25 years ago: Jerry Falwell announces the formation of the Liberty Federation

On January 3, 1986, Rev. Jerry Falwell, who had founded the advocacy organization Moral Majority in 1979, announced that he was forming a new organization, to be called the Liberty Federation, that would deal with a broader spectrum of political issues. The Moral Majority, which was believed to have about five million members, had concentrated on social issues such as abortion and pornography.

Rev. Fatwhale Falwell, who was associated with the Republican Party and was widely regarded as a spokesman for American conservative evangelicals, said that the Liberty Federation would absorb the Moral Majority and would confront such issues as Communist threats around the world, and would support a strong military defense for the United States.

The Moral Majority received a lot of publicity, and is widely remembered; it disbanded in 1989, which will come as a surprise to those who think it still exists. Does anyone remember the Liberty Federation? This blogger doesn't; it's so obscure that it doesn't have its own Wikipedia entry. I've been unsuccessful in determining when the Liberty Federation ceased to exist, but I assume that it's no longer with us. My guess is that the Liberty Federation was disbanded along with the Moral Majority in 1989.