> Well, that's just great. So which is it?
>
> I am afraid I tend toward believing that they are a significant
> minority something in the 20-30% range and not an insignificant
> miniority in the 7-10% range.
The hard core religious right probably lies in the 7-10% range. If their number were more than 20%, there would be a fundie church on every corner, which isn't the case even out here in the bible belt.
The poll numbers that show large numbers identifying as "born again" doesn't necessarily mean that every "born again" is a member of the hard core religious right. Just like the fact that far more people identify as Christian than the ones who go to church on a regular basis.
> The cover that they are over represented in the press is one thing,
> but it doesn't really explain the votes or the constant political
> pressure to the right. On just about every issue there are enough of
> them to swing the political spectrum.
One of the rules of politics is to make your side look bigger than it actually is. The number of religious right zealots has not increased since this time last year, but their media spin post-election makes it seem like they are a big force. What you do in response could rely on several strategies, but the recent attempts by the Democrats to pander to religious people is just bone-headed.
Chuck