James Dobson Considers Endorsing McCain

July 21, 2008 12:32 p.m. EST

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - Prominent conservative James Dobson is considering voting for Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) despite his earlier comments that he would never do so because of the Republican presidential hopeful's views on conservative issues.

"I never thought I would hear myself saying this," Dobson said in a radio broadcast Monday, according to the Chicago Tribune. "While I am not endorsing Senator John McCain, the possibility is there that I might."

Dobson, chairs a conservative non-profit called Focus on the Family and hosts a long-time radio program of the same name. He said earlier this year his decision to endorse former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee was due in part because he could not vote for McCain.

"His record on the institution of the family and other conservative issues makes his candidacy a matter of conscience and concern for me," the evangelical leader had said.

McCain, a four-term senator on his second bid for the White House, has had difficulty winning the support of wary conservatives because of his maverick record as a Republican, support for embryonic stem cell research and opposition to a constitutional ban on same-sex marriages.

Dobson's statements come a few weeks after 100 Christian conservative leaders met in Denver and agreed to rally behind McCain rather than face the possibility of having Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) as president.

Dobson accused the presumptive Democratic nominee earlier this month of "distorting" the Bible's teachings and pushing a "fruitcake" interpretation of the Constitution.