Bob McDonnell Aide Has Christianist Ties

In what should be no surprise to anyone who has followed GOP gubernatorial candidate Bob "Taliban Bob" McDonnell's political career, a story has hit the news that McDonnell's campaign manager, Philip Cox, has ties to Ralph Reed, Jack Abramoff, the Washington lobbyist later sent to prison on multiple fraud charges, and an outfit called the Faith and Family Alliance. The reality is that despite his campaign ads which seek to depict him as a moderate, Bob McDonnell is a creature of the Christian Right and in the event he were to be elected to the Governor's mansion in November, it's virtually guaranteed that he would appoint far right extremists to numerous state appointments. It would likely mean that Regent University and Liberty University operatives would be placed in positions to negatively influence state policies - much as happened under the Chimperator (e.g., think Monica Goodling). Do we really want Pat Robertson and Jerry Walwell, Jr., and James Dobson running Virginia? Here are highlights from the Virginian Pilot:

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An episode from the political history of the man running Bob McDonnell's campaign for governor is raising concerns among some Republicans that he may hurt the GOP's chances of ending an eight-year Democratic hold on the governor's mansion.

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McDonnell's campaign manager, Philip Cox, had a key role in a political advocacy group that put out a last-minute mailing during a 2000 congressional campaign attacking a candidate for not paying taxes. The same group, known as the Faith and Family Alliance, also served as a funding conduit between evangelical leader Ralph Reed and Jack Abramoff, the Washington lobbyist later sent to prison on multiple fraud charges.

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Cox has never been charged with any wrongdoing related to the alliance. Nonetheless, the controversy "sets the table for the Democrats to go after McDonnell," said Larry Sabato, a political science professor at the University of Virginia.

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In his campaign for governor, McDonnell is positioning himself as a moderate Republican. "One of the underlying concerns that many thoughtful Virginians have about McDonnell are his ties to the Christian right," Sabato said. "I can't tell you how many times senior people have asked, 'Who will Bob McDonnell appoint to the 4,000 appointments he gets?' 'Who will run the college boards of visitors and the state agencies?' "The reasons these questions matter to the people asking them is they fear it will be the far right and the Christian conservatives," he said.