UPDATE:The Reverend Graham is apparently moonlighting as a political prophet as well. Politico is reporting that Graham, in the same interview referenced below, is saying that Governor Palin won’t run for President. For more information on the Presidential campaign, please come to the Peak — or better still, go straight to the source of all news and become Facebook friends with Franklin Graham.

While we've stated previously that we understand that Donald Trump is connecting with Republican voters right now because he has the guts to slay some politically correct dragons, like fighting back against oil cartel OPEC, we aren't hopping on the Trump bandwagon just yet.

Apparently, the Rev. Franklin Graham, son of famed evangelical and Presidential counselor-in-chief, Billy Graham, thinks differently. He recently told ABC News that Trump may be his guy for 2012:  

"Donald Trump, when I first saw that he was getting in, I thought, well, this has got to be a joke," said Graham. "But the more you listen to him, the more you say to yourself, you know, maybe this guy's right."    

"So, he might be your candidate of choice?" Amanpour asked.    

"Sure, yes," Graham responded.

It's particularly odd for an evangelical leader to publicly ponder backing him, considering his less-than-alter-boy social life. Some are comparing Graham's publicly toying with an endorsement with the strange and unexpected backing of Rudy Giuliani by Pat Robertson last cycle.  

Presidential primaries produce some odd bedfellows and Rev. Franklin Graham's potential support for the Donald could be the first such example in what is sure to be a long and strange road to the general election. 

Despite his divorces, an issue that may harm other conservative candidates like Newt Gingrich, Trump is catching steam because he occupies a uniquely American space in public life — what conservative New York Times columnist David Brooks calls the “living, walking personification of the Gospel of Success.”

Brooks explains the vital role that Trump plays in American society and politics, but doesn't see himself jumping on the Trump train:

But I do insist that Trump is no joke. He emerges from deep currents in our culture, and he is tapping into powerful sections of the national fantasy life. I would never vote for him, but I would never want to live in a country without people like him.

Trump is getting traction among serious people who play a real role in deciding who the nominee is. We aren't there yet ourselves — not even close — but when a leader of the religious right and one of the most widely read conservatives say you're worth considering, at some point, a critical mass of GOP primary voters may give him a long and serious look.