Those in the overwhelmingly white, senior audience at Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz’s rally here left with little doubt as to why the Texas senator is dominating the state’s much-sought-after evangelical constituency.

Standing alongside conservative-values author and commentator James Dobson, Cruz swapped out his usual stump for an exchange that blended scripted sermonizing with red-meat fighting words against Democrats he said are fixated on abolishing religious liberty.

“If we allow non-believers to elect our leaders, we shouldn’t be surprised when our government doesn’t reflect our values,” Cruz said to widespread applause.

Now I understand why Cruz is winning Iowa. You would too if you saw this band sing “I Wish Kids Prayed in School”