The connections drawn between modern presidents and prophets is a bit more convincing, although the alleged friendship between Lyndon Johnson and David O. McKay is highly overrated. And McKay later told Richard Nixon he "hoped" he would be successful in his race against John F. Kennedy.

President Eisenhower, of course, included an LDS apostle, Ezra Taft Benson, as a member of his cabinet, but that's a bit distant from the prophet — even though Benson would eventually become such.

President Reagan praised the Mormon Welfare plan and toured Welfare Square. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir performed at several inaugurals. And most modern presidents have paid "courtesy visits" to the LDS prophet when traveling through Salt Lake City.

But most of the alleged relationships are built on very thin strands of evidence.

In sum, this is a great idea for a book. Too bad the evidence of interaction between presidents and prophets — a collection of snippets — is so flimsy.

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E-mail: dennis@desnews.com