It may turn out that a non-profit agency funded by conservative Christian Silicon Valley money men called United in Purpose may be the most important Religious Right agency in the 2012 election cycle.
Here is a primer on what we know so far.
First there was Rick Perry's giant prayer rally, The Response, organized by Texas operatives who are leaders in the New Apostolic Reformation. (An international network of dominionist evangelicals.) This Christians only event drew some 20,000 people -- unprecedented in the history of American presidential politics.
Then The Los Angeles Times reported that Don Wildmon, founder of the American Family Foundation sent an email to people who had registered to attend The Response, promoting a project of United in Purpose.
United in Purpose is using sophisticated data-mining techniques to compile a database of every unregistered born-again and evangelical Christian and conservative Catholic in the country.
Through partnerships with Christian organizers and antiabortion groups, United in Purpose hopes to recruit 100,000 "champions" to identify unregistered Christians and get them to the polls as part of its Champion the Vote project. Profiles drawn from its database, which numbers more than 120 million people, will enable organizers to target potential voters with emails and Web videos tailored to their interests.
The Orlando Sentinel reported that United in Purpose organized a secretive private briefing for some 800 pastors who heard speeches by Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry. (United in Purpose have paid their expenses as well.)
In addition to hearing Perry and Gingrich, the pastors came to participate in "Champion the Vote," a nationwide campaign seeking to register an additional 5 million Christian-conservative voters this fall.
For that campaign, Stemberger, the pastors and other participants, including Dallas, were producing a DVD video on the potential voting power of Christian conservatives. The video is to be distributed for a nationwide coordination of church and house parties on Nov. 12 called "One Nation Under God."
Dallas, chief executive officer and spokesman for United in Purpose, responded to e-mail requests for an interview by replying he was busy making the DVD.
The One Nation Under God project is already being promoted on the Champion the Vote web site. The house parties will be connected by a live televised seminar to prepare people for the 2012 elections. Speakers will include Gingrich, Christian historical revisionist David Barton, Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, anti-abortion activist Lila Rose, and New Apostolic Reformation figure, Samuel Rodriguez.
WHAT DOES ONE NATION UNDER GOD REALLY MEAN?
We’ve lost sight of our great heritage as a nation founded on Biblical truth, and the consequences are dire: schools are failing, the divorce rate is climbing, and our society is rife with scandal and corruption. It’s time to reclaim our Biblical heritage and bring God back to the center of American life. Where do we start?
ONE NATION UNDER GOD PREMIERE EVENT ON NOVEMBER 12
On Saturday, November 12, United in Purpose presents One Nation Under God – a national, two-hour premiere event featuring top American thinkers and political leaders who will bring the truth about God and America to people gathered in homes and churches across the nation.
HT Religious Right Watch
Crossposted from Talk to Action
[UPDATE] This post originally stated that United in Purpose paid the expenses of the pastors to attend the Orlando event. This has been revised. While it is undisputed that someone paid their expenses, the text now states that it "may" have been United in Purpose.