Valley Interview : Christian Coalition Leader Discusses Goals for Nation’s Families

When the Christian Coalition unveiled its 10-point “contract with the American family” May 17 in Washington, D.C., Sara DiVito Hardman of Tarzana was there, attending as head of the conservative organization’s largest state affiliate.

Founded in 1992, the Christian Coalition of California has 80 chapters and serves more than 65,000 dues-paying members of the organization, which was started by Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson.

The Christian Coalition’s “contract” goals for legislative action--described by Executive Director Ralph Reed as “the 10 suggestions, not the 10 Commandments”--urge, for example, restrictions on late-term abortions, more latitude for religious expression in public places and passage of tax breaks for parents of children enrolled in private schools.

Though the Christian Coalition’s “contract” seems less far-reaching than previous positions of the so-called Christian right, about 100 Christian leaders last week issued a statement asking Congress to recognize that the organization is not representative of all churchgoers on such matters.

The statement by moderate and liberal church leaders, “The Cry for Renewal,” also warned that the Christian Coalition’s close identification with the new Republican majority in Washington “is a dangerous liaison of religion with political power.”

Hardman talked about the goals of the national Christian Coalition and its activities in California.

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Question: What are the main activities of the Christian Coalition of California?

Answer: We are a grass-roots organization whose primary purpose is affecting public policy with Judeo-Christian values. In 1994, we spent close to $100,000 on our voter guides. Through 6,000 congregations, we distributed 1 million guides for the primary and 2.6 million for the general election. We also sent some by mail.

When it is not election time, we have our chapters developing neighborhood coordinators who identify pro-family voters, make sure their voter registration is current, whether they are Democrats or Republicans, and get information to them, primarily our voter guides.

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Q: Why is the Christian Coalition so closely identified with the Republican Party on issues and outlook?

A: If you look at the Republican Party platform and the Democratic Party platform, you see that the Republicans are much more family-oriented. Consequently, two-thirds or more of our members are Republican, and we have independents as well.

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Q: You have been very active in the California Republican Party, serving on its executive committee the last two years. Does that belie any pretense of independence of the state Christian Coalition from Republican politics?

A: We would love to be more active with the Democrats. We hope to get Democrats to endorse the “contract with the American family.” We really are a nonpartisan body.

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Q: Who do you personally favor at this point as a Republican presidential nominee for 1996?

A: It’s too early. But endorsing candidates is not a good idea for me. When I first started with the Christian Coalition in 1992, I backed a couple of candidates for Congress. However, I found out that everybody assumed that because I was so connected to the Christian Coalition that the organization also backed them.

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Q: The “contract with the American family” has been called mild because the “10 suggestions” don’t call for prayer in public school classrooms and don’t urge a constitutional ban on all abortions. How do those stances sit with you?

A: I agree. I don’t have a problem with it at all. I have never been extremist in my own positions. This is the start.

On abortion, I very definitely believe in the sanctity of human life. As I have said in the past, I would like there never to be another abortion. On the other hand, I don’t believe I can force my beliefs on the world. If we can work toward fewer abortions in this country, we will save that many lives. It’s important to take whatever steps we can.

On prayer, we want freedom of religious expression for all religions in public settings. We should allow volunteer prayer by students and citizens in non-compulsory settings. Because a classroom is a compulsory setting, I suppose, it’s a more difficult issue. We are just saying we don’t want to push that issue in this “contract with the American family.”

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Q: A group of 100 religious leaders recently issued a statement asking Washington leaders to listen to more moderate and liberal Christian voices. Do you think they have a chance of being heard?

A: I don’t know. There are not very many organizations that are as large we are. The reason the Christian Coalition got so big and so strong is that people have strong beliefs about the direction of our country.

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Q: The Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, recently criticized Christian Coalition as a political front for Pat Robertson. He is still the guiding light of the coalition, isn’t he?

A: It was founded by Pat Robertson, and he sits on its board. But he’s got many organizations and he can’t run them all. He’s not dictating everything that goes on.

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Q: Robertson ran in the 1988 Republican presidential primary, and some people wonder whether he might run again sometime. Is that a possibility?

A: That’s dead.

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Q: You recently met with Harry Schwartzbart, who organized the San Fernando Valley chapter of Americans United. How did that go?

A: He called and asked, “Are you willing to sit down and talk over issues?” I said that I’m always willing because there may be points of agreement on which we can work together. As it turned out, the only point of agreement was that we would respect each other’s rights to hold our beliefs. He’s a very nice man; he even paid for dinner.

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Q: Are conservative Christian congregations in general keeping the California Christian Coalition at arm’s length for fear of appearing to get too involved in politics?

A: Three years ago, when we printed our first voter guides, we had a very difficult time getting churches to accept and distribute them. Now, they call us. They understand that we are nonpartisan and don’t endorse candidates but give information on their stand on issues.

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Q: How about at Church on the Way in Van Nuys, where you are a member?

A: They were at first very concerned that a voter guide might be too political and didn’t want them on their premises, but that’s changed. We even had Church on the Way as the venue last October for a candidate forum sponsored by Christian Coalition and KKLA, a large Christian radio station. [Gubernatorial candidates] Pete Wilson and Kathleen Brown both sent representatives. Nearly 1,000 people attended.