Obama Politics

The Un-Bradley Effect

Please Vote Today! - Brian McLaren.

I've never voted for a Democrat in all my life, but I'm voting for Obama. If the people at my Evangelical church knew, they would ostracize me and never treat me the same. So I'm not making a lot of noise about it, but when I get behind the curtain to vote, I'm voting for hope over fear.

I wonder if this will be known as the "un-bradley effect" - people who publicly seem to fall in step with the ongoing Religious Right dominance of the Evangelical community, but who privately differ and will vote their true conscience when given the chance.

Last Minute Readings for Undecided Voters

Don Miller Blog » From Reagan to Obama, a brief Political History.

http://www.brianmclaren.net/archives/blog/worth-comparing.html

Barack Obama For President

The Daily Dish | By Andrew Sullivan (November 03, 2008) - Barack Obama For President.

Obama is the Best Candidate

Obama is the Best Candidate - Final Reflections on an Endorsement Well Considered (By Douglas Kmiec) - Progressive Revival.

Pro-Life Christians for Barack Obama.

Facebook | Pro-Life Christians for Barack Obama..

Evangelical Christians for Barack Obama

Facebook | Evangelical Christians for Barack Obama.

An Obama voter and his church

I Quit My Church Today

Don Miller's Journey from being a Reagan Republican to an Obama Democrat

Don Miller Blog » From Reagan to Obama, a brief Political History.

I voted for Barack Obama (we vote early in Oregon) because I think he is right on healthcare (his plan will allow 27 million more Americans, including young, pregnant mothers to be cared for) and he is right on responsible fatherhood. I voted for Barack Obama because he will keep George W. Bush’ Faith-based Partnerships Program in play, only increasing it’s funding. I voted for Barack Obama because he has the respect of world leaders, which will be necessary to deliberate an American agenda around the world, and I voted for Barack Obama because he had the judgment to oppose the war in Iraq. I’ve taken some blows from the conservative right on my stance, but, even in public debate against McCain representatives, have not been deterred. I will not be guilted, shamed or controlled. I am not going to vote for one candidate because I have been made to fear the other. I support Barack Obama because he has beat back the dark hour of cynicism and irrational fear, and provided hope to a country closing in on itself. I believe there are great days ahead.

The Conservative Evangelical Christian Case for Obama

Why, As a born again Christian, I cannot morally vote for John McCain.

Rednecks for Obama

Rednecks for Obama | Revolution in Jesusland.

Good News for Obama

The Crunchy Cons are staying home | Revolution in Jesusland.

This is pretty amazing: Rod Dreher, conservative blogger and author of Crunchy Cons, is not going to vote this year. If he’s representative of many other evangelicals, which I think he is, then this is really good news for Obama.

Sin Boldly, My Friends, and Vote for Obama

To Vote For Barack Obama Is Sin

Don Miller and Voting for Obama

Don Miller Blog » PA Times and Locations.

Day of Reckoning

Day of Reckoning - The Atlantic (October 31, 2008).

5 Reasons to Vote for Barack Obama

Brian McLaren

 

ProLife - ProObama

ProLife - ProObama.

Clergy For Obama

Clergy For Obama.

How Pastors Will Vote

Poll: How Pastors Will Vote | Politics | Christianity Today.

Obama Wields The Bible Against Socialist Charge

Obama Wields The Bible Against Socialist Charge - Steven Waldman.

Responding to John McCain's claim that Obama wants to redistribute the wealth and is therefore a socialist, Barack Obama said Thursday: "My Bible tells me there is nothing wrong with helping other people, that we want to treat others like we want to be treated. That I am my brother's keeper, and I am my sister's keeper. I believe that."

A Shallow Celebrity, Domestic Terrorist, Secret Muslim and a Communist? Also Called the Anti-Christ

Transmillennial: Letter from 2012.

Whether or not you'll agree with his policies, the current Democratic candidate for President is an amazing success story. Born into a working class family with an immigrant father, he was raised by his mother and grandmother. He ended up graduating from Columbia and got his law degree from Harvard where he was editor of the Law Review. He is of African descent and if he is elected we will have gone a long way to realizing Dr King's dream of equality -- America is an amazing, inspiring place. Even so, he is being called a shallow celebrity, a domestic terrorist, a secret Muslim, and a communist by his Republican opponent. Today's atmosphere is untenable. As polarized as 2000 is, 2008 is a hundred times more so. Please think about all of this seriously and see what you can do to prevent it.

Barack Obama and Jonathan Merritt

Is Jonathan Merritt giving permission for Southern Baptists and conservative evangelicals to vote for Obama?

Jonathan Merritt: A New Generation of Religion and Politics - Religion and Ethics Newsweekly.

More Help from Doug Phillips

Some say you cannot be a Christian and vote for Obama. Doug Phillips basically says you cannot be a real Christian if you vote for Obama or McCain. Thank you, Doug Phillips for helping Obama become president.

Doug's Blog: A Reasonable Concern Raised by a Vision Forum Reader about Our Coverage of the 2008 Candidate Issues.

Barack Obama and David Gushee

David Gushee writes in Dark fears endanger America:

Where are evangelical Christians in all of this? To the extent that evangelicals have bought into the anger, hysteria and othering of Obama, we have once again proven to be a source of cultural conflict and division rather than agents of reconciliation, as all Christians are called to be. [     ]

My plea to all Christians is to remember who we are and whose we are. Jesus is our Lord. We are not free to engage politics in a way that violates his Lordship. This Lordship is interpreted differently by different Christians in terms of who they vote for. But on issues like civility, respect and truthfulness, our calling is more than clear.

Religious Right appeals to fear as election nears

Associated Baptist Press - Religious Right appealsto fear as election nears.

"These are last-gasp efforts to scare gullible adherents who share a fear that the cultural dominance for conservative Christians could be lost," Pierce wrote in a blog entry. He said people who write such "nonsense" do so for one of two reasons: "Either they are being intentionally dishonest in order to persuade voters to their political side or they actually possess such irrational fears."    [      ]

"Everyone uses fear in the last part of a campaign, but evangelicals are especially theologically prone to those sorts of arguments," Clyde Wilcox, a Georgetown University political scientist, told the Associated Press. "There's a long tradition of predicting doom and gloom."

But evangelical author Margaret Feinberg told the AP that such attempts might backfire with younger voters. "Young evangelicals are tired -- like most people at this point in the election -- and rhetoric which is fear-based, strong-arms the listener and states opinion as fact will only polarize rather than further the informed, balanced discussion that younger voters are hungry for," she said.

A Christian Bipartisan Rejection of Focus on the Family’s Letter from 2012

Facebook | A Christian Bipartisan Rejection of Focus on the Family’s Letter from 2012.

As you can see, Focus on the Family Action has abandoned reasonable appeals and resorted to shameless tactics of fear mongering. They have abandoned the belief that voters can make informed decisions and have instead appealed to fear as their fundamental motivator. As Christians, we stand appalled and ashamed at such tasteless demagoguery. We believe that civil, educated, and compassionate dialogue should and can occur with the active engagement of our faith, but believe that Focus on the Family Action has, in this letter, stepped far outside of reasonable boundaries into pure sensationalism. We believe that such thoughtless expressions coming from an organization that purports to represent Evangelicals continues to mar our legitimacy and voice in the public arena, and damages our basic Christian witness.

Jim Wallis Demands Apology from James Dobson

Jim Wallis Demands Apology from James Dobson | Politics | Christianity Today.

"In a time of utter political incivility, it shows the kind of negative Christian leadership that has become so embarrassing to so many of your fellow Christians in America," he writes. "Such outrageous predictions not only damage your credibility, they slander Barack Obama who, you should remember, is a brother in Christ, and they insult any Christian who might choose to vote for him."

Obamagelicals

Obamagelicals Big Factor in Indiana - Steven Waldman.

Brian McLaren, Janet Porter and Barack Obama

Worth comparing ... - Brian McLaren.

The Conservative Christian Case for Supporting Obama

The Conservative Christian Case for Supporting Obama | Opinion Streams.

Rev. Sam Rodriguez, Rev. Rich Cizik, and Rev. Joel Hunter Endorse an Obama Friendly Radio Ad

Shocking Radio Ad Pushes for Common Ground Abortion Reduction - Steven Waldman.

Letter from 2016 in Obama’s America

Letter from 2016 in Obama’s America « The Search.

Obama's Christian Faith Might Resonate

Matthew 25, Evangelicals, CBN an - Brian McLaren.

Barack Obama and Dr. Dobson

The FundamentaList | The American Prospect.

As part of a widespread panic on the religious right that if Obama wins next week, the world will come to an end, James Dobson issued a 16-page screed that is so ridiculous -- replete with pedophile Boy Scout troop leaders, terrorist attacks, blackouts, and a Chavez takeover of Latin America -- it's hard to imagine anyone taking it seriously. Matthew 25, the Christian PAC supporting Obama, is asking its supporters to rebuke Dobson, calling his tactic "appalling."

Christians voting for Obama

You cannot be a Christian and vote for Obama? Really? I am hoping that nonsense like this will actually motivate Christians to vote for Obama.

Evangelicals for Obama

On Faith: Georgetown Blog.

A higher percentage of Evangelicals will vote for Obama than voted for Kerry: I would mortgage the house on this one (if only someone would extend me a line of credit!). Somewhere between 21-22% of Evangelicals voted for Kerry in 2004. Even a small increase for Obama is cash for the Democrats insofar as these Christians have turned away from them in droves since the Carter administration. So I repeat what I have been saying for months: if Obama gets between 28%-33% of the Evangelical vote nationwide, he's President-elect Obama.

This is an encouraging improvement, but still disappointing. In a fair and sane world, one could at least hope that the most serious followers of Jesus would at the very least give a majority of their support for someone like Obama who seems to embody in who he is and in what he represents a lot more of the good news of Jesus than someone like McCain.

Are Evangelicals Becoming MORE Undecided?

Are Evangelicals Becoming MORE Undecided? - Steven Waldman.

The new Pew poll, which shows a massive 52%-36% advantage for Obama, reveals something very interesting in the patterns for white evangelicals: Obama has made few if any gains at all -- but McCain has dropped. On October 12, 74% supported him. Now, 65% do. In other words, as election day approaches, the number of evangelicals who are undecided is going up.

Another Bush voter for Obama

40-something teenager: hello again.

Four years ago, eight years ago, actually every election since I could first vote in 1984; I have voted Republican, because I was told that Republicans championed Christian values and that Democrats were Godless liberals. As my thinking has opened up in recent years; and seeing much in the current administration, and our country, that does not reflect God; my political views have changed.

Rick Warren and Barack Obama

Baptist Press - Rick Warren endorses Prop 8 Calif. marriage amendment - e.

"For 5,000 years, EVERY culture and EVERY religion -- not just Christianity -- has defined marriage as a contract between men and women," Warren wrote. "There is no reason to change the universal, historical definition of marriage to appease 2% of our population. This is one issue that both Democrats and Republicans can agree on. Both Barack Obama and John McCain have publicly opposed the redefinition of marriage to include so-called 'gay marriage.'

Wrong, Wrong, Wrong. Obama is against Prop 8 and for very good reasons. Warren should know better. Who said Warren may vote for Obama because he is no longer a member of the Christian Right? 

The Election Sermon

The Election Sermon - Progressive Revival.

I will say, with the nation mired in two seemingly endless wars and the economy in meltdown, that this is the most important presidential election since 1932. Add the almost unimaginable, world-inspiring presence of an African-American on the verge of being elected president of the United States, and the election takes on a historic quality unparalleled in modern memory.

Barack Obama and Brian McLaren

Religion of fear versus faith, hope, and love

Conservatives for Obama

The Top Ten Reasons Conservatives Should Vote For Obama

Barack Obama and Charles Fried

Conservative Legal Icon Charles Fried Elaborates on His Obama Endorsement - Steven Waldman.

Barack Obama and Don Miller

Don Miller Blog » Stumping in PA.

I know there are a lot of fear and smear campaigns going on, and many of them, unfortunately, are targeted at Christians. It reminds me of the Y2K scare (I actually booked a flight and was in the air crossing time zones that night, just for spite) but don’t be afraid. And don’t let people manipulate you.

More Obama Christian Radio

Ben Smith's Blog: More Obama Christian radio - Politico.com.

Why Brian McLaren is voting for Barak Obama

Why I'm voting for Barak Obama . - Brian McLaren.

Some of my friends and relatives have been reading my reasons for voting for Barack Obama, but the issue of abortion is a major roadblock for them. They believe that a vote for Obama is a vote for abortion, and a vote for McCain is a vote against abortion. They are surprised to learn that I believe an Obama presidency could actually take us farther in reducing abortion than a McCain presidency, and it could do so through a wiser, less-divisive, more effective strategy. Here’s why.

Barack Obama and Dr. Dobson

Matthew 25 Network.

James Dobson's organization, Focus on the Family Action, recently published a letter purporting to offer a vision of 2012 after four years of an Obama administration. This letter, filled with doomsday projections, is fearmongering of the worst kind - a sensationalist fiction with almost no basis in reality. How does it reflect on our Christian witness in the world to see self-described Christian leaders engage in such blatant fearmongering in order to influence a political race? When Americans read Dobson's letter, do you think they'll come away thinking better of Christianity - or worse? James Dobson should hear from those in the faith community that find this tactic appalling.

Barack Obama and Mark Morford

When History Spanks | CommonDreams.org.

So then. I say we're being asked, right now, to understand that there are, in fact, two fundamental kinds of history. The first is the most common, the type we've grown pathetically used to, the type that soils the spirit and stabs us in the back as it takes down office towers and induces war and misprision and wallows in nearly unbearable quantities of fear. We get that a lot.

The second kind is perhaps the most rare of all. This is the history that comes around only once or twice per generation, that emerges from somewhere deep and urgent to move us forward; it's a kind that invites growth and sparks surprisingly constructive feelings in everyone and everything it touches. Do you recognize that kind? Right. Me neither. Until now. And now here it is, in the form of this Obama fellow, this rare and extraordinary flavor of history, this impossible thing, right on our doorstep, awaiting our vote, merely asking us if we're ready. Are we?

Pro-Life and Pro-Obama

My Mom is voting Obama BECAUSE she is Anti-abortion.

Letter from 2012 in Obama's America

The Associated Press: Christian right intensifies attacks on Obama.

"It looks like, walks like, talks like and smells like desperation to me," said the Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell of Houston, an Obama supporter who backed President Bush in the past two elections. The Methodist pastor called the 2012 letter "false and ridiculous." He said it showed that some Christian conservative leaders fear that Obama's faith-based appeals to voters are working.

My American Prayer

My American Prayer - Progressive Revival.