Obama pisses off both the left and the right
The left, because he chose a homophobe to pray for him on swearing in day...the right, because one of their own is going to pray for someone who is pro-choice.
Yes, Barack Obama's decision to have Rick Warren give the invocation at his inauguration has a lot of people upset. Warren is the evangelical pastor of the enormous Saddleback Church in CA, and author of the best-selling book "The Purpose Driven Life." He has compared abortion to the Holocaust, and opposes same-sex marriage.
People are saying that after all his talk about change, Obama is giving over the stage to a known homophobe. That there is no excuse for this, that there are so many leaders of the faith community that preach equality for all.
Lefties are running around saying things like, "Legitimizing bigotry is weak" and "Face it, Progressives, we have been conned."
Listen up, Barack Obama will the strongest supporter of gay rights in presidential history, he's ready to make sweeping reversals of Bushie restrictions on reproductive rights and family planning...and the "Don't ask/don't tell" policy of the military will disappear before you know it.
I say Obama is just acting in accordance with what he said about being everybody's president. He said, "We're not going to agree on every single issue, but what we have to do is to be able to create an atmosphere where we can disagree without being disagreeable and then focus on those things that we hold in common as Americans."
I believe him when he says he wants to build bridges and have a government full of diverse views...but I also know that Obama is a political animal.
We should remember that Barack Obama is becoming president of one of the most divided nations in the modern world. We've been almost paralyzed because of our deep, deep disagreements...and the way we savage the opposing side.
We also have to remember that Rick Warren's views on other social issues - global warming, poverty, and especially of HIV/AIDS - are much more progressive than the rest of the God-Squad.
One thing for sure - I would rather Obama give Warren a few minutes to speak about religion in this appropriate time and place, than appoint him to a policy making job in his administration.
Besides...Warren may be giving the invocation, but the Rev. Joseph Lowery, who's a brilliant progressive and champion of the civil rights era, is giving the benediction. And the benediction is the last word because it comes at the end....
