The increasingly Christian right-dominated Iowa Republican Party has banned Sen. Charles Grassley from being a voting delegate at the Republican National Convention. The speculation -- first fueled by the Washington Times -- is that they're freezing him out because of his investigation of televangelists. Grassley later denied that his own party retaliated against him, and pointed out that other members of Congress won't be voting delegates either, including Rep. Steve King, long a favorite of the religious right.
Meanwhile, Mike Huckabee, whose own victory in the Iowa caucus was due to the Christian right political machine in the state, spoke at the state party's convention this month. Kenneth Copeland, the most defiant of the televangelists under Grassley's microscope, hosted Huckabee on his television program and helped raise money for Huckabee's campaign. Curious.
--Sarah Posner
