Remembering Paul Weyrich
Pioneering conservative activist Paul Weyrich died on December 18 at the age of 66. Though Weyrich was commonly regarded as a behind-the-scenes Beltway operator, he achieved one of his most enduring goals in the backwaters of the South.
In 1971, before the Roe v. Wade decision riveted America, the Supreme Court ruled in Green v. Connally to revoke the tax-exempt status of racially discriminatory private schools in 1971. At about the same time, the Internal Revenue Service moved to revoke the tax-exempt status of Bob Jones University, which forbade interracial dating (blacks were denied entry until 1971.) The decisions infuriated a popular evangelical pastor from Lynchburg, Virginia named Jerry Falwell. "In some states it's easier to open a massage parlor than to open a Christian school," Falwell complained.
Seeking to capitalize on mounting evangelical discontent, Weyrich took a series of trips down South to meet with Falwell and other evangelical leaders. Weyrich hoped to produce a well-funded evangelical lobbying outfit that could lend grassroots muscle to the top-heavy Republican Party and effectively mobilize the vanquished forces of massive resistance into a new political bloc. In discussions with Falwell, Weyrich cited various social ills that necessitated evangelical involvement in politics, particularly abortion, school prayer and the rise of feminism. His pleas initially fell on deaf ears.
"I was trying to get those people interested in those issues and I utterly failed," Weyrich recalled in an interview in the early 1990s. "What changed their mind was Jimmy Carter's intervention against the Christian schools, trying to deny them tax-exempt status on the basis of so-called de facto segregation."
In 1979, at Weyrich's behest, Falwell founded a group that he called the Moral Majority. Along with a vanguard of evangelical icons including D. James Kennedy, Pat Robertson and Tim LaHaye, Falwell's organization hoisted the banner of the "pro-family" movement, declaring war on abortion and homosexuality. Thanks to the persistence and vision of Weyrich, a pre-Vatican II Catholic, the heavily Protestant religious right was born. Even the phrase, "moral majority," was a Weyrich creation.
While working in Colorado, Weyrich met beer baron Joseph Coors, a funder of the far-right John Birch Society and friend of California Gov. Ronald Reagan. Inspired by Weyrich's vision of a vast infrastructure of conservative instituions that would replace the liberal establishment and guide the right out of the wilderness, Coors ponied up $250,000 in 1973 to found the Heritage Foundation -- the crown jewel of Weyrich's planned counter-establishment.
The Washington think tank, which Weyrich chaired, became Reagan's unofficial idea factory as soon as he entered the White House in 1980. (Coors guided the president's personnel decisions as a member of his "kitchen cabinet.") During the George W. Bush era, Heritage has inspired White House policy on issues ranging from abstinence education to missile defense, while grooming a generation of conservative cadres for the future through its intern program.
A pre-Vatican II Catholic traditionalist, Weyrich was most passionate about social issues. He railed against abortion before the GOP was officially against it, and teamed up with anti-feminist Phyllis Schlafly to torpedo the Equal Rights Amendment in 1977, warning darkly that its passage would force good Christian girls to use unisex bathrooms. Last year, Weyrich howled that "the Feminazi crowd" planned to reintroduce ERA.
In 2001, Weyrich circulated a commentary accusing Jews of murdering Jesus. When a conservative writer named Evan Gahr attacked Weyrich as a "demented anti-Semite," he learned how powerful the conservative founding father truly was. In short order, neoconservative activist David Horowitz barred Gahr from writing for his FrontPageMag and forced him to apologize to Weyrich.
Obsessed with ideological purity, Weyrich homed his most vitriolic attacks on the Republican congressional leadership. David Grann's classic profile of Weyrich as a "Robespierre of the Right," published in 1997 in the New Republic, is probably the best window into Weyrich's often destructive efforts to force the GOP to the hard right. "The problem with Gingrich," Weyrich said of the House majority leader at the time, "is that he does not have any immutable principles that he would die for." (Weyrich sued The New Republic for libel after it published Grann's article, a suit that was dismissed.)
In 1996, Weyrich was diagnosed with a debilitating spinal injury. Five years later, the injury consigned him to a wheelchair. He spent the last years of his life in constant pain, and took heavy doses of painkillers. In 2004, after a bad fall, Weyrich's legs were amputated. But he soldiered on, addressing conservative conferences and pumping out a steady flow of commentaries urging the Republicans to stay tethered to their right-wing base.
In September 2006, foreshadowing Rep. Michelle Bachmann's notorious remarks about her congressional colleagues two years later, Weyrich called for an FBI investigation of reporters who harbor subversive attitudes and urged the resurrection of the House Un-American Affairs Committee.
By the time Weyrich died, the conservative movement he created had grown so vast his imprimatur on its agenda was no longer apparent. But his impact is undeniable. Thanks to his efforts and those of the thousands of cadres he recruited and cultivated, the Republican Party is more ideologically extreme, more disciplined -- and more politically marginalized -- than at any time since the Goldwater Era. And that might be just where Weyrich wanted it. In his heart he knew he was right.
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The Founding Fathers worried more about denying the Feds control over religion than about religion denying racial equality. We know this because the constitution is specific about protecting religion.
Tax exempt status shouldn't ever be denied to any religious organization because of the special case religion represents in our form of government.
That said, what would have evolved here?
Had the busy body leftists let it alone, then the whole world would have seen what hypocrites Christians (allegedly) were. That would have either driven more people AWAY from Christ (making leftists very happy) or led to a mini-reformation (racially) in christian churches.
Nothing stopped the leftist christian churches from welcoming blacks (or whoever) into their pews or school rooms. Nothing stopped blacks Christians from opening their own church-based schools.
No equal rights were thus denied. Technically, the problem was not the churches, but Federal involvement in the public schools (a thing not provided for in the Constitution).
Not only was religious freedom denied in this case, so was the constitutional guarantee of freedom of association. Leftists despise freedom of associatio
Leftists remind us that the Constitution protects unpopular ideas, but they are viciously unwilling to let those protection fall on Christians.
Though I am no fan of Mr. Weyrich, as I do feel that he was the extreme of the republican party, I think many people give guys like him too much credit when the party succeeds and too much flak when the party loses elections like the one last month.
The republican was in ALOT worse shape in the 70's when Jimmy Carter was president. The dems had 61 Senators (Veto proof) and 292 House Members, as the breakup in congress now is very close to what is was when President Clinton took over.
People keep blaming this election on the religous right, and I disagree, I blame it on one issue: The economy. No matter who is in power, when you have a bad economy you usually lose. There is no ideology in a bad economy, side issues on the base of each party are thrown aside, as most independents sway away from the incumbent party and just want change. McCain was leading Obama by a couple of points the day before the financial scandal broke in September, and after that day, he never led again as I knew it was over and people were finally fed up. Say what you want about religious conservatives, but the dems ruled Washington for 40 years before 1994, and that changed because the republicans mobilized that part of the party.
"McCain was leading Obama by a couple of points the day before the financial scandal broke in September.
Sorry, but that is a complete myth. Yes, McCain had closed in for about 10 days due to the Palin bump, but Obama had already started recovering thanks to the Katie Couric interview fall out. We don't know how the election might have turned out without the complete and sudden collapse of the economy, but Obama was still ahead and had all relevant indicators going for him.
Have you ever asked yourself if it was a good thing that ideological extremism a la Weyrich made it mainstream? So they succeeded in dividing the American people, what's good about that?
Your statement that the Dems had 61 Senators at the time Carter became president b(Jan., '77) and was a veto-proof institution is misleading. I don't know how many Dem senators there actually were (I don't believe that it was 61), but many of them were SOUTHERN Democrats (e.g., John Stennis of Mississippi) who were more in step with the GOP than with the mainstream Democratic Party. The current crop of Senate Dems, though not wholly homogenous as per a liberal philosophy, is much more progressive than was the group in '77.
Wilbur
Explain 2006 then. The economy wasn't considered to be in a huge mess at that point.
Understanding that Weyrich published an anti-Semitic article, I wonder: was he a 100% anti-Semite - to the extent of hating Israel - or did he support Israel on the idea that all Jews should move thither* so that Jesus will return to earth and all "true" Christians will go to Heaven while all heathens have to experience eternal Hell?
Oh well. The point is, the SOB is gone, and he got to see a black man elected president!
*"Thither" is old English meaning "to there".
Religion and Government should not mix under any circumstances.
Good article. Minor quibble with a common error--Joe McCarthy was in the Senate and not a part of HUAAC (in the House of Reps), which actually predates his witch-hunting with its own brand of red-baiting. Because Tailgunner Joe became the epitome of Communist witch-hunts, it's often incorrectly assumed that the blacklisting and other slanderous practices began with him.
If my memory is still serving me, I believe Mr . Weyrich was quite the innovator
in targeted direct mail fundraising, and had a number of companies at one
time creatively raiding little old ladies of the remainder of their savings, all
in the name of "God"... Many Huff readers were not around for the days of
the "700 Club", and all the other many televangelists like "PTL", (for Praise
the Lord, or in the end, Pass the Loot), the Bakers, etc. I had thought back
then that we were finally seeing the end of these born again hucksters that
ran a good con, but got caught in their greed. Mr. Weyrich is from that same
stock and maybe now we ARE starting to see the end of the "Moral Majority",
who were never either... But then again, we do have a new breed of them
in the "Palinist's", who I'm sure Paul would have been proud of ..
lb
You need to tune into cable channel DAYSTAR.
http://www
The PTL and 700 Club shills are ALIVE AND WELL, broadcasting 24/7 GLOBALLY over satellite.
They even have their own punk bands "for Jesus" now - usually dressed in fatigues doing really nifty military-style movements while they sing 'god's glory"
Religion gone Hollywood - and NUTS.
I wonder if the federal tax exempt status has ever been extended to a madrasa? If not, it should
be. Although, I really believe tax exempt status for any church should be discontinued. Churches are rich and do nothing to assist the homeless and poor in America. I hope that the Gay community will work to strip tax exemption from the church, they are using their monies for a major political agenda and should be stopped.
teaINharbor
It makes my heart soar to know he lived to see Obama elected...
Maybe that's what put him under. RIP and thanks for nothing, Paul.
"What changed their mind was Jimmy Carter's intervention against the Christian schools, trying to deny them tax-exempt status on the basis of so-called de facto segregatio
Funny how it always seems to come back around to segregation.
I learned to speak my thoughts with Paul Weyrich on National Empowerment Television(NET). The arguments though bible based and conservative in nature were intellectual and stimulating. As NET morphed into Americas Talking and other venues not just I but others evolved. Certain hippocracies surfaced not so much in Paul Weyrich or his conservative ideas ... but in the republican party and Weyrichs adherence to it as a vehicle for social change.
continued
Weyrich was badly used by a party that just wanted his ability to focus faith based believers into an instrument to deliver votes to people who could careless about them. The flaw in Weyrichs thinking was faith. Faith that a political party would act in the best interest of the people they represented. Faith given to an unseen god transfered to a political party by way of a vote. Faith that is the people of faiths greatest strength turned into their greatest weakness by indifferent hands.
When I understood that there are some who will will use everything you care about ... to take away everything you have ... when I learned republicans talk of less taxes for you but take away your childrens future ... when I learned that we trade competition between nations for being turned into productive chatel ... I walked away.
But I will always be grateful to Weyrich for the introduction to critical thinking ... and the development of a voice to express those thoughts.
For Weyrich I hope there was a god ... instead of a turning off of a switch. If it was a switch I hope it was sudden ... no time to reflect on what may have been a wasted life in pursuit of something that did not exist.
Rest in Peace Paul Weyrich ...
Critical thinking is not P.W.'s trait -- rather capitalizing on kneejerk blindfaith and insular thinking.
Horrowitz muffling Evan Gahr does not demonstrate the value of critical thinking. Falwell likewise was never open to a wider discourse. The entire movement was built on lockstep conformity.
Eloquent post. Thanks for elevating the conversation.
Me, I hope his karma check is cashed. But thanks, seriously.
Thanks, Max. When people wonder how things got so f----- up, they can turn to you and read about people like Weyrich.
Sometimes you wish someone hadn't been born. Rest in peace paul weyrich. We won't hear any more of your "GOOGOO" ideas any more, and that is a good thing. The harm you did ... you have no idea.
Max, I guess your article proves that he deserves the appellation as the father of modern conservatism.
Thanks Max.
Another interesting post.
Keep keeping us informed on what the right wing religious extremists are all about.
Max, maybe I am not supposed to say this, but it is a good thing he died knowing a BLACK LIBERAL became our next president.
As bizarre as this may seem, Paul Weyrich did more to further the cause of Light Rail and Amtrak than any other American. He was tireless in his pro-rail endeavors. He will be missed by those who struggle to gain American recognition and adoption of energy-efficient, modern European-style high speed passenger rail transportation.
Yeah, I remember seeing his pro-transit commentary over at townhall, an otherwise rancid wingnut website. I would be curious to know how he squared his enlightened positions on that topic with his reactionary worldview.
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