Remember how Texas Governor Rick Perry and his extremist allies in the really far fringes of the religious right said their "prayer rally" earlier this month wasn't political? Turns out the sponsor is using the list of attendees to register "conservative Christian" voters for the upcoming election:
AUSTIN - The organizer of The Response, the massive Aug. 6 prayer rally initiated by Gov. Rick Perry, is calling on attendees to help register millions of conservative Christians, prompting questions about the group and Perry's claims the event was not political.
Don Wildmon, founder of the American Family Association, sent an email Thursday thanking recipients for registering for The Response, which drew thousands of people to Reliant Stadium.
"Today, I want to introduce you to Champion the Vote (CTV), a friend of AFA whose mission is to mobilize 5 million unregistered conservative Christians to register and vote according to the Biblical worldview in 2012," Wildmon wrote.
The email does not mention any candidate or party, and experts said it appears to keep on the right side of the law governing nonprofits.
Mark Jones, political science professor at Rice University, said tax-exempt nonprofits can engage in voter registration, education and turnout drives. He added of the email, however, "It certainly highlights the political nature of The Response."
