Pat Robertson’s Regent University says that 150 of its graduates have worked at the White House. But maybe there was still enough stigma attached to a Regent or a Patrick Henry degree that, except for Monica Goodling, they were ghettoized in junior staff. The couple of Patrick Henry grads who did well at the White House declined to have their names appear in promotional materials or do interviews on behalf of the school. Many declined Michael Farris’ offer to use his name as a reference. I’m not sure if this says more about them or the Bush administration’s ambivalence about “the nuts,” to use Karl Rove’s infamous phrase from your book.

So, should we be scared of them? I certainly met some Patrick Henry students who would be happy to establish a theocracy. But they tend not to be chosen for White House jobs. As you well know, there is usually an inverse relationship between vocalized extremism and political success, which is why the impending theocracy thesis is not all that convincing. That said, the Bush administration accomplished something unique in American history. It provided formal training for hundreds of what I call the evangelical elites, the first generation of conservative Christians who take political power for granted and feel entitled—in fact, compelled—by their faith to hold public office…

The biggest question is, what will happen to these guys after Bush? You’re right that the landscape has changed. It looks like they’ll be choosing between a Mormon and some second marriages when they go to vote in the Republican primaries. Of all the candidates, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have the most plausible Christian testimonies. Still, spending so much time with the new elites left me feeling that no matter what happens, they are not going away. We are seeing something like the Peace Corps generation in reverse, and they’ll be popping up in politics and elsewhere for years to come.

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