1979 Jerry Falwell founds the Moral Majority with Paul Weyrich and others, luring many conservative Southern Democrats into the G.O.P.
1980 Ronald Reagan tells a convention of evangelical ministers, "You can't endorse me, but I endorse you." They eagerly throw their support behind him
1981 Reagan takes office. But after the first jubilant months, the religious right grows disappointed by Reagan's lack of attention to its concerns
1987 Religious conservatives criticize Surgeon General and former pro-life ally C. Everett Koop for his AIDS-education campaign
1988 Pat Robertson places second in the Iowa caucuses, beating Vice President George Bush and forcing the...