Dobson may grouse in conservative jargon about a court undermining the will of the people. But does anyone believe that Dobson would similarly pound the dais when judicial activism falls his way — as it has on issues ranging from free speech to medical marijuana?

Aren’t Republicans also (hypothetically) the party of limited government and individual freedom?

Dobson claims that Parker and other secular conservatives are trying to marginalize Christian voters when, in effect, he has it backwards. Poor Rudy Giuliani once dressed up as a woman. And Mitt Romney, yeah, he was born into cult. And this one was divorced too many times and the other one . . . well, pleasing James Dobson can be a holy hassle.

No, evangelicals are not “ailing” the Republican Party, as Parker contends, but the acceptance of the traditional value wing should not be a prerequisite to being a “real” conservative.