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Curtis</font></b><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><b><a href="books.html"><br> </a></b></font><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><b>(310) 204-8700</b></font></p> <p><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"><i>Copyright August 17, 2008<br>All Rights Reserved. </i></font>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <span class="style1">S</span>tepping into a minefield, presumptive Democratic nominee Sen. Barack Obama (D-Il.) returned from his Hawaiian vacation, facing questions from charismatic pastor Rick Warren of the Saddleback Church in Lake Forrest, Calif.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Warren questioned both candidates individually about God, faith and country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Asked whether human life began at conception, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>agreed, touting his pro-life credentials.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Barack, on the other hand, told Warren,  It s beyond my pay grade, sidestepping the issue of when life begins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain was unambiguous declaring human life begins at conception.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> As president I will be a pro-life president and this president will have pro-life policies, said McCain, receiving cheers from the largely pro-life audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Barack passed up a perfect opportunity to tell Warren it s inappropriate for a president to impose his personal views in the Oval Office.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In holding a  values forum, Warren gave both candidates the chance to speak to evangelicals, the same group that helped sweep President George W. Bush into office for two terms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Since the late President Ronald Reagan ran for president in 1980, the religious right has voted consistently for candidates asserting human life begins at conception.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Whether a candidate believes it or not should have no effect in their presidential policy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Reagan, and more recently George W. Bush, sought a litmus test for picking federal judges, namely, opposing abortion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>For McCain to declare he d be a  pro-life president crosses the line between church and state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Warren asked both candidates their definition of marriage, as if it s the president s job to usurp state rights.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Whether it s abortion or  gay marriage, a president should keep his personal opinions out of the White House.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Saddleback Church showed great approval for McCain s position on abortion and gay marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Warren showed no interest in national security, the economy or foreign policy that has pushed the U.S. the closest since the 1962  Cuban Missile Crisis to a confrontation with Russia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Warren showed no interest in national health care, balancing the federal budget or fixing the sick economy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Both candidates fell into the trap of pandering to a group that places higher priority on a Constitutional amendment banning abortion than the solvency or Medicare and Social Security.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Presidential candidates should be leery of groups voting for candidates that hold certain religious views that are inconsistent with the separation of church and state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>While religious groups exerted little control over Reagan, they ve crossed the line in the Bush administration with his faith-based initiatives.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; McCain will eventually go to Bob Jones University seeking evangelical votes. No one captured the Christian vote better than Bush s chief strategist Karl Rove.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Obama should make a point to tell religious groups that his decisions on public policy will be based on his conscience, the Constitution and what s good for the country, not whether he wins more votes from a particular group.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Telling Warren that  it s beyond his pay grade to decide issues of when life begins, Barack tried to express that it s inappropriate for politicians to decide issues best left to theologians and scientists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Warren referred to abortion as  genocide, showing the incendiary nature of the issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>He knows that terminating pregnancy has nothing to do with  genocide. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> While McCain talked the talk, Barack should have told evangelicals he intends to uphold the law of the land in Roe v. Wade, a woman s right to abortion.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;<span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Faced with a recession, two foreign wars and a neglected domestic agenda, Barack should have reminded Warren that a president s job is not to advance the agenda of a particular group.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Evangelicals may want a Constitutional amendment banning abortion or gay marriage but a president must remain politically neutral from incendiary issues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Telling the crowd that he intends to be a pro-life president, McCain crossed the line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Lobbying groups, like churches, have specific agendas but presidents must remain above the fray and not allowed to get sucked into political causes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span> Asked by Warren whether evil exists, McCain said emphatically that he d follow Osama bin Laden to the  gates of hell. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Seven years since Sept. 11, Bush had little luck getting Bin Laden or remnants of the Taliban.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain talks tough but has no real plan to complete what Bush left unfinished.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> &nbsp;<span style="mso-tab-count:1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Warren invited McCain and Barack to join his evangelical world, answering questions more properly left to clergy, not presidential candidates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Warren acts like Roe v. Wade violates God s law, giving politicians the right to ignore the Supreme Court and apply Christian theology to women s private medical decisions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>McCain may know when life begins but theologians and biologists are still debating he issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Promising to be a  pro-life president, McCain already violated his oath-of-office that puts the Constitution above personal religious convictions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>His zeal to get votes eclipses his rational judgment about issues of personal choice and medical privacy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>When it comes to matters of life-and-death, when to use the U.S. military, McCain might also bypass the Constitution and common sense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>In his lust for victory in November, he s already shown bad judgment.<br> </p> <p><b><u>About the Author</u></b><br> </p> <p><b>John M. Curtis </b>writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He&#x2019;s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of <a href="books.html">Dodging The Bullet</a> and <a href="books.html">Operation Charisma</a>.<br> </p> <p></p> </td> <td width="1" height="2576" rowspan="2"></td> <td width="1" height="2"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="2"></td> </tr> <tr height="2574"> <td width="133" height="2574" valign="top" align="left" xpos="0"><img height="172" width="111" src="images/johninframe3.jpg"></td> <td width="1" height="2574"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="2574"></td> </tr> <tr height="1" cntrlrow> <td width="133" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="133" height="1"></td> <td width="7" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="7" height="1"></td> <td width="182" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="182" height="1"></td> <td width="300" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="300" height="1"></td> <td width="1" height="1"><spacer type="block" width="1" height="1"></td> <td width="1" height="1"></td> </tr> </table> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2" width="597"> <tr> <td><font size="1" face="Arial,Geneva,Helvetica"> <hr noshade size="1"> </font><a href="index.html"><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong>Home</strong></font></a><font face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular" size="2"><strong> || <a href="articlesindex.html">Articles</a> || <a href="books.html">Books</a> || <a href="teflon.html">The Teflon Report</a> || <a href="mailto:letters@onlinecolumnist.com">Reactions</a> || <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html">About Discobolos</a></strong></font> <div align="left"> <p><font size="1" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular">This site designed, developed and hosted by the experts at</font><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular"> <a href="http://www.cmeonline.net" target="_blank"><img height="30" width="138" src="images/cmelogoANIM.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle"></a></font></p> </div> <p><font size="2" face="Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular">&copy;1999-2005 <a href="aboutdiscobolos.html">Discobolos Consulting Services, Inc.</a><br> (310) 204-8300<br> All Rights Reserved. </font></td> </tr> </table> </center> </body> </html>