Jerry Falwell had little to do with Reagan's victory

The media has done a pretty fair job presenting Jerry Falwell's life and legacy. CNN did a particularly good series of reports that didn't attempt to whitewash Falwell's extremism or bigotry. But one point many in the media keep repeating, and keep getting wrong, is this notion that Falwell was in any way responsible for Reagan's election win in 1980. According to one of Reagan's closest friends, it's simply not true.

A friend of mine happened to be with with one of Reagan's closest friends and strategists on the day Falwell died. Reagan's friend said that Falwell's impact was marginal at best. W.A. Criswell of the First Baptist Church in Dallas was far more instrumental in persuading evangelical Christians to vote for Ronald Reagan. And Reagan had been working that community for decades. His mother was a millenialist - devoutly religious and convinced she was living in the end times. Reagan was uniquely prepared to connect with evangelicals. Falwell was like the rooster who took credit for the dawn.