Hillary to concede on Friday

Well, there it is. And now maybe with her out of the race the party can heal itself in the next five months because Clinton supporters aren't too happy:

Party unity may have been the theme of the day for Democrats on Wednesday, but as Barack Obama made his victory lap on Capitol Hill, there was no road map for how to heal the party’s wounds, and Hillary Rodham Clinton’s supporters — like the candidate herself — seemed unclear about what role she should play once her candidacy formally ends Friday.

At a moment when Democrats would be expected to be rejoicing over the historic significance of Obama’s victory, any sense of joy seemed to be drowned out by competing messages from factions of lawmakers who have been warring for months.

In one corner of the House, female lawmakers such as Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) and Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-Ohio) were planning to write a letter demanding that Clinton be on the presidential ticket.

“There are a lot of members of Congress who feel this way,” Wasserman Schultz said. “That way, we can maximize party unity and the odds of winning the election. They balance each other out in every way. They’re the dynamic duo. They really are.”

In another corner, Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) declared that the Congressional Black Caucus should stay out of the business of pushing for a vice presidential nominee.

And in the Senate, Clinton and Obama surrogates talked respectfully about helping the party heal itself — yet Democrats disagreed over exactly how that should happen.

You know, I find this all pretty ironic since Obama is supposed to be this great unity candidate, bringing everyone together for the good of the country transcending differences to solve the problems of the nation but how can he do that when he's leading a badly fractured party? If he can't bring his own party together, why should we believe he can bring the rest of the nation together?

And then there's this:

“I told Barack and Hillary I would wait until Friday” to endorse, Brown said. “I don’t think a bunch of white, middle-aged senators should tell the Democratic Party what to do.”

Further vvidence that the party is also fractured along racial lines as well. I wonder if the messiah will be able to heal wounds of his people (the Democrats).

An interpretation of this post from the Reformed perspective:

You know, you could go in many different directions looking at this post from a Reformed perspective but the direction I went with was looking at it from the aspect of Obama's chosen role of political savior. The people are looking for someone to lead them (this is true in general). They know that they need protection and someone to solve the problems of the nation and a ruler does that. You would think that this would not be the case since we've thrown off the rule of God to rule ourselves but we recognize the need for government to take the place of the one that we've overthrown (I believe this is a reflection of our nature as created beings).

We see this need reflected in Israel's request for a king:

1 Samuel 8:4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah 5 and said to him, "Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations." 6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, "Give us a king to judge us." And Samuel prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD said to Samuel, "Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. 8 According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. 9 Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them." 10 So Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking for a king from him. 11 He said, "These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots. 12 And he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. 15 He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. 16 He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work. 17 He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. 18 And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the LORD will not answer you in that day." 19 But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, "No! But there shall be a king over us, 20 that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles." 21 And when Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the ears of the LORD. 22 And the LORD said to Samuel, "Obey their voice and make them a king." Samuel then said to the men of Israel, "Go every man to his city."

They no longer wanted God to be their sovereign, they wanted a king like the other nations even though that king would be inferior to God and really would be like the kings of the other nations (a despot).

We also see it reflected in the desire of the Pharisees, the disciples and the people's desire for Jesus to overthrow the rule of the Romans and serve as the nation's king. But Jesus had a different kingdom in mind, a spiritual kingdom that wasn't of this world. He wasn't focused on solving their political problem, he was focused on the far greater problem of their alienation with God.

Israel soon discovered that having a king like the other nations didn't mean they were protected from the other nations and that sometimes they needed to be protected from their king and eventually the king was the reason they were kicked out of their land (Manasseh -- 2 Kings 21:10-15). A king is susceptible to the same failings that all humans are susceptible to and will rule in the same flawed way any human would. That's why there is no such thing as a political savior, Obama won't be able to bring much change (in a good sense) to this nation or solve our problems because he'll be as limited as any human by the nature of his flesh and that of those he's dealing with. The political agenda of the left (government is the solution to our problems) and that of some on the right (government should be limited to allow the free market to come up with solutions to our problems) are incompatible and there can only be compromise when someone gives up their principles (usually the right). With each side fighting for their principles, it will be an impossible situation in which to bring unity. Obama will only bring about change if the Republicans have been decimated in November and he won't have to bring about change in a bi-partisan way then.