Fiery social conservative Roy Moore is on the verge of upsetting Sen. Luther Strange, President Trump’s preferred candidate, in a closely watched special election in Alabama.
Moore, 70, is an unapologetic critic of abortion and same-sex marriage. Amplified by the platform of a U.S. Senate seat, his sharp-tongued rhetoric could be a real political problem for fellow Republicans across the country, as they’re badgered to answer for his positions.
In an interview Tuesday, Moore’s close confidant and political adviser for 25 years, Dean Young, said the “establishment” is right to be concerned. That same stubbornness caused Moore to be suspended and ultimately removed from his position as chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. Young, referring Moore as his “best friend,” said the firebrand would not moderate his style to suit his colleagues, should he defeat Strange on Sept. 26 in the special GOP primary runoff.
That’s why Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., “and all the establishment are going crazy,” Young, 53, said, in a half hour telephone conversation about Moore.
“Because I’m going to tell you right now,” Young added. “When it comes to his beliefs, if they think for one second they can put some kind of moderate/liberal judge on the Supreme Court that believes in abortion, or believes that marriage is between two people of the same sex — you know, fake marriage — if they think that he would vote for that, he’s not going to budge.”
Moore would presumably be favored to win the special general election in December given Alabama’s conservative bent. His victory in the special primary could send shockwaves through the Republican Party ahead of the midterms, encouraging a spate of upstart primary challenges to GOP incumbents in 2018 that might not otherwise materialize.
That’s another reason why Moore has engendered the opposition of McConnell and his super PAC, Senate Leadership Fund — and picked up the support of former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, now back at the helm of Breitbart News, and other conservative figures at odds with mainstream congressional Republicans.
Strange counters with President Trump’s endorsement, which Republican operatives backing the senator believe will close his deficit to Moore in public opinion polls by Election Day and push him over the top.
Trump is scheduled to rally for the senator, appointed in January to succeed Jeff Sessions, who resigned to become U.S. attorney general, on Friday in Huntsville. Vice President Mike Pence is following that up with a campaign swing through Alabama for Strange on Monday.
Young said flatly that Trump made a mistake, and that it could come back to haunt him.
“President Trump should be very careful because I believe Judge Moore is getting ready to win no matter if Trump comes down here or doesn’t come down here,” he said. “President Trump is taking an unnecessary risk and is in danger of hurting his clout in the future … Honestly, I don’t understand it. Judge Moore doesn’t understand why he’s doing it. But he won’t get any flack from us.”
Young added: “Judge Moore is 100 percent behind President Trump’s platform that he was elected on. Judge Moore supported him; I supported him.”
Young, a former candidate for statewide office and for Congress, is planning a Moore campaign rally for Saturday with special guests whom he declined to name because he said arrangements were still being made. He said the event in a “cow pasture” in McIntosh, Ala., would spotlight the former judge’s down-home roots and common touch.
He dismissed accusations that Moore isn’t knowledgeable on major issues, like immigration, despite the difficulties he’s shown in some media interviews. And he said reports that his friend is racially insensitive amount to nothing more than “fake news.”
Asked to explain Moore’s comments about racial strife in which he referred to “blacks and whites” and “reds and yellows.” Young said that the judge was referencing an old Sunday school song popular in Alabama called “Jesus Loves the Little Children.”
Young recited a couple of verses to make his point: “…all the children of the world, red and yellow, black and white, they are all precious in his sight…”
“The media is making a big deal out of the song that every Alabamian — I would say most every Alabamian knows what he was talking about. That is the silliest — that’s the difference, that’s what I’m talking about. He talks the language of the people,” Young said.
Polls show Strange closing the gap but still trailing.
Moore led the senator 44.2 percent to 35.4 percent in the RealClearPolitics.com average. Some private polls show a dead heat, and Republican insiders backing Strange believe the trends combined with Trump’s active campaigning for the senator will be the difference maker.
They also question Moore’s ability to close the deal. He has a loyal following but has fallen short in his bid for office multiple times. Young said this time, the timing is right for an outsider like Moore. Even supporters of Strange concede that the anti-establishment fever coursing through the GOP electorate in Alabama is high.
“Judge Moore cares about his God and his country, and the people of Alabama; he’s driven by that. He believes one day, he will stand before God and give an account for the gifts and abilities that he’s been given, and so at the end of the day, when you boil it all down, that drives him more than anything,” Young said. “He’s fair, wants to do what’s right, bends over backwards to help people, he’s a worker.”
