supported by the Religious Freedom Coalition defending “under God” passed both Houses of Congress. (See Legislative Update of October 10th, 2002 for “Reaffirming Under God in the Pledge Act”). I appeared on literally dozens of secular radio talk shows on this issue and a petition the RFC placed at conservativepetions.com generated more than 85,000 e-mails to the President.

We are still awaiting a final decision from the 9th Circuit Court. This is a case I want to see get all the way up to the Supreme Court. “Under God” in the Pledge is legally referred to as “ceremonial deism” in that no specific religion is mentioned. More than once the Supreme Court has ruled that ceremonial deism is not in violation of the Constitution. Should this case reach the Supreme Court I believe the decision would be unanimously in favor of “Under God.” That action by the Supreme Court would end the attacks upon this recognition that government’s authority ends where God’s authority begins.

Pat Boone’s new patriotic song “Under God” in American Glory CD

Even the music world was affected by the 9th Circuit Court’s decision. Pat Boone wrote a brand new song in defense of the Pledge of Allegiance titled “Under God.” The song was added to a previously released CD of patriotic songs. Pat Boone’s all new “American Glory” Album is now available on CD format from the Religious Freedom Coalition. To order Pat Boone’s CD "Under God" please call 202-543-0300.