Everyone is all in a tizzy over the inclusion in a South Carolina Obama campaign event of a gospel singer with a history of anti-gay statements. This despite Obama's history of being in the right place himself on gay and lesbian issues.
Obama has always said he'd meet with anyone -- Ahmedinejad, Chavez, Kim Jung-Il -- without "preconditions". Did you think he was joking? Why act so surprised when Obama acts on his convictions?
And what's wrong with letting this guy support him, anyway? -->
It's pretty hard for a reasonable person to have concerns about Obama's position on gay rights. As he pointed out in his statement this evening
I have consistently spoken directly to African-American religious leaders about the need to overcome the homophobia that persists in some parts our community
so rather than just staking out his own pro-gay position, he's actually tasked his political allies to reconsider their own anti-gay positions.
As far as I know, no one has suggested that Obama has compromised any of his own beliefs in order to get McClurkin to appear at his rally. Instead, he's being tarnished by guilt-by-association. This is the exact thing that people accused Clinton of doing when she suggested it was "naive" of Obama to suggest he'd meet with leaders hostile to the United States.
If Obama hasn't compromised his views, what's the uproar about? Why shouldn't he use this guy to bring in voters who might not normally be inclined to vote for him? If McClurkin can help spread Obama's message of inclusiveness does it matter what his personal views are? Isn't McClurkin, and not Obama, who's compromising his position and helping to propel a pro-gay politician towards the White House?
Isn't this really just another attack of the purity police, concerned that we might possibly win the 2008 election through the morally ambiguous act of accepting some votes from people who do not, on paper, agree with every thing the Democrats stand for? Do we really want, you know, those people voting for our candidate?
Hell yes! This is politics, not the Greater Berkeley Holier Than Thou Debating Society. You win by bringing out your base and enough of the other voters to get more votes than the enemy. Obama's positions haven't changed; he's done nothing and said nothing that should shake the confidence of his gay and gay-friendly supporters. The only ones who ought to be worried are the purity police, now that Obama's made it clear that he'll accept votes of conservatives as well as liberals.