Right Wing Attack Machine Smears Obama Church Visit

The Drudge Report is prominently featuring two links to a CNN article about Obama speaking at a church in South Carolina. As I'm sure many of you know, Drudge is a central cog in the Republican attack machine, and he strongly influences what the mainstream media covers.

Here are the two quotes, he is highlighting in an attempt to smear Obama.


1. 'PRAY THAT I CAN BE INSTRUMENT OF GOD'...
The full context of this quote is "Sometimes this is a difficult road being in politics," Obama said. "Sometimes you can become fearful, sometimes you can become vain, sometimes you can seek power just for power's sake instead of because you want to do service to God. I just want all of you to pray that I can be an instrument of God in the same way that Pastor Ron and all of you are instruments of God."

He is saying pray that he isn't guided by fear or a desire for power.



2. HOLY OBAMA: 'WE CAN CREATE KINGDOM ON EARTH'
The full context given by CNN is:


This is the main headline on the Drudge Report. Obama's church, the Trinity United Church of Christ, practices Liberation Theology. I don't know what Obama means by "Kingdom," but I think it is likely that his view is similar to that of Liberation Theology. According to Integrative Theology by Bruce A. Demarest and Gordon Russell Lewis:


He is saying we can end poverty and oppression on earth.

Don't let the right wing smear Obama. These two quotes don't come close to representing Obama's full views on religion. For a start, go to: http://www.barackobama.com/issues/faith/

I know it's easy to echo Drudge's message if you support another candidate, but please don't let the right wing smear a Democrat. The candidate you support will probably be next. Spread this message far and wide.

:thumbsup:

I'm happy to see Obama re-claiming the "high ground" on values. He is talking about the sort of progressive policy goals I suspect most DUers support. I was sorry to see him being *stoned* here because he had the gall to talk about a faith-based foundation for our politics in...CHURCH (:scared:).

Maybe not ot the degree that you prefer but it is acknowledged.

I've never seen anyone say that the right WON'T come after Obama.

They just won't have a 15-year head start, and they'll be attacking a fresh face at a time when they are the weakest they have been in years.

as well- right here on DU.

hate mongers on the right are preparing for a war, in my opinion, that will make swift-boating appear to be playing nice, like we have never seen - - some of their war battalions are already on the move.

I am on an email distribution list which originally was a list of people that graduated from the same very small school the same year. A few other names have been added to the list, who were closely involved with the others.

In the past, upon rare occassion, the distribution list receieved heavily political emails from one guy on the list, fully supporting Bush and his war in Iraq in great detail, with derision against any person who did not support Bush's war - - even though the emails between the classmates had always remained lighthearted.

Well very recently, from this same guy, the distribution list received a very hateful and totally inaccurate smear of Obama in great length, full of ridicule, scorn, contempt, and all of the lies the right wing is spreading against Obama, but taken to an emotional depth that still leaves me puzzled as to where all this hate came from.

The right wing has fired up the hate.

Political campaigning in church fails my personal test; it breaches the wall of separation, and I not only do not respect it, I adamantly oppose it.

Let's be clear: it's not the attending church that I object to, it's the campaigning in church.

Republicans are pissed off because Obama has stolen one of their big draws to the polls: believing that the candidate is "doing god's work on earth."

I've heard too many people in my real life tell me that they voted for Bush, and still support him for that very reason.

Obama lost me a long time ago. He lost me with teacher mentor pay and unilateral invasions of other nations. Along with many other issues.

This, though, repulses me to a level that no Democrat has ever approached.

I am totally against what the faux-christians have done in recent years from the pulpit, and things like forcing very expensive bible classes in school districts that could have used the money on things like removing mold and roaches.

However, if a candidate wants to go to the wailing wall or kiss the blarney stone, or things of that nature, I don't think it serves this nation one iota to make a political issue out of it.

or participating in any religious ritual as a practitioner, is not the same thing as campaigning.

Any candidate can practice their faith.

Obama was campaigning.

Using his faith as a campaign tool is an unacceptable breach in the wall of separation, from my point of view.

It's also a corruption of the very faith he is using. I refer you to Matthew 6:

Verse 1: "Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by them; for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven."

Verse 5 and 6: "And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you."

http://www.registerguard.com/news/2007/04/03/e1.cr.kucinich.0403.p1.php?section=cityregion

A church offers a big audience for any candidate who wants to reach as many voters as possible with their message

"For any candidate."

If that's true, if the churches involved want to give equal time to any candidate, it diminishes my concern somewhat. I'm still concerned, though.

Is this an "off hours" use of the building, or a use of the building during normal services? 7:30 am sounds like before regular services for the churches I've attended, although that may not be the case here.

Obama spoke "during the morning service," according to the news report I read. http://www.wyff4.com/news/14288420/detail.html

Church Website: http://www.eugenefumc.org/services.htm

For the most part, I would think that candidates would only want to speak at churches where the congregants are likely supporters.
For that reason, I would predict at churches that allow candidates to speak, candidates who want to speak will probably be allowed to speak.

although I doubt that's the case for all.

I think we've seen too much of corrupt relationships between church and government. Granted, those that I'm aware of have all been Republican. Still, we're heading into '08 wanting to back away from church-state interaction, not see more of it on the part of Democrats.

Remember this?

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/05/politics/politicsspecial1/05church.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Just one example, but there are plenty out there. Interestingly, I remember in both 2000 and in '04 Democrats being really angry at the Bush campaign's too-close relationship to organized religion. There were plenty of threads here at DU objecting to just that, if you have time to sort through old archives.

I'm not saying that Obama's activities approach the level of corruption that Bush did, of course. It's just too high a level for my comfort, and my pov about that wall of separation.

who has been paid a lot of money to trash and manipulate the news in favor of the right wing.

Here's my advice:


" You wanna know how you do it? Here's how, they pull a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue. That's the Chicago way, and that's how you get Capone! Now do you want to do that? Are you ready to do that? "

Church audience. I do NOT want religion intermingled with government any more. I'm registered Democrat, but will NOT vote for Obama. I've watched too many interviews he's given that show he's too slick and shallow for me. He may have that old-fashioned religios peaker's way of turning a phrase/speaking well....but I don't feel the depth behind the words. He's an orator....not a leader. He may speak words but there is no action/no experience to back him up.

Name ONE piece of legislation that he authored and got out of committee and passed in Congress.
Obama's all talk no walk.

http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2006/9/7/224041/4628


You can read in more detail about Obama's U.S. Senate accomplishments here:
http://obsidianwings.blogs.com/obsidian_wings/2006/10/barack_obama.html
and his full experience here:
http://www.obamapedia.org/page/Does+Barack+Obama+have+enough+experience+to+be+president%3F?t=anon

Which improves the level of benefits and care for wounded veterans.

Obama has said many times that while he is a man of faith and his faith helps him personally, he does not believe it is appropriate for a leader to attempt to legislate their own faith. He's basically saying that there are things both believers and non-believers can agree on- issues like fighting poverty, human rights standards, protecting the environment, etc. Rather than continuing to allow controversial wedge issues to guide the debate, he's reaching out to people of faith in order to re-frame the conversation. As a non-believer, I am 100% supportive of reminding Christians about humanity, tolerance, grace, charity, etc., rather than allowing the politicians on the other side to continue exploiting the worst of what religion represents.

are not something I want to hear from a liberal Democratic politician.

"PRAY THAT I CAN BE INSTRUMENT OF GOD"... and "Kingdom right here on earth."

I expect any potential future president to tell me how he'll be an instument of the people by protecting the laws of the constitution, and not give a public speech describing how he wants to be an instrument of his own personal "God."

I'll be concerned.

Mz Pip
:dem:

Obama is being Republican Lite with this type of commentary and he should be called on it even if it's fucking Drudge.

1. HOLY OBAMA: 'WE CAN CREATE KINGDOM ON EARTH'
Is this a fair way to title a link to Obama's speech? Should this be the headline story? He portrays Obama's comment to mean that Obama thinks he is the messiah, (look at the conservative blogs today) when he's just telling the congregation in religious terms that we can work together to eradicate poverty and oppression.


2. 'PRAY THAT I CAN BE INSTRUMENT OF GOD'...
On its own this quote makes Obama sound like he is full of himself. In full context it has the opposite meaning: Obama is asking them to pray that he doesn't become full of himself.

"Sometimes this is a difficult road being in politics," Obama said. "Sometimes you can become fearful, sometimes you can become vain, sometimes you can seek power just for power's sake instead of because you want to do service to God. I just want all of you to pray that I can be an instrument of God in the same way that Pastor Ron and all of you are instruments of God."

Kissing up to theocrats and trying to out-fundie the fundies is nothing but Republican Lite.

That is very good news.

Fox, Tucker and the rest of the right wing media tried to make an issue of this. Hannity had Obama's pastor on the program and was very insulting and confrontational with him. The video may be in the video section of this board or on youtube.

what's so wrong about trying to uplift the poor and oppressed. Christian fundamentalists hate Liberation Theology because it goes against their dogmatic approach to religion and shuns the acts of people like Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson who preach hate.

The fascists/nazis/neocons/godzealots should NOT be handed the goddam ammo. Obama this weekend handed the bas#$%rds ammo, loaded the gun and aimed it for them. THAT IS BAD JUDGEMENT! Personally I have had it with seven years of bad judgement, incompetence etc. I liked the kid, probably still would be a good neighbor, but his lack of judgement in the church statement, preceded by the no DOJ investigation statement indicates to me he is prone either to arrogance of intellect or lapses of common sense.

okay bring on your matches, I'm standing on the stickpile waiting....(with my 'SuperSquirter' watergun!