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Opinion: James Dobson’s Focus on the Family praises Prop. 8 and passes the collection plate

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Focus on the Family, the evangelical organization based in Colorado that led the fight to ban same-sex marriage in California, sees no need to hide its light -- and pass the collection plate again.

The conservative organization’s founder, James Dobson, was highly critical of John McCain, until he wasn’t. Then Dobson became particularly enamored of Sarah Palin. And finally, the group spent money to defeat Barack Obama.

That didn’t work out so well. But whatever disappointment it might have over Obama’s victory, the group is proclaiming “a victory that could shape millions of lives for generations to come.”

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The victory, of course, was passage of Proposition 8, which created a constitutional amendment defining marriage as being between one man and one woman.

In an e-mail signed by Tom Minnery, senior vice president for government and public policy, Focus says the measure “helps protect millions of children from radical indoctrination in the homosexual lifestyle,” and “safeguards religious liberty in our most populous state.”

“From the earliest strategic discussions, to the monumental task of gathering a million-plus signatures, to the campaign itself, Focus on the Family has been integrally involved,” the e-mail says.

The group was “able to invest more than $550,000” in the campaign, providing what it called seed money to help “launch a pro-marriage campaign that was unparalleled in its magnitude.”

Here’s how it characterizes its effort:

Helped found (in 2003) the organization that led this campaign;Paid for early polling to determine the best ballot language and strategy;Assisted with a major fundraising event for the campaign;Encouraged pastors to get involved (which they did in remarkable ways);Aired broadcasts urging financial and prayer support from around the country; andProvided major coverage of the campaign via radio, Internet, mail and Focus magazines.

None of that came for free. And so the missive ended as such missives always do -- with the ask.

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“As we prepare for what may be a challenging year of ministry, now would be a great time to invest in Focus on the Family.”

-- Dan Morain

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