You Say "Alliance," I Say "Conspiracy"

Why did a vision of Hillary Clinton singing Cole Porter's "Let's Call The Whole Thing Off" rattle through my Dr. Demento-addled brain when I read about the Arlington Group?

Conservative Voice web columnist Rusty Benson explains it thus:

"Like popular TV forensic investigators combing a crime scene for crucial evidence, political observers continue to autopsy the recent national elections for clues to explain the outcome. However, most -- if not all -- will overlook the fingerprints of a new alliance of conservative organizations calling itself the Arlington Group.

" 'Same-sex marriage would not have been such a large issue if the Arlington Group had not existed' says Dr. Don Wildmon, founder and chairman of American Family Association, and primary organizer of the new alliance. 'It might have been a minor issue, but there would have been no coordination of efforts. It certainly would not have taken hold like it did, and we would not have gotten 12 new state constitutional amendments protecting traditional marriage.'

"Under Wildmon's urging, the coalition first came together in the fall of 2002. Leaders from ten pro-family religious organizations met in Arlington, Virginia, to discuss how they might join forces to resist the legalization of same-sex marriage. Soon the alliance quickly grew to over 50 official members including Dr. James Dobson (Focus on the Family), Gary Bauer (American Values), Dr. D. James Kennedy (Coral Ridge Ministries), Charles Colson (Prison Fellowship), Tony Perkins (Family Research Council), Bill Bennett (Empower America), Dr. Franklin Graham (Samaritan's Purse), and many others.

" 'For the first time, virtually all of the social issues groups are singing off the same sheet of music,' said long-time conservative activist Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Research and Education Foundation."

Wasn't it Weyrich who very publicly told the Religious Right to go back to their churches and get out politics (all dutifully reported initially byMatt Drudge and the Faux News Channel and then picked up by the drones in mainstream media) just about the time this Arlington Group was forming?

And then there's the next question: Did the Arlington Group invite Karl Rove to the dance or was it the other way around?

Hmmmmm. Belt it out Hillary: "You say 'cable,' I say 'cabal.' "