Obama's New Faith Based Office -- Substantive But Leaning Left
Thursday February 5, 2009
The main thing I was looking for in the creation of Obama's faith-based office was whether it's designed to mobilize the faith community to solve problems -- or russle up votes. Is it substantive or political (as it was under...
Filed Under: abortion, faith-based, faith-based council, joshua dubois, news, obama, politics, religious left, religious progressives
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Man, depends on how you define "progressive." A lot of these fellows (I'm less familiar with the women) are not only anti-abortion but suspect, at best, on other progressive issues, such as LGBT equality. Rev. Hunter, I believe, is no friend of gay and lesbian people. And he's written a book titled "A New Kind of Conservative." Where do you come off calling him progressive? Would you call Rick Warren a progressive, too? 'Cause he sure ain't.
Perhaps religious conservatives' response to Obama Administration overtures to join this team parallels that of Repbulicans invited to practice bipartisanship.
You left out one of the most important changes the President put through: the requirement that any agency wanting to participate furnish evidence that they do not discriminate in their hiring practices.
The previous president allowed for discriminatory hiring.
Tim, that's why I wrote "progressive and/or Obama supporter"
What the panel lacks is clearcut McCain voters. Certainly there's no requirement that everything be bipartisan and cross-ideological but I think the panel would be more effective it were. Let's see who's in the next 10 appointments
Still, even to suggest this group "leans left" suggests to me just how "right" you are ...
Steven Waldman is exactly right about the lack of balance on this committee, but I would go further and say there is not a single religious conservative on the committee, and I am familiar with all of them (Just appointing a Baptist does not mean you have appointed a conservative!) Obama has the prerogative to appoint anyone he wants, especially from the people who worked to support his candidacy (rewarding is the main function of these type of committees), but don't spin a list like this as "balanced."
Well, there's diversity and there's diversity. Some on the panel are clearly on-record for supporting the idea that religious grantees are free to violate civil rights law; others aren't. And as others said, the label "progressive/Obama supporter" is a wide net that includes non-progressive Joel Hunter.
I'm surprised at the number of Evangelicals. You'd never know that Evangelicals aren't the largest religious group in America.
It also appears that there is one openly-gay person on the panel, Fred Davie
"Left"???
"there is not a single religious conservative on the committee"
Such blarney.
Sorry, but the bulk of these are Baptists, AMEs and Pentecostals.
Not many of those on the "left", Steve.
What? No Hindus? No Muslims? No Buddhists? No Raelians? No Taoists?
Ballanced?
B.S.
Yes, Eboo Patel is a Muslim-- and do you also want him to have people who worship rocks and nature or tribal witchcraft or this that and the other? This council is reflective of the religious traditions of our country and the practices today. Many of these people are promoters of religious tolerance and interfaith collaboration.
I am disappointed that there is no Hindu; he made a reference to the 3rd largest faith tradition in the world, and one that embodies freedom of faith in its theology (much as our republic does).
I'm glad there's a gay man on the list -- and an ordained minister at that. Two of the lies we have to squash in this country is that GLBT folk are anti-religion and that Christianity is anti-gay; maybe having a gay minister in this office can help reveal that many gays are religious and that many churches are pro-gay.
When Obama's team gets around to checking out the Department of Defense, my ex husband is a senior executive officer right there in Washington DC, and he's the biggest deadbeat father they got - and nobody so far has advocated a thing for me or my daughter.
You can definitely contact me - I would like my ex-husband called on into these so-called faith based initiative offices and asked why he deserted our daughter? The DOD gave him a security clearance and a big fat salary for 30 years, after he walked out on our daughter and left me to pay for her support.
I think Obama is a bag of wind, and he's a hypocrite for not repremanding the people who work for the DOD.
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