Dr. Laura Attacks Public Schools For `Sick Indoctrination'.

Controversial radio broadcaster Dr. Laura Schlessinger blasted public schools in March, calling them centers for "sick indoctrination" and the "brainwashing" of children.

Schlessinger's outburst came after a caller expressed frustration about attempts to address traffic safety issues at her child's public school. The acerbic Schlessinger, who regularly heaps abuse upon her callers, interrupted to say, "You're doing the fight thing, but see, I think most people should take their kids out of public school anyway because there's all kinds of sick indoctrination going on there, and there's no way to fight it."

Continued Schlessinger, "I get horrendous letters every day with stupidity like this, with harassment situations - real harassment situations, with stupid kinds of programs that are brainwashing kids to, for social, different social programs, and what have you. I mean, it has ceased being what it was supposed to be in the beginning, and the irrationality, like you expressed to me, it's part of the mail I get every day."

She concluded her March 13 comments, "So, the best thing I can do is rant and rave like I am fight now. Tell people to take your kids out of public schools. They're not well run; you don't really have control. I don't even know why they call them public.... That's why I urge people to get the heck out of public schools:'

Schlessinger is an Orthodox Jew much loved by the Religious Right for her hard-line right-wing views and intemperate moralizing. Although her radio show remains popular, her attempt to expand into television flopped after the syndicated "Dr. Laura" program was cancelled in March by its producer, Paramount Pictures Television Group.

When the TV show was unveiled last fall, Schlessinger came under fire from gay groups for her intolerant rhetoric. She has called gay people a "biological error" and "deviants" and although she finally issued an apology, a boycott against the show's advertisers was launched.

Schlessinger remains popular, however, among the Religious Right. Recently the National Religious Broadcasters chose her as the featured guest speaker for the NRB's annual "media breakfast" at the National Association of Broadcasters convention in Las Vegas. (The NRB is an umbrella group of religious broadcasters such as Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell and James Dobson.)

Last year, the NRB presented Schlessinger with its "Chairman's Award," citing her "strong stand for the role of religion, the Ten Commandments and encouraging millions of Americans to do the right thing."

In other news about the Religious Right:

* Houston area politico Dr. Steven F. Hotze may still face drunk driving charges. Hotze, a Religious Right activist who has great influence over state and local politics in Texas, was arrested last October after a police officer spotted his car weaving across the center line of a road.

According to the Houston Press, Officer J.S. Miller said Hotze's vehicle was weaving so badly it nearly struck his patrol car. Another officer, M.R. Adams, reported that Hotze's eyes were bloodshot and glassy and his speech slurred. Hotze refused to take a breathalyzer test but reportedly said, "I was out having a smoke and drinking some vodka tonics. I would like to call my attorney Rusty Hardin."

Charges against Hotze were dropped when Adams, in an unrelated case, was accused of working in collusion with a tow truck driver to falsify towing slips. But a grand jury refused to indict Adams, clearing the way for him to be a witness against Hotze. District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal received support from Hotze during his race but said that would not affect his decision on whether to refile charges.

Meanwhile, Hotze remains a leader among the Religious Right. A Christian talk radio station, KSEV-AM in Tomball, Texas, has given him his own show.

* Conservative commentator Armstrong Williams has criticized the Christian Coalition in the wake of a lawsuit filed by black employees who claim they have been mistreated at the group's Washington office. In his syndicated column, Williams accused the group of ignoring the concerns of minorities.

"While the Christian Right continues to pump its collective fist over abortion and same-sex marriage, it has been notably silent on issues relating to race," wrote Williams, who is African American. "You don't see the Christian Coalition handing out pamphlets and organizing protests over racial profiling or racial disparities in legal sentencing. Yet, race is a moral issue that addresses those very social structures that keep us huddled together as a community. Until the Christian Right makes an appeal to black Americans and other minorities who share its value system, it will continue to be perceived as an insular group of rural folk who are out of touch with the moral concerns of modern America."

* The Rev. Sun Myung Moon is touring all 50 states under the auspices of the Unification Church's Family Federation for World Peace and Unification. Despite Moon's controversial theological beliefs -- he asserts that he is the new messiah sent to complete the failed mission of Jesus Christ -- the Korean evangelist continues to win influence in political circles. His recent appearance in Albuquerque drew support from a Republican state senator and former Gov. David Cargo.

Moon also has ties to TV preacher Pat Robertson's Christian Coalition. A recent letter inviting people to the state events lists Billy McCormack as a member of the "Invitational Committee." McCormack, who reportedly first urged Robertson to start the Coalition, is identified on the letterhead as a member of the Christian Coalition's Founding Board.