One News Now | Moore vs. Strange: Biggest Senate race of our time

The Alabama Senate runoff between Judge Roy Moore and Sen. Luther Strange (R-Ala.) is being called “the most important Senate race in a generation” because its result next week will determine whether the Republican Party is returning to its conservative roots via Moore’s election … or if it is shifting toward the establishment leadership through a Strange win.

To date, all of the special elections held to replace members of the United States Congress – who were tapped by President Donald Trump to fill posts in his administration – have gone in the Republicans’ favor, and Tuesday’s faceoff to replace the new Attorney General Jeff Sessions could turn the tide of the party for many years to come.

Even though most take it for granted that a Republican nominee will come out on top in December’s general election against the Democratic Party’s nominee for the Senate seat, more than meets the eye is at stake in the red-dominated state of Alabama.

Conservative Review Senior Editor Daniel Horowitz pointed out the significance of next week’s upcoming runoff, asserting that Republican legislators govern like Democrats after they win their races … only to then get re-elected once they receive the support of the establishment.

Earlier this month, AFA Action – the governmental affairs affiliate of the American Family Association – announced its endorsement of Judge Roy Moore who is facing a primary runoff Tuesday against Luther Strange, the incumbent who was appointed to replace Jeff Sessions when he became President Trump’s attorney general.

Rob Chambers, vice president of AFA Action, lists some of the reasons for the endorsement.

“First of all, we believe [Moore] is a God-fearing man. He defends biblical marriage in government as well; he is a strong pro-life advocate,” he tells OneNewsNow. “He has a strong view of border security – he believes that there needs to be some type of military presence at the border.”

While a heavy barrage of attack ads leveled at Moore since the primary appear to have cut into his lead in the polls, Chambers doesn’t expect it to derail Moore’s advantage.

“Going into the primary, Judge Moore was 19 to 20 points ahead,” Chambers explains. “When the GOP establishment, the Senate Leadership Fund, Mitch McConnell and the like decided to ramp-up the opposition to Judge Moore, they dumped in millions of dollars.

“Well, that only gave Senator Strange a bump of about six to eight points.”

Moore has also been endorsed by Congressman Mo Brooks, who finished third in the August 15 GOP primary. Former Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) has endorsed Moore as well, and former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has campaigned for the former Alabama Supreme Court chief justice.

“We don’t have two parties in America – we have one unibrow party that serves various sectors of the special interest cartels, which both lead to the growth of government and the furtherance of cultural Marxism,” Horowitz wrote, according to WND. “The only difference is that Republicans run against the system they wind up supporting in order to forestall any competition from the right.”

The celebrated American defense attorney said this self-perpetuating trend has been seen time and time again.

“Thus, until now, they have been successful in fending off primary challenges because they use their cartel money to run as conservatives and even paint their conservative challengers as liberals,” Horowitz added. “This subterfuge has worked every time. Then they get re-elected and govern like Democrats.”

True champion of conservatives

Yet, it is argued that a Moore victory would set things in the right direction for true conservatives.

“Moore, however – a take-no-prisoners fighter who battled the federal courts over a Ten Commandments monument and was caught up in the storm damage from the Supreme Court’s creation of same-sex ‘marriage’ – represents ‘a new paradigm for disarming special interest money,’” WND’s Amanda Poe pointed out.

The preferred choice for evangelical Christians shows no signs of backing down to this challenge, despite continued opposition from within the GOP and Democrats alike.

“It is the first time the establishment smear campaign and lies appear not to be working,” Horowitz explained. “Roy Moore is a known quantity in Alabama. Nothing the establishment throws at him seems to work. This could be a new paradigm for disarming special interest money.”

Doesn’t need the president?

Many believe – and many polls indicate – that Moore does not even need the backing of Trump to pull off another triumph against all odds.

“A Moore win would be the first primary defeat from the right of a sitting senator who had not only the support of his party but the support of a sitting Republican president,” Horowitz stressed. “To my knowledge, this has never happened in modern history during a GOP administration.”

Moore appears to still be the frontrunner in the race going into the runoff – but not by the margin he previously enjoyed.

“Moore was leading Strange by double digits in August,” The Hill reported. “The gap has narrowed but recent polling still shows Moore ahead of Strange.”

Trump noted the tightening race and asserted that his backing – which includes campaigning for Strange in Huntsville, Alabama, on Saturday – is changing the tide.

“Senator Luther Strange has gone up a lot in the polls since I endorsed him a month ago,” Trump tweeted Thursday. “Now a close runoff. He will be great in D.C.”

Additional conservative primary opponents could be placed on ballots by a handful of establishment Republicans if Moore puts a wrench in their plans Tuesday.

And even though Trump supports Strange – who was appointed by scandal-plagued (and recently resigned) former Gov. Robert Bentley (R-Ala.) when Sessions vacated his seat to become U.S. attorney general – a growing number of conservative politicians and personalities, such as former Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska), Family Talk President James Dobson, and actor/philanthropist Chuck Norris are backing Moore in the race.

A look at the numbers

Despite strong opposition, the odds still look to be in Moore’s favor, as he took the initial Republican primary on Aug. 15 by a margin of 39 percent to 32.8 percent against Strange, with Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) – who is now endorsing Moore – pulling in at a distant third at 20 percent.

Losing no ground after Trump’s endorsement of Strange, Moore actually appears to have even more support today, with a Washington Post poll showing on Thursday that Moore is leading Strange now by 9 points.

Strong backing

Palin – one of Moore’s more vocal backers – announced that she will rally for Moore with Trump’s former deputy assistant, Sebastian Gorka, in Montgomery, Alabama.

“Judge Moore has shown he has what it takes to stand up to the out-of-touch political establishment,” the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee, expressed in a statement Tuesday, according to WND. “The judge has proven he’s not afraid of a fight for what is right, and he’s ready to take on D.C.’s swamp monsters and help make America great again. We need more bold leaders like Judge Moore who will fight for all of us in the U.S. Senate.”

Gorka added to Palin’s narrative, insisting that Moore is the only true choice for real conservatives.

“[I am] proud to support Judge Roy Moore and rally conservatives in Alabama behind his candidacy,” Gorka declared, according to WND. “The Washington establishment fears Judge Moore because they know he will oppose them. Judge Moore will be a steadfast supporter of President Trump and a strong ally in helping to drain the swamp and pass his America First agenda.”

Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon is also throwing in his support of Moore, but he insists that this is in no way an attack against the president.

“Appearing before a meeting of the secretive Conservative Action Project, Bannon made it clear that he supported Moore, a favorite among evangelicals, but was careful not to cast it as a break with the president,” Politico announced. “Rather, he said, it was an act of opposition toward Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who is supporting Strange and has made the race a top political priority.”

As a major voice in the media, Bannon is using his influence to make sure a champion of true conservative values will soon represent Christians in the state of Alabama.

It was also pointed out that the signature demographic of the president in Alabama is actually standing in support of Moore.

A top Bannon ally insists that Trump’s signature demographic supports Moore in Alabama.

“It’s clear Trump is getting bad advice from the Democrats in the West Wing,” a top ally of Bannon told The Hill.

Read more at Moore vs. Strange: Biggest Senate race of our time.