The Rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party

The mission of TheocracyWatch is to preserve our Democracy by exposing the ideology driving the political activism of the theocratic right. The state of Ohio is shaping up as a major battleground for the forces of theocracy.

Americans must be 'Christocrats" -- citizens of both their country and the Kingdom of God -- the Rev. Rod Parsley told his congregation at the World Harvest Church, located just outside Columbus, Ohio. "And that is not a democracy; that is a theocracy," he said. "That means God is in control, and you are not."

The 2006 elections are seen as an "apocalyptic clash between a virtuous Christianity and the evildoers who oppose Christianity's values," according to the Reverend Johnson, a senior pastor of the evangelical Fairfield Christian Church in suburban Columbus. more

As reported in the Akron Beacon Journal, "Ohio will be a training ground that will launch a national reformation." more

The Ohio Restoration Project was founded:

to identify and train thousands of "Patriot Pastors" to get out the conservative religious vote next year.  According to press reports, the leader of the movement -- the senior pastor of a large church in suburban Columbus -- casts the 2006 elections as an apocalyptic clash between "the forces of righteousness and the hordes of hell."  more

One of the stated goals of the Ohio Restoration Project is to get Ohio's Secretary of State, Kenneth Blackwell, elected Governor in 2006. Blackwell has authored a plan for "Civic Renewal" that is featured on Ohio's official government web site. Katherine Yurica's stunning article calls this new document:

... a Dominionist document: a religious treatise in secular terms, but dominionist to the core. It's a brilliant little package to get millions of evangelical Christians and their friends to accept authoritarian government without even a whisper of protest. more

Articles and Actions

Will a shocking new GOP court victory and Karl Rove's attack on Ohio 2006 doom the Democrats nationwide? The Free Press, October 30, 2006

Will Ken Blackwell find the ways to steal Ohio 2006 as he did in 2004? The Free Press, October 28, 2006 -- As election day approaches, Blackwell's dirty tricks sink ever deeper.

Strickland vote challenge ends, Salem news, October 27, 2007

Board sets Strickland residency hearing, The Review - a newspaper out of East Liverpool, Ohio -- offers an update on the Strickland residency issue. Either this one is a non-issue, or a very serious issue that I wrote off too quickly. October 23, 2006

Christian Nationalist Barnstorms Ohio [UPDATED], Talk To Action, October 26, 2006

David Barton Barnstoms Ohio Churches for the GOP, Talk To Action, October 20, 2006

Ohio Lawsuit to Reinstate Hundreds of Thousands of Purged Democratic Voters to be Filed Friday or Monday, OpEd news, October 18, 2006

And the Winner Is ... Me, New York Times, October 17, 2006

Voters in Ohio can be forgiven if they feel they have been beamed out of the Midwest and dropped into a third-world autocracy. The latest news from the state's governor's race is that the Republican nominee, Kenneth Blackwell, who is also the Ohio secretary of state, could rule that his opponent is ineligible to run because of a technicality. We'd like to think that his office would not ultimately do that, or that if it did, such a ruling would not be allowed to stand. But the mere fact that an elected official and political candidate has the authority to toss his opponent out of a race is further evidence of a serious flaw in our democracy.

A video from Equality Ohio: Which Vision for Ohio? - division, intolerance, persecution, theocracy or love, inclusion, fairness, Democracy

Ken Blackwell's Campaign Tour With Larry Pratt (a Christian Reconstructionist), Talk To Action, October 6, 2006

The theocracy movement in Ohio, Talk To Action, October 4, 2006

The Patriot Pastors' Electoral War Against the 'Hordes of Hell', People for the American Way:

Notably, high-level Republican officials aren't trying to distance themselves from such rhetoric. Far from it. They're embracing the self-proclaimed "Christocrats" and counting on a new wave of aggressive politics-from-the-pulpit to win elections. In Texas, a group is giving the governor organized support from pastors motivated to help his re-election campaign. In Pennsylvania, a nascent group seeks to do the same for their embattled senator. And in Ohio, the candidate anointed by the "Patriot Pastors" - Secretary of State Ken Blackwell - is the Republican gubernatorial nominee.

Compassionate Conservative?  Phil Heimlich Gets Personal and Nasty, Cincinati Beacon, September 21, 2006

Regional Apologetics Ministry Exposing Phil Heimlich, Cincinati Beacon, August 31, 2006

Please Help Me Defend Democracy in Ohio, Dailykos, August 18, 2006 by Paul Hackett:

I am starting a new project called Operation Ohio to sound the alarm to the threat of the theocratic political movement here in Ohio.

The Non-Political (But Vote for Blackwell) Flying Fetus Squadron, Talk To Action, August 1, 2006

Gubernatorial campaign in gutter? E-mail suggests it is GOP disavows anti-Strickland memo, but to a point, Columbus Dispatch, July 27, 2006

Republican tactics in Ohio echo political ploys of '04, Toledo Blade, July 23, 2006

True Patriot Pastors Declare Independence, Talk To Action, July 4, 2006

The Cincinnati Beacon:

This is a quick round-up of some strange links between Secretary of State and candidate for Ohio Governor, Ken Blackwell, and the evangelical cult of Bill Gothard.  If you are worried about fringe religious evangelicals infiltrating public life, then make sure you pay attention to Blackwell's Gothard connections.

Stop New Voter Suppression Tactic in Ohio, People for the American Way

Ohio's Rx for Murder, Talk To Action, June 14, 2006

Diebold Lobbyist Donates $10,000 to Blackwell Campaign, WTOL News, June 10, 2006

Block the Vote, Ohio Remix, New York Times, June 7, 2006

Blackwell Gets Brunt of Registrants' Anger, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 6, 2006

Reformation America, Talk To Action, June 1, 2006 -- about the Ohio Reformation and the Reverend Rod Parsley

Was the 2004 Election Stolen? BY ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR, Rolling Stone, June 1, 2006

We Believe Ohio to Challenge Christocrats' Monopoly on Public Space, Jews on First, May 11, 2006

Ohio Struggles to Fix Voting Problems, The Associated Press, May 2006 -- Posted on Truthout

This Race Matters: Ken Blackwell, a Dominionist to The Core, Talk To Action, May 3, 2006 -- about the theocratic implications of Ohio's election

Ohio Churches' Political Activities Challenged, Washington Post, April 25, 2006

Ohio Restoration Project Report, Blog from the Capital, April 14, 2006

Blackwell Held Shares In Diebold, Associated Press, April 3, 2006

Faith, Values and the Christian Right in Ohio, Talk To Action, March 31, 2006

Why did J. Kenneth Blackwell seek, then hide, his association with super-rich extremists and e-voting magnates? Online Journal, March 14, 2006

Ken Blackwell speaks at the Council for National Policy, Dailykos, March 9, 2006

Launch of We Believe! Ohio, Street Prophets, February 27, 2006

Ohio Expected to Rein In Class Linked to Intelligent Design - NY Times, February 14, 2006

More churches stand up to Ohio dominionists!, Talk To Action, January 27, 2006

Someone to watch: Paul Hackett of Ohio, Talk To Action, January 18, 2006

Good news! from the website of Ted Strickland: Well, Someone Needed To Be Protected By This Bill... "Good news! HB3 is being held up until next year in conference."

The Business of Voting, New York Times, December 18, 2005 (This relates to Ohio. I was relieved to see Ohio listed as one of the states that requires a paper trail.)

Ohio voters to be stripped of rights basic to Ukranians and Democratic world? Dailykos, December 12, 2005

Ohio Protest on HB 3 Tuesday, Dailykos, December 12, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Update on Hunger Strike, Prayer Vigil to Stop HB3, December 12, 2005

OSU law prof confirms: Ohio bill=no federal challenges, Dailykos, December 11, 2005

Ohio to outlaw recounts and shield Diebold, Dailykos, December 10, 2005

With New Legislation, Ohio Republicans Plan Holiday Burial for American Democracy, The Free Press, December 5, 2005

Ohio Pastor Launches $30-Million Campaign For Nation's ‘Restoration', Church And State, November, 2005

With God on His Side, Meet Rod Parsley: rising star of the religious right, The American Prospect, issue November 23, 2005

Has American Democracy Died an Electronic Death in Ohio 2005's Referenda Defeats?, The Free Press, November 12, 2005

'LET THE REFORMATION BEGIN', Columbus Dispatch, October 15, 2005

Bill aims to put God-related mottoes in schools, Cleveland Plain-Dealer, May 15, 2004

Bill Would Allow Arrests For No Reason In Public Place, NewsNet5.com, December 19 2006:

The Ohio Patriot Act has made it to the Taft's desk, and with the stroke of a pen, it would most likely become the toughest terrorism bill in the country. The lengthy piece of legislation would let police arrest people in public places who will not give their names, address and birth dates, even if they are not doing anything wrong.

Group Seeks I.R.S. Inquiry of Two Ohio Churches, New York Times, January 16, 2006

Visit Equality Ohio, a counterpoint to the Ohio Restauration Project

On Liberty and Theocracy in Ohio, Talk To Action, January 16, 2006