Dobson Emphatically Endorses Pro-Family Republican in Penn. Senate Primary

by Jody Brown
April 19, 2004

(AgapePress) - Pennsylvania's four-term senator, Arlen Specter, is facing a tough challenge in next week's Republican primary. Why? Some observers says it is because his opponent, U.S. Congressman Pat Toomey, has a strong pro-life, pro-family voting history that resonates with conservatives in The Keystone State. And Specter's chance for a fifth term in Congress may have taken another hit, now that a nationally-known pro-family spokesman has publicly endorsed Toomey.

Dr. James Dobson admits he seldom endorses political candidates. But the pro-family leader says it is "imperative" that Pat Toomey, a conservative Republican who has served three terms in the U.S. House, win the primary on April 27 against Specter. Speaking on behalf of his fellow conservatives, Dobson says in a letter dated March 22, 2004, that Specter opposes "nearly everything we hold dear."

For example, Dobson -- offering his endorsement solely as an individual and not as the representative of the organizations he leads -- describes the 74-year-old Specter as "a one-man roadblock" to the appointment of pro-family judges to the federal bench. And the four-term senator, he says, opposes a federal amendment that would protect marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

Toomey, on the other hand, would be "a splendid pro-family, pro-life voice" in the Senate, he says.

"[Toomey] is a man of great courage to take on a sitting senator," Dobson states in the letter, "and the defeat of Arlen Specter would send a mighty signal that the days of waffling, devious, anti-family Republicans who are liberals in disguise is finally over."

Dobson, who rarely makes public appearances, will be speaking in support of Toomey Friday evening at the Lancaster Host Resort in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Ixnay on Moderates
Tom Ferrick, a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer, points out other dynamics that could play a big factor in the possible downfall of Specter. He says outside of Specter's moderate home base, Republicans in the state tend to be rather conservative -- and "they don't want no stinkin' moderates representing them in Washington," Ferrick says.

The columnist also notes that since Specter was first elected in 1980, some of the Republican demographics in the state have changed considerably. Twenty-four years ago, there were approximately 200,000 Republicans in Philadelphia and 223,000 in five nearby conservative counties. According to Ferrick, there are now less than 170,000 Republican voters in Philadelphia -- and more than 440,000 in those same five counties.

That poses a dilemma for Specter, he says. "He's a moderate Republican who doesn't inspire passion among his supporters," Ferrick writes. "A lack of passion can translate into low turnout. Low turnout can translate into trouble for Specter because the GOP conservatives will show up. Put it together and what have you got? Pennsylvania's senior senator could take a fall."

Clear Cut on Family Issues
On social and cultural issues, the difference between the two lawmakers is pretty clear cut. Congressman Pat Toomey opposes Roe v. Wade; Senator Arlen Specter supports it. Toomey co-sponsored and voted for the ban on partial-birth abortion; Specter joined pro-abortion Democrats in voting against the ban. The congressman voted for the House version of the Federal Marriage Amendment; the incumbent senator strongly opposes the Senate version of the FMA, currently being held up in the Senate Judiciary Committee, of which Specter is a member.

Also during his tenure in Congress, Specter has earned the label "moderate Republican" while opposing such things as school choice and the Boy Scouts' access to public facilities unless they agree to allow homosexual troop leaders; and supporting legislation that would allow human cloning and expand "hate crimes" legislation.

In a recent poll conducted by Quinnipiac University, 37 percent of Republicans in Pennsylvania preferred a candidate called "Someone Else" over Arlen Specter. Now it remains to be seen how the incumbent does when facing off against a real candidate with a real name recognized by Pennsylvanians.

If it were up to the American Conservative Union, the decision would be clear: the ACU gives Toomey a 96 percent lifetime rating, and Specter a 43 percent rating. Republican Rick Santorum, Pennsylvania's other U.S. senator, has an 87 percent lifetime rating from the ACU.