As we all shake and shiver over whatever Dark Spirit Dobsen has summoned and Bush is going to nominate to the Court, it's worth remembering that, though the Christian Right is the loudest member of the GOP's coalition choir, they're not the only one. Hell, they may not even be the most important one. That plaudit probably goes to Big Business. And what business wants, the Church may not.
The religious movement is emphatic on States Rights, they desperately want the authority to outlaw all manner of liberal hedonism in the legislatures they own. Business, however, is just the opposite: they want uniformity in the federal code. They want a Court that won't allow significant changes in the current law. As John Engler, CEO of the National Association of Marketers Manufacturers (an uber-powerful business loby), said, ""what [we] want is a judicial climate that's predictable and certain". The Christian Right wants one ready and eager to massively rewrite laws and precedents. The two are opposed.
How Bush splits this is anyone's guess, but it's worth taking a look on what the quieter, richer, pieces of his constituency want. Business Week has a rundown of business friendly nominees (and their church-supported alternatives) that's worth a read. If Rehnquist retires, my guess is Bush would pick one from column A, one from column B, giving each group someone they could be happy with. As Matt wrote earlier, we should expect Bush to nominate as many conservatives as he can. But we should also remember that there's more than one type of conservative, and the GOP is going to have its own battle over which type to nominate.
