In the lead up to the fall elections this year, Democrats have taken several steps towards solidifying their positions and putting the Republicans on the defensive. All this while the Republicans continue to put their collective feet in their collective big-fat mouth. Are Democrats perfect? No. Do they have a lot more to learn? Yes. However, there is nothing that irks me more than a prominent Democrat, undermining our party when the party is making positive steps forward... no, no, believe it or not, I'm not referring to Lieberman. I'm talking about his protege and my junior Senator, Barack Obama. More below the fold.
So everyone probably already knows about Obama's statement about Democrats talking about God and religion in public. He said:
"Not every mention of God in public is a breach to the wall of separation. Context matters," the Illinois Democrat said in remarks prepared for delivery to a conference of Call to Renewal, a faith-based movement to overcome poverty...
At the same time, he said, "Secularists are wrong when they ask believers to leave their religion at the door before entering the public square."
Okay, let's talk about this statement for a moment.
1. Why is Barack, 4 months before a mid-term election undermining the Democratic Party?
2. Is he encouraging other Democrats to talk about God in public and if so, why?
3. Exactly which Secularists are asking "believers to leave their religion at the door?"
Here's the thing. If Barack is comfortable talking about God in his speeches, more power to him. It doesn't offend me and I doubt that it offends many other supporters. But the insistence on his part and other's in the party that we reach out to religious voters is bull. Politics is about politics, not religion and if we continue pandering to the ultra-religious factions in our society, Democrats will not be able to clearly articulate their values as a party. Democrats want all Americans to have food and shelter, jobs, health care and a good education regardless of their race, gender, sexual orientation, age or political party. PERIOD. If a Democratic politician feels a religious context is best to articulate such a message, great! If not, great! But the longer we try to imitate Republicans, the longer it will be before the American people see us as a genuine party that has real ideas for making all American's lives better. The last thing we need right now is the most popular Democrat, chastizing his own party for representing the millions of people in this country (religious or not) who can tell the difference between a preacher and a politician.