Seated beneath the Ten Commandments plaque that first made him a conservative icon in the culture wars, U.S. Senate candidate and former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore invokes President Donald Trump's campaign slogan but with his own twist.
"I support President Trump's agenda of making America great again. But I submit to you that we can only make America great again if we make America good," Moore said in his downtown Montgomery office a day after announcing his bid for the Senate seat previously held by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Moore's campaign theme puts a values-driven spin on the president's populist slogan, "Make America Great Again," and Moore's campaign announcement spelled out what he believes isn't good: divorce, abortion and same-sex marriage.
Former Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange currently holds the Senate seat. He was appointed by then-Gov. Robert Bentley, who resigned this month amid fallout from an alleged affair with a top staffer. Bentley had planned for a 2018 Senate election which would have allowed his pick to hold the seat longer. But the state's new governor, Kay Ivey, moved it up to this year, setting off what's expected to be a four-month demolition derby among Republican contenders ahead of the Aug. 15 primary.
Strange is running to retain the seat. Trump's Alabama campaign chairman, Ed Henry -- a Republican legislator who helped topple Bentley by starting an impeachment push -- is running too. Randy Brinson, a Montgomery gastroenterologist who chairs the Christian Coalition of Alabama, will be another contender for evangelical votes. The field is expected to grow even larger before qualifying ends in May. Republican state Senate leader Del Marsh is among those considering a bid.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/candidates-invoke-trumps-god-alabama-senate-race-47114278