Obama Politics

Barack Obama and Joel Hunter

From an interview with Rev. Joel C. Hunter who gave the benediction at the Democratic Convention:

Q: You’ve met with Senator Obama several times. Are you endorsing him for president?

A: No. I’m not endorsing either candidate. I’m encouraging people to voice and vote their values as I always have.

Q: Why haven’t you met with Senator John McCain?

A: Because he hasn’t asked me.

A Southern Baptist Pastor for Obama

From another comment at the Southern Baptist sponsored website, iVoteValues:

I am a SBC pastor and a rare creature: an Obama supporter- for many reasons that I will not go into here. I just discovered this site today and what a disappointment. It seems like simply a link to Tony Perkins and and the Family Research Council. You will find no “objective and balanced” discussion from the supporters of the GOP ("God’s Only Party"). They claim to speak for God, so there is no room or need for discussion - or even thinking for that matter (thanks for your comments Carol - you help to illustrate my point!). I doubt our comments are even noted by anyone in influence in the SBC. But thanks for writing in and sharing all the same. And don’t stop asking the “hard questions” - it will lead you to the truth.

Some reasons for Christians not to vote for Obama

From a comment at the Southern Baptist sponsored website, iVoteValues:

There are several reasons why, as a Christian, I could never vote for Obama. First, he is the most pro-abortion member of the senate. He voted, as a member of the Illinois state legislature, to allow doctors to kill babies born alive who survived an abortion. Second, he doesn’t believe the Bible. He has twisted the teachings of the Word of God. Third, Obama chose to attend a church for 20 years pastored by a man who is anti-American, anti-white, and who did not preach the Word of God accurately (if at all). The truth is that for now the Republican party is pro-life, pro-family, and (for the most part) stands for Biblical values, while the Democrats are pro-abortion, pro-homosexual, and against many Biblical values. I don’t understand why any true believer in Christ would ever vote for Obama.

Obama's Shallow Shell

Saddleback Civic Forum highlighted Obama's shallow shell and McCain's depth.

Barack Obama and Donald Miller

The first night of the Democratic convention ends with the words of Donald Miller, who writes:

I’m honored to deliver the closing prayer at the DNC. Evangelical voices have been scarce within this party, perhaps since the Carter administration. But as strides are being made on key issues of sanctity of life and social justice, as well as peaceful solutions to world conflicts, more and more evangelicals are taking a closer look at options the Democratic Party are beginning to deliver. There is a long way to go, but sending a message to Washington that no single party has the Christian community in their pocket, thus causing each party to carefully consider the issues most important to us, is, in my opinion, a positive evolution. I am glad that, for the most part, the dialogue has been constructive and positive.

The New Evangelical Politics

E.J. Dionne Jr. writes about the new evangelical politics. Even though Rick Warren's event wasn't a complete success for Obama, it did show that things are moving in the right direction. It was good of Dionne to remind us of this by looking at the big picture. I just get impatient and want evangelicals to quickly change parties and vote for Obama. But it will take time and a lot of patience. The republicans have been sweet talking evangelicals for 30 years, so there is a lot of deprogramming to be done.

Obama vs. "Oh, Bomb 'Em" -- Who's the Christian?

From Robert S. McElvaine: Obama vs. "Oh, Bomb 'Em" -- Who's the Christian?:

In Orange County on Saturday (as he has on many other occasions), John McCain showed himself to be a Constantinian, not a Christian. But this will do him little harm with the Republican "base" of the "Christian Right," because they, too, are Constantinians who shout "JESUS!" at the top of their lungs but ignore his teachings. The choice in November is Obama or "Oh, Bomb 'Em." Constantinians will vote for the latter, but Christians who are actual Jesus Followers may prefer nuance to crisp, angry decisiveness.

We should not necessarily say that McCain is not a Christian, but it is legitimate to question if McCain is even remotely committed to the peacemaking that was a unique aspect of early Christianity. Of course, Obama would also fail as a Christian in this respect, but it seems clear, that in general, Obama is more committed to diplomacy than McCain.

The Sacrosanct Candidacy of Obama

Chuck Baldwin writes in Hooray For Jerry Corsi:

Dr. Jerome Corsi is probably the most controversial man in America these days. His blockbuster new book, The Obama Nation, is currently the New York Times Number One Bestseller, and media talking heads are having a hissy fit. They are incensed that there is someone of Corsi's intelligence and credentials who is willing to tell the truth about the presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee, Barack Obama. You see, the national media have elevated Obama to a position beyond sainthood: they view him as the fourth member of the Godhead. He can do no wrong. He is America's--no, check that, he is the world's--savior. How dare Dr. Corsi spoil the sacrosanct candidacy--and the media's universal anointing--of Obama? The fact is, however, Jerry Corsi is a rare breed these days: he is an honest and objective journalist whose commitment to truth outweighs his desire for popularity. I will go even further: Jerry Corsi is what the rest of the national media should be, but aren't.

Jerry Corsi is an honest and objective journalist committed to finding the truth? How can the Rev. Baldwin say this and not pay a price for it? Will people really believe what Baldwin says without checking to see if he is making any sense? How can Baldwin be a candidate for president (even in a minor party) when he writes something that is so obviously false and discredited? What kind of insane and absurd country do we live in where we have people like Corsi and Baldwin writing blatant falsehoods and expecting readers to believe in them? Why do we have readers in this country who are evidently reading such nonsense without challenging and shaming these writers into silence?

Barack Obama and Rick Warren, part 5 (3 updates)

This doesn't look good for Obama. I guess I was one of the wishful thinkers Warren is talking about. I previously thought Warren would send out more pro-Obama signals, but in this interview Warren seems to be obsessing on the pro-life issue and, tragically, from a John McCain-Christian Right perspective.

UPDATE: Here is more from Warren. The full interview sounds more balanced between Obama and McCain. Warren is obviously working very hard to not take sides. At least he is not sounding 100 percent republican as he did in 2004. He denies he was ever part of the Christian Right. This may be true stylistically, but right before the 2004 election he sounded very much like the typical Christian Right operative who was pushing hard to get Bush re-elected.

UPDATE 2: Contrast Warren's interview with this Baptist Press article about the forum. Obviously, the Southern Baptist Warren is being much more bi-partisan than the embarrassingly republican Baptist Press from the Southern Baptist Convention. Why can't the Baptist Press interview Warren? Sadly, they are not interested in what he has to say because they know he may say something nice about Obama.

UPDATE 3: Speaking of saying something nice about Obama, this article is the most positive article about Obama I have seen in the Baptist Press. I was surprised to see it.

"One candidate gives easy answers and slogans"

This is not too surprising, but it was nice to see a very pro-Obama opinion piece published today in Ethics Daily. Ethics Daily is a moderate or centrist evangelical website that has a Southern Baptist background. It is not clear to me, though, how many current Southern Baptists read it.