This is good: Obama's Rick Warren pick irks liberals

[wndycty]

As I have said in previous OP's I wouldn't have chosen Warren but I understand why Obama did it. I encourage folks to protest but MORE IMPORTANTLY lets use this as a teachable moment. I would like all opposed to Warren to spend the next month articulating why you oppose him, why you feel he is a bigot. I encourage folks to engage in conversations. I encourage folks not to sit down and shut up, but to engage folks. This is a an opportunity. When Warren takes the stage on January 20 the entire world should know the controversy and more importantly I hope that Obama addresses the controversy.

Obama's Rick Warren pick irks liberals

Posted December 17, 2008 4:49 PM
The Swamp

by Frank James

Well, that didn't take long.

The congressional committee putting together the inauguration earlier this afternoon announced that the program for President-elect Barack Obama's inaugural would include an invocation by Rick Warren, the celebrity preacher at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif.

People for the American Way, one of the best known liberal advocacy groups in the nation's capital, is letting it be known it's not happy with this choice.

An excerpt of a PFAW statement attributed to Kathryn Kolbert, the group's president:

It is a grave disappointment to learn that pastor Rick Warren will give the invocation at the inauguration of Barack Obama.

Pastor Warren, while enjoying a reputation as a moderate based on his affable personality and his church's engagement on issues like AIDS in Africa, has said that the real difference between James Dobson and himself is one of tone rather than substance. He has recently compared marriage by loving and committed same-sex couples to incest and pedophilia. He has repeated the Religious Right's big lie that supporters of equality for gay Americans are out to silence pastors. He has called Christians who advance a social gospel Marxists. He is adamantly opposed to women having a legal right to choose an abortion.

This reaction isn't surprising. But for Obama, making a statement about his inclusiveness and willingness to reach across ideological lines is more important than satisfying liberals on every issue as he has shown with his cabinet choices.

In fact, PFAW's reaction may help Obama with some centrist and more conservative voters.

Also, many African American church goers tend to share Warren's views on social issues. So the issue is more complicated than simply right and left.
-snip-

http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2008/12/obamas_rick_warren_pick_irks_l.html

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. That's like saying

a tornado is a little breeze.

[yardwork]

2. I can't understand why. Who would disagree with this?

Rick Warren: But the issue to me is, I知 not opposed to that as much as I知 opposed to the redefinition of a 5,000-year definition of marriage. I知 opposed to having a brother and sister be together and call that marriage. I知 opposed to an older guy marrying a child and calling that a marriage. I知 opposed to one guy having multiple wives and calling that marriage.

Steven Waldman: Do you think, though, that they are equivalent to having gays getting married?

Rick Warren: Oh I do.

http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2008/12/16/7415

Who could disagree? And his views on abortion - so steadfast! Not even the life of the mother is to interfere with saving that little fetus's life, because the fetus is more important than the woman, don't you know?

And it's so comforting to know that children will be taught that the earth is only 6,000 years old and any scientific comments to the contrary are ungodly.

Rick Warren is the ideal choice to symbolize Obama's connection to God. Don't you agree? Who wouldn't?

[GarbagemanLB]

3. Regardless of the outcry, I think there would be more damage done to Obama by repealing the Warren

invite at this point.

[Bluebear]

6. Well, we don't want to damage Obama, Lord knows.

[EFerrari]

9. That's his problem. n/t

[ErinBerin84]

4. The Huffington Post and Politico are also reporting on it

The Huffington Post says its his first "real" rift with progressives, Politico's headline is that "Gay Activists are Furious with Obama". Have not read the individual articles yet.

[Cha]

7. Good! The more the merrier. We know

Obama isn't perfect and has made mistakes and this looks like a very insensitive one where we know he tries to be sensitive. Damn.

[rug]

5. The last eight years have been filled with teachable moments.

Enough.

[Solon]

8. Fuck the centrist and conservative voters....

Seriously, fuck them, and anyone else who shares their bigoted point of view. They can all rot for all I care.