…Barton, (click title to entry - thank you) a former head of the Texas Republican party, has faced criticism for claiming that Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders don’t deserve credit for the monumental changes in the nation's civil rights laws that took place in the 1950s and 60s. He and other conservative Texas millionaires have launched a series of campaigns to revise the state's textbooks to dispute that the Constitution provides for separation of church and state, and also to frame U.S. history in the context of ongoing clashes between Christian and Muslim civilizations.
But Barton's profile pales in comparison to that of Leininger, the state's leading social-conservative activist whose influence on Perry is legion. Texans for Public Justice has dubbed Leininger Perry's "Heavenly Host," outlining just how interconnected the two have been over the years, with Leininger donating $239,233 in official contributions to Perry's gubernatorial campaigns, and Perry doling out a series of government grants to Leininger's various business enterprises.
In fact, Leininger was instrumental in a last-minute financial boost that helped catapult Perry into the lieutenant governor's post in 1998, setting him up to ascend to governor when his predecessor, George W. Bush became president in 2000. Perry narrowly won that race against Democrat John Sharp, and did so only after taking out a $1.1 million loan to help fuel a last-minute media blitz. Leininger, along with two other conservative Texas businessmen, guaranteed the mega-loan.
Leininger also played a role in a scandal involving former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's (R-TX) fundraising, which was aimed at improperly meddling in Texas state politics and redistricting….
Mon, 8 August 2011
Rev. Barry Lynn's speech on August 5, 2011 at the Family, Faith and Freedom Rally at Mt. Ararat Baptist Church in Houston, Texas. The rally was sponsored by Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the American Civil Liberties Union in response to the prayer rally called by Texas Governor Rick Perry to launch his 2012 Presidential ambitions.
By R.G. RATCLIFFE
Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau Staff
Sunday, September 21, 1997
Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau Staff
Sunday, September 21, 1997
"Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass.'' Psalms 37:5. - From Kinetic Concepts Inc. annual report.
Dr. James R. Leininger, a conservative and devoutly religious Republican businessman, probably is known by few Texans outside his hometown of San Antonio.
During the past decade Leininger has spent more than $1.4 million of his personal fortune to affect how Texans vote and another $3 .2 million to change how Texans think on political issues such as tort reform and private school vouchers.
Others have spent more money to affect Texas elections, but likely none has spent so much so broadly to affect both elections and Texas public policy.
Leininger, with a focus on candidates who support private school vouchers, was among the largest contributors in the 1996 elections. His political giving topped $550,000 last year, about 50 percent more than the $365,775 spent by the wealthy political action committee of the Texas Medical Association….
The Christian Conservatives can't live without their 'Big Money' donors because 'their base' is very small. Average citizens don't have a chance against the Texas Christian Political Machine. Why does this sound like the dynamics now amplified across the nation in the Citizen's United Decision? Why? Because the corrupt Robert's Court knows that if TRUE EQUITY existed in the political field of the USA, the Christian Conservatives could never achieve domination of the federal government or any other government, except, local governments. The Citizens United decision is more of the spread of the corruption instilled during the Bush years and then people want to know where it all went "W"rong.
To put this in perspective...
There are many small political parties across the USA. Some have their successes, but, none have this much success because they don't have the money backers Christian Coalition does. Why should the Christian Coalition, a small political party in the USA, have any more leverage than any other small political party? The Citizens United decision is corrupt.
