Hugh believes that it is an impossibility that social conservatives would sit out a general election match-up that featured Rudy Guiliani. Dr. Land disagrees.

Hugh believes that his experiences speaking in front of audiences and conducting surveys of the audience is giving him a better barometer of the assessment on the ground than Land's perspective as an activist.

I've seen Hugh do his surveys and I know that he is most sincere in his beliefs about the data he's compiling by way of his pocket abacus. I also know that Dr. Land speaks to the movers and shakers amongst evangelicals like Dobson, Mohler, Perkins, Bauer, and Wilder - he hears from such as to what bothers them and why they can or can not activate their base to support a candidate.

I've also been to nearly every major event in the last year where bona fide conservatives have gathered. Hosted by groups like Focus on the Family, Family Research Council, American Family Association, Young Americas Foundation, The Values Voter's Summit, and in two more weeks the next installment of CPAC. I have seen the response taken in the straw polls at these events as well.

This past weekend I also key-noted the 40th Annual Conservative Party of New York State's conservative shin-dig. The conference heard from David Keene the head of the American Conservative Union. I followed Rich Lowry of National Review who did his own straw poll.

Every single one of the straw polls I have witnessed at these events favor Richard Land's view on the matter. Conservatives are not (at this time) embracing Guiliani. In the poll that Lowry did Guiliani got no more than five hands in the gathering raised in his support.

Dr. Land brings up good points. Ones that Hugh - because he relishes the GOP echo chamber - may be tuned out too. Marriage, family, abortion are as passionate issues as they have ever been to the true conservative movement. Guiliani is a disaster on all three, McCain has two strikes against him, and interestingly enough the "Mormon" candidate is the strongest. It's also interesting that the Mormon in the race is the only top tier candidate who has been married to only one woman.

To his credit in recent days Hugh has been harder on GOP rebels than ever before (Lincoln Chaffee) but Hugh also steadfastly embraced Bush's disasterous strategy of strong arming Rick Santorum into stumping for horrible GOP'er Arlen Specter. (And we see how far that went - we lost Santorum and are stuck batty Uncle Arlen!)

Also to his credit there has been no more consistent advocate going deep on the war than Hugh - and his willingness to lead the charge to hold Congress accountable to "The Pledge" demonstrates true commitment to the tough fight against terror.

Lowry said on my show that "Conservatives WANT to like Guiliani." I think that's an extremely fair assessment... and may on some level prove Hugh's point. But I think that Land's observation is also true - the more conservatives get to know him (Guiliani) - the more they will be disappointed in his past moral behavior and positions on morally conservative issues.

At the end of the day because conservatives strive to be philosophically consistent they will long more for a candidate who will fight the tough war on terror abroad, and wage war for the culture family/life at home with values that reflect their own.

It's all very interesting speculation - but on this one - I deem it nearly too tough to call!