by James Oliphant
Barack Obama didn't exactly receive an FTD "Thank You for Being You" bouquet from the Rev. Rick Warren.
In an interview with the website BeliefNet, Warren, who sponsored the forum at the Saddleback church in California Saturday, cast doubt on the ability of Democrats to reach evangelicals and so-called "values voters" and he said attempts at outreach by Obama to that community are likely to fail. Why? No getting past the abortion issue, to which Warren made a rather incendiary comparison to the Holocaust:
BeliefNet: Before last night, McCain had been widely criticized by Christian activists for keeping mum about his faith and about values issues like abortion and marriage Last night seemed to change that. How much headway did McCain make among skeptical evangelicals?
Warren: I'm a pastor, I'm not a prophet, so I would not predict how evangelicals are going to vote. I will tell you they're not monolith. That's a big myth. They're going to make up their minds based on the hierarchy of their values. For many evangelicals, of course, if they believe that life begins at conception, that's a deal breaker for a lot of people. If they think that life begins at conception, then that means that there are 40 million Americans who are not here [because they were aborted] that could have voted. They would call that a holocaust and for them it would like if I'm Jewish and a Holocaust denier is running for office. I don't care how right he is on everything else, it's a deal breaker for me. I'm not going to vote for a Holocaust denier...
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BeliefNet: When you asked Obama about when life begins, he punted, saying 'it's above my pay grade.' Should someone running for the highest office in the land have a clear answer to that, or is that kind of ambivalence acceptable?
Warren: No. I think he needed to be more specific on that. I happen to disagree with Barack on that. Like I said, he's a friend. But to me, I would not want to die and get before God one day and go, 'Oh, sorry, I didn't take the time to figure out' because if I was wrong then it had severe implications to my leadership if I had the ability to do something about it. He should either say, 'No scientifically, I do not believe it's a human being until X' or whatever it is or to say, 'Yes, I believe it is a human being at X point,' whether it's conception or anything else. But to just say 'I don't know' on the most divisive issue in America is not a clear enough answer for me.
* * * *
BeliefNet: Then it sounds like it would be unconscionable for an evangelical to vote for a pro-choice candidate like Obama.
Warren: Well, we're going to see what happens. All I can say is you'll see what happens. This is why there's a difference between simply talking the lingo... after the 2004 election the Democratic pundits were saying 'The Democrats lost in '04 because they didn't talk the language of faith.' And actually that's kind of, not paternalistic, but it's talking down. It's basically saying 'If you just get the right words, then they'll think you've got the lingo.' And just because a person can say 'God' and 'Jesus' and 'salvation' and whatever doesn't mean they have a worldview. And people want to know what do they believe, not just their personal faith. It's just like how many different beliefs do Jews and Christians have and still call themselves Christians or Jews? It's all over the spectrum.
See more from this interview at the God-o-Meter blog at BeliefNet here.
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Comments
Ummm last time I checked the President cannot overrule Suprreme Court decisions.
Posted by: jackson | August 18, 2008 2:34 PM
Hunker down Rick.. here it come as already hinted at in the liberal press and blogs
Posted by: dan | August 18, 2008 2:51 PM
Presidents do make appointments to the Supreme Court and they are there for life. A far left President mean far left appointments to the SC.
Posted by: vla | August 18, 2008 3:21 PM
I don't understand why people who vote for the "moral" or "values" candidate always vote republican. They are the opposite of moral and have no values. Killing thousands upon thousands of innocent people in a war for no reason is OK?
Posted by: Mr Face | August 18, 2008 3:49 PM
...but how will McCain know his appointment to the Supreme Court would overrturn Roe v. Wade. He claims he will not use a litmus test. Is he lying?
Posted by: jackson | August 18, 2008 3:52 PM
I don't know how Obama can have a position on abortion if he doesn't have one on when life begins. It seems to me that the latter should be the foundation for your position on the former. Am I missing something here?
Posted by: Herbie H. | August 18, 2008 6:25 PM
Megachurch Bible thumpers better think twice.
Back the wrong candidate and you lose a lot of credibility.
Best to stay on the fence and use all those donations from the faithful to expand the summer house on the lake.
Amen.
Posted by: ornery | August 19, 2008 12:13 AM
Obama does have a position on abortion. He is pro-life but he believes that people should have the ability to make their own choice for themselves.
Posted by: SuzyQ | August 19, 2008 12:38 AM
Simple... he does not believe on forcing his religious beliefs on other people. Giving someone the right to choose.... choice is why our country got started... we believe as a nation in freedom.. that's why people risk their lives everyday to try to get here from cuba ect ect.. Saying that a religious belief like antiabortion should be law is crazy... and there are many medical and personal reasons why someone should be able to have an abortion even if you think abortion is religiously wrong. As a Christian who majored in Biology.. I was confirmed by my prochoice views as I learned about zygotes... just a cell mass. Obama was saying he was not a theologian or a scientist.
Posted by: dana | August 19, 2008 5:10 AM
What's wrong with the media and Americans?
Did all of us ignore the fact that Obama mentored with an anti American, radical, racist: Reverend Wright.
Obama should be examined by all Americans for this association alone.
Could you just imagine if McCain was friends and mentored with the KKK?
Wake up America.
Where is the reporting?
This isn't old news...this is a reminder of Obama's character.
Reverend Wright should be kept in the forefront for all Americans to view until the election.
Posted by: Al from NJ | August 19, 2008 6:56 AM
To all Clinton Democrats that have felt cheated:
With the convention just around the corner, it is imperative that Democrats all around the country understand that whether or not Hillary is nominated, we are in this for the long haul.
This primary has revealed DNC "leadership" to be corrupt, mean-spirited, and lacking respect for basic democratic principles. They have completely and effectively ceded the moral high ground to Republicans at this point.
• We have seen the race card played, with assistance from both Dean and Brazile.
• We have seen rampant sexism with no objection by the DNC.
• We have seen the superdelegates endorse as quid-pro-quo for campaign contributions.
• We have seen arm-twisting of the congressional delegates by "neutral" Nancy Pelosi to declare for Obama.
• We have seen an unabashed ageism campaign against John McCain, calling him "confused", and that he has "lost his bearings".
• We've seen a softening of support for the gay and lesbian community.
• We've seen caucus cheating.
• We've seen intimidation of Hillary supporters, hack attacks and coordinated threats against voters and media that dare to dissent.
• We've seen manipulation of the party nominating system and media to favor one candidate over another and the outright redistribution of votes cast for one Hillary and given to Obama.
This is now a democratic party in name only.
We need to get the word out.
It will take an effort from all of us to restore the Democratic party to its former self, to a party that we can be proud of. This is just one step in that direction. More to come.
Contact Delegates
Posted by: Al from NJ | August 19, 2008 7:02 AM
So we now see the real agenda for Warren's so-called "Values" debate - make it look like he is being impartial, then come out the next day and show his true colors. Typical Republican from Orange County, CA. Warren is even using the old anti-abortion comparison of the Holocaust. Most Jews can see through this ridiculous statement. We're more scared of what people likd McCain's buddies Pat Robertson and Pastor Hagee want to do to this country. These are the people that are most like the Nazis.
After reading this, the idea that McCain had all the questions before he went out on stage is becoming more and more believable!!
Al from NJ: Hillary lost -get over it. Nothing is going to change in Denver. Both of your posts show that you are no Democrat.
Posted by: BobHusseininAtlanta | August 19, 2008 10:05 AM
Dana, I think the issue has always been the balancing between a woman's right to bodily autonomy and a fetus' right to life. How you characterize the fetus, as life, as potential life, or something else is critical. If you believe a fertilized egg is human life, then it is a person and has its own set of Constitutional rights, most fundamentally, that it can't have it's life taken away without due process of law. A woman talking to her doctor would never qualify. Thus, central to a pro-choice stance is that the fertilized egg is something less than human life. That is why it was strange that Obama said he didn't have an opinion on when life begins.
Posted by: Herbie H. | August 19, 2008 10:35 AM
Well, now that Steven Strang has left a vacancy for a religious endorsement, on the stage at Barack's coronation ceremony, maybe Barack should come out of the closet and recruit the religious leaders who have always supported him ... and, who Barack has always supported. Pastor Jeremiah Wright ... Father Phleiger ... and the rest of the radicals. But, we know Barack won't do that, because even though that represents who Barack truly is ... it wouldn't help Barack deceive us ... and get him elected. In November, vote for Senator John McCain, a man who truly loves America, with over 40 years of service and sacrafice ... not Obama, an inexperienced, incompetent, empty suit, who is being agressively packaged, promoted, and sold to the American people.
Posted by: Gina | August 22, 2008 11:50 AM