BY TAYLOR MARSH
–updated and bumped–
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It’ll be just like a game show.” Oh, goody. From Warren’s mouth to…
“Just like a game show,” Warren said. “I will ask the identical questions to John McCain. So there’s no bias. There’s no gotcha on one and not on the other, ‘[no] well he was too hard or too soft.’ The identical questions and we call it a civil forum because I think you can disagree without being disagreeable, without demonizing the opposition.”
The first time the two candidates will be together and it’s in a faith forum. That says it all.
The old man who founded Liberty University is laughing in hea—… well, from
wherever he is. Rick Warren’s faith discussion tonight with both presidential
candidates has taken what Rev. Jerry Falwell started with “the moral majority”
and cast religion at the forefront of modern politics. Because neither of these
candidates could afford to say no to Warren, then survive the general election.
My how times have… not only not changed, but actually taken us a step back,
away from freedom of religion, to demanding our candidates profess their religion in public media forums. Gladiators of faith, behold.
The notion that non-believers can be just as moral escapes America. So, this Rick Warren townhall
will simply illustrate that to be president in 21st century America you have
to not only be of strong faith, but be willing to parade it public. The whole
thing makes me queasy. I say this as a person of deep faith and spirituality,
one of the frozen chosen, an Episcopalian, who finds public demonstration a
bit unseemly.
Warren will ask about the personal lives.
Warren will ask about the moral plain.
Warren will…. Just you wait and see.
That Barack Obama will not do any other townhalls but this one, ignoring McCain’s
invitations to meet one on one, speaks for itself. He’s hoping to further prove
he’s not the man the anti Obama swiftboating emails says he is.
We’ll see what pans out, but this “faith forum” is getting a lot
of fanfare and publicity. I’m more concerned with how we’re going to mend the
dangers in Central Asia than I am how Obama and McCain feel about the mistakes
they’ve made in their lives.
At long last, Jerry Falwell won.
Presidential contestants, come on down.
“I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute–where no Catholic prelate would tell the President (should he be Catholic) how to act, and no Protestant minister would tell his parishioners for whom to vote–where no church or church school is granted any public funds or political preference–and where no man is denied public office merely because his religion differs from the President who might appoint him or the people who might elect him. I believe in an America that is officially neither Catholic, Protestant nor Jewish–where no public official either requests or accepts instructions on public policy from the Pope, the National Council of Churches or any other ecclesiastical source–where no religious body seeks to impose its will directly or indirectly upon the general populace or the public acts of its officials–and where religious liberty is so indivisible that an act against one church is treated as an act against all. … Finally, I believe in an America where religious intolerance will someday end–where all men and all churches are treated as equal–where every man has the same right to attend or not attend the church of his choice–where there is no Catholic vote, no anti-Catholic vote, no bloc voting of any kind–and where Catholics, Protestants and Jews, at both the lay and pastoral level, will refrain from those attitudes of disdain and division which have so often marred their works in the past, and promote instead the American ideal of brotherhood. That is the kind of America in which I believe. And it represents the kind of Presidency in which I believe–a great office that must neither be humbled by making it the instrument of any one religious group nor tarnished by arbitrarily withholding its occupancy from the members of any one religious group. I believe in a President whose religious views are his own private affair, neither imposed by him upon the nation or imposed by the nation upon him as a condition to holding that office.” – John F. Kennedy
UPDATE: Okay, some thoughts… with final review, if you will, at the bottom.
5:20: Warren just asked Obama what believing in Jesus Christ means. This has no place whatsoever in a presidential election. John F. Kennedy speaks for me on this one. Obama should have shut him down, but of course he wouldn’t. How my president feels about Jesus Christ in no way should matter. Morality and putting that in public policy is separate from belief in Jesus Christ. Someone tell me why answering this question should be part of the presidential process? No one has the courage to say: “I will gladly answer your questions about many things, but how I feel about Jesus Christ is private. It’s between me and my God.” To add, this is why our Founders left England. It’s a constitutional issue. I’m a Christian, and this line of questioning is unacceptable.
5:25: Define marriage. Obama: It’s between a man and a woman. Here we go. Does not support a constitutional amendment.
5:32: What Supreme Court justice would you not have nominated? Obama: Clarence Thomas. Point to Obama.
It took almost the entire hour to get down to habeas and torture. Then Warren asks what Obama thinks of people who think he shouldn’t be asking these questions. Obama panders that these are the types of forums needed. Yeah, it’s really important to the Iraq people, as well as the people of Afghanistan, what Obama thinks about Jesus Christ. That’s our problem, other Christians understanding our politicians. Really remarkable.
6:00: McCain enters, making it the first time he and Obama have been on the stage together in the general election. They embrace. Warren brings them together! Headlines at 11.
6:02: People who inspire: Petraeus; civil rights hero John Lewis; Meg Whitman, CEO of Ebay.
Greatest moral failure? McCain: his first marriage. America’s moral failure: committing to something greater than our self-interest, then slams Bush on “shopping,” believing more call to service, Peace Corps. Quotes “this is not about you,” from Warren. McCain begins on fire.
Energy.. it’s about national security. Some people in “Cal-eee-fornia” don’t agree. McCain is putting out policy prescriptions and what he will do as president, something Obama did not do.
6:12: Gut wrenching decision you had to make: McCain chokes up for a quick second. Code of conduct about leaving. Said no to leaving, “Go back to your cell. It’s going to be really tough on you now.” Toughest decision and the one he’s “most happy” about. “It took a lot of prayer.”
6:17: …about faith. McCain goes to the Vietnamese torture. A guy came in at one point, a guard came in, then motioned him to stay quiet, then loosened the ropes tying him. He came back later to tighten them. One day outside that same guard came next to McCain and drew a cross in the ground, then quickly rubbed it out. At that one moment, there were just two Christians. This is exactly what I thought McCain would do on faith. He did not talk about Jesus. He went to an anecdote, which talked about faith and torture, what Christians do in deeds.
Stem cells: Yes, for stem cell research. Pro-life community struggles with this one.
Final thoughts: Obama could have had policy answers ready to help push forward why Democratic policies are grounded in humanity and morality, which proves why he’d be a much better president. Instead he offered his standard word fogs without any goal whatsoever, much like he did in the primaries where Clinton regularly cleaned his clock. McCain came with policy talking points and a goal. Our guy better get a debate drill sargeant in and do some work, because so far there’s no evidence he’s going to best McCain in them. Obama’s hour is now, minus the Clarence Thomas answers, completely forgettable. Not good. McCain even got in an answer on Georgia and Russia, which folded into freedom and energy issues. Minus the ridiculous, ad nauseam “my friend” belches, quite a performance for the neocon McCain. Why do you want to be president? I can’t remember Obama’s answer. McCain’s came in a sound bite: “I want to inspire a generation of Americans to serve a cause greater than their self-interest.” Obama better game up.
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