Ta-Nehisi Coates on Rick Warren and Barack Obama

I've said my peace already, on this subject. But I thought Ta-Nehisi had a great perspective too:

I want to be absolutely clear here. Obama hasn't betrayed anything or anyone. On this issue, he is what I thought he was. One of the first blog posts ever wrote noted the amazing hypocrisy in Obama lecturing black people on homophobia, while himself, holding a position on arguably the most important civil rights issue of our time, which was essentially bigoted. It's my job to say things like that, to, at once, not just carp, but still not simply fall in line.

'Bama's job, meanwhile, is to be a politician. I don't say that derisively or sarcastically, but literally. He has to exist in a world where Rev. Wright's sermons are kyrptonite, but a man who compares gay sex to incest, who lies about the nature and history of marriage is political capitol. Let's not be confused--Rick Warren rolls with a crew that didn't simply block gay marriage in Cali, but is now actively attempting to destroy marriages. Forgive me, I find it hard to be rational while watching men of the cloth cynically claim the abstract mantle of family values, while attempting to erase actual families. How in the world are these people not evil?

Sorry, I was supposed to be getting to the diplomatic part. The diplomatic part is this: Barack is the president of the United States. He has all sorts of people pressuring them. His job is to respond to those pressures in such a way as to not break the consensus he needs to get things done, and to expand the Democratic brand in the American mind. So when people make the pragmatic arguments, it's not that I think they're wrong. They are, in fact, totally right.

But Obama's job, isn't my job. I just don't think it's my role to make him as comfortable as possible. This isn't about betraying progressives, it isn't about lefties being "depressed," it isn't about a Democratic civil war, and it doesn't need to be squished into a seven minute segment on Hardball. Let's be honest here--Barack Obama has, so far, been exactly what we expected. Exactly. Let us acknowledge that. But let's not use that as an excuse to not our job, which is as I see it, to say, "Mr. President. Now, do more."

True, true, Ta-Nehisi. Barack has been exactly what we expected, a great man, but a politician. The people who are disappointed by his Warren choice are those who expected more than a politician. And as much I hate to be naive, I was one of those people. He fooled me once, but not again.

Rick Warren and evolution

Ugh:

Rick Warren, last year:

"If you’re asking me do I believe in evolution, the answer is no, I don’t."

Of all people Barack, Rick Warren?

I know a little about Mr. Rick Warren. I know that he is the head of a huge megachurch in Southern California. I know he wrote a best-selling book called The Purpose Driven Life. And I know I read some passages of the book and found them insightful. I also know that he says gays marrying would be akin to siblings marrying or an older man marrying a child.

I know a lot about Barack Obama, too. I know that he ran a campaign based on "change" where every effort would be made to listen and understand the other side. I found this admirable, as I believe that only the wisest and most compassionate of us is able to listen to a contradictory opinion and find the kernel of truth in it. I also know (or thought I knew) that Barack Obama was for the civil rights of gays. He never said he was in favor of gay marriage, but he walked that narrow line in between, stating gays should have all the legal rights as a married couple.

So to pick Warren to speak at his inauguration seems like a suspect move on Obama's part. In one sense I can understand it. He is apparently going to have many viewpoints at his inauguration, and his mantra has always been respect for the other point of view. And today Obama called himself "fierce advocate for equality for gay and lesbian Americans" and said he will remain so as president.

But I wonder if Obama knows how hurtful this is to homosexuals? To invite Warren, who compares gay marriage to pedophilia, is slap in the face to all of them. It makes the passage of Prop 8 even harder to swallow for gays; at least, if they thought, they now had an ally in the White House. Now it doesn't seem as sure.

In my view, this is Obama's first big mistake because it's the exact opposite of what his election stands for: the progression of civil rights in America. Let's hope the actions of his presidency are far more progressive. Let's hope he becomes the advocate for gay rights that is so needed in positions of power.