I don’t know how old you are jgw. But when I first begin school back in the 1950’s, saying the pledge of allegiance was usually the first thing done. There was prayer in school, prayer prior to any ceremony. We got good Friday off school. Christmas decorations galore, having the manger scene on school property and other public buildings and much more. All that stuff has ceased. I never thought anything about it, it was just normal. The ten commandments were posted on the courthouse. That U.S. law was derived from the ten commandments.

This was what was where I grew up. Heck, every store in town closed on Sundays to include restaurants, grocery stores and gas stations. Nothing is closed today on Sunday. Times change. However, I agree with Goldwater when he told Reagan when he courted the religious right that those religious zealots would be the death to the Republican Party. Here’s one of his quotes, “Mark my word, if and when these preachers get control of the [Republican] party, and they're sure trying to do so, it's going to be a terrible damn problem. Frankly, these people frighten me. Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can't and won't compromise. I know, I've tried to deal with them.”

Religious folks are going to vote based on their religion just like folks will vote based on the political ideology. I firmly believe that no religion nor any political ideology ought to be forced on anyone. It’s like I said though, folks are going to vote their own self-interest.