Ralph Reed Wants New Christian Coalition

When Ralph Reed worked for Pat Robertson’s Christian Coalition he infamously said that enemies wouldn’t know what hit them “until you’re in a bodybag.”  Reed says even though he’s been doing other things, “This is kind of like Steve Jobs returning to Apple.”  Reed was healded as “the right hand of God” by Time magazine when he helped build the original Christian Coalition, but ran into trouble when he ran for Georgia lieutenant governor.

He was in the middle of the 2006 Republican primary campaign for lieutenant governor when his longtime friend Jack Abramoff was convicted in a massive lobbying scandal. As Abramoff’s career circled the drain, Reed was linked to a plot to defraud Indian tribes fighting over casino rights.

Reed’s firm received more than $4 million to rally Christian voters against a casino that competed with Abramoff’s Indian clients. Reed has said Abramoff deceived him. He was hired, Reed said, to mobilize opposition to casino expansion and was assured his payments would not come from gambling revenue.

Abramoff ended up in prison. Reed was never accused of wrongdoing, and wasn’t even subpoenaed by the Senate committee investigating Abramoff. Still, the fallout wounded his campaign for lieutenant governor and damaged his reputation.

By: Alan

Alan Colmes is the publisher of Liberaland.