Rev. Joel Hunter, president elect of the once well known Christian Coalition has resigned.

He was set to take over for Roberta Coombs in January. Hunter is a senior pastor at Northland Church in Longwood, Florida. Coombs was president for five years.

The president-elect of the Christian Coalition of America has declined the job, saying the organization wouldn’t let him expand its agenda beyond opposing abortion and gay marriage.

…he had hoped to focus on issues such as poverty and the environment.

“These are issues that Jesus would want us to care about,” said Hunter, a senior pastor at Northland Church in Longwood, Fla.

Hunter announced his decision not to take the job during an organization board meeting Nov. 21. A statement issued by the group said Hunter left because of “differences in philosophy and vision.” Hunter said he was not asked to leave.

“They pretty much said, ‘These issues are fine, but they’re not our issues, that’s not our base,’” Hunter said.

Hunter isn’t listed on the Christian Coalition Florida site as staff. The national site is currently down.

The Christian Coalition was started 17 years ago by Pat Robertson of the Christian Broadcasting Network in Virginia. At it’s height the Coalition (headed by Ralph Reed amd Robertson) had a 26 million dollar budget, and 12 full time lobbiests in Washington.

According to the Washington Post, as of April 2006:

IRS records show that the Christian Coalition’s red ink has remounted. Its debts exceeded its assets by $983,000 in 2001, $1.3 million in 2002, $2 million in 2003 and $2.28 million at the end of 2004, the most recent year for which it has filed a nonprofit tax return.

Lawsuits for unpaid bills have multiplied. The Christian Coalition’s longtime law firm — Huff, Poole & Mahoney PC of Virginia Beach — says it is owed $69,729. Global Direct, a fundraising firm in Oklahoma, is suing for $87,000 in expenses. Reese & Sons Inc., a moving company in District Heights, is trying to recover $1,890 for packing up furniture when the Christian Coalition closed its Washington office in 2002. The list goes on.

While the National office claims a membership of 2 million, People for the American Way say it is more likely a few hundred thousand as religious right migrated to newer and less tainted organizations.
As well, key chapters such as Alabama and Iowa have broken away to work on their own.
Known as a Republican focused group, former churches concerned about the tax exempt battle, (finally settled with the IRS) distanced themselves.

Interview with Dr. Joel Hunter