Columnist Robert Novak, not exactly a Republican In Name Only, joins the chorus of those wondering if the Christian Right can really derail Rudy Giuliani. Is God-o-Meter the only one who still doubts that most churchgoing evangelicals will back America’s Mayor? Sure, Novak, quotes recent Gallup polls showing that Giuliani has the support of plurality of churchgoers. But God-o-Meter keeps thinking about a little-noticed report by the Pew Research Center last month that found only a third of GOP voters (including social conservatives) know that Giuliani is pro-choice.
Still, God-o-Meter is nudging its Giuliani needle up a bit. It’s only because Novak has this I’m-not-necessarily-kowtowing-to-James Dobson quote from evangelical activist Gary Bauer:

“If he (Giuliani) is nominated,” Bauer told me, “the leaders of the values voters movement need to sit down and do everything possible to avoid a split that would guarantee a disaster for social, economic and foreign policy conservatism. It would require some serious discussions.”

And should Giuliani win the White House next Election Day with strong evangelical support, there would need to be additional serious discussions about the relevance of the Christian Right. But God-o-Meter’s not buying it. At least not yet.

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