Maybe God-o-Meter’s just temperamental. Last week, its Fred Thompson needle hit a new low after a leaked email revealed that Christian Right titan James Dobson has ruled out supporting him. Today, Thompson’s needle is back up to 5. But God-o-Meter thinks it has good cause: Such evangelical heavyweights as ex-presidential candidate Gary Bauer and Southern Baptist Convention public policy chief Richard Land have come to Thompson’s aid. Will the “Southern fried Reagan,” as Land calls him, benefit from a battle among Christian Right leaders to be the GOP’s next kingmaker? Or will the “pro-family” feud split the evangelical vote so many ways that its impact isn’t much felt in GOP primaries? For now, Thompson should be breathing a sigh of relief that his opposition to a federal marraige amendment banning gay unions hasn’t scared off more of the evangelical political elite.

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