Obama Adds Gay Minister To Gospel Tour

AP:

In response to an uproar from gay activists, Democrat Barack Obama's presidential campaign on Wednesday added a gay minister to the lineup for its weekend gospel tour.

Gay activists had criticized Obama's "Embrace the Change" tour in South Carolina because the performers included gospel singer Donnie McClurkin, who says homosexuality is a choice.

Read the whole story: AP

Comments

[racetoinfinity]

GOOD!

[k8k9]

About McClurkin (sp) - I cannot believe that Barak Obama would allow to represent him anyone whatsoever who had any discriminatory positions on anything. There is no acceptable context within which a homophobe who also espouses one can become UN-gay by sheer will and help from God. And I'm not even gay. Zero tolerance of all forms of anti-discrimination was supposed to be one of Obama's trademarks. It isn't good enough to just get another black man on board to balance out McClurkin. If Obama can't resist acquiescing to a minority or special-interest stance about this - he won't be any different as president. If he doesn't unilaterally dump McClurkin 100%, I will not contribute another penny to nor vote for Obama. I had so much hope for him.

[Qbear]

Rev. Andy Sidden,

As an openly gay man I am offended and embarrassed this revrend allowed himself to be USED by Obama's campaign, and appear with that MOTHERF*CKIN ex-gay singer!

The correct answer to Obama's campaign when they ask an LGBT community to cover Obama in cluding a hate-monger on his campaign is. "GO F*CK YOUR STRAIGHT SELF!"

[smartstuart]

..."THE BATTLE OF THE FUCKED-UP MINISTERS"­.....GEE THAT OBAMA REALLY KNOWS HOW TO GET THE "MIDDLE" TO HATE HIS GUTS!!!!

[PollM]

.
It seems like the good people always get themselves in a box that is hard to get out of. When will we in America learn to live and let live.

What position should Obama take regarding Gay rights?
---> http://www.youpolls.com/details.asp?pid=782.

[godlessclif]

I am sure McClurkin and the gay preacher will live
happily ever after.

[ang4ever]

Adding Siden is just another another "token". It will only further alienate voters. Obama realized he had to counter this backlash, so he adds Siden as another ruse. But he continues to fail. For Obama to think that he is fooling voters, he is dead seriously wrong. He is hardly savvy for the intelligent voters.
.
Just another naivete on the part of this Senator-tr­ainee-inex­perience-w­annabe president.
.

[rssrai]

This is funny. It is like Obama is trying to have his cake and eat it too. What next??

[starrianna]

Him getting all those cakes smushed in his face.

[vegasobserver]

Obama would have been better off not getting his campaign involved in religion at all. This whole thing is a case study in misguided campaign strategy.

The original intent was to reach out to rural voters because the consultants probably noticed that Obama had a deficit there. So they hired a random preacher who just so happened to have this anti-gay baggage. Poor, rushed decisionmaking on their part. Obama should fire the consultants who are responsible for that one.

Then, in response to criticism from the gay community, they compound the situation by hiring a gay preacher -- guaranteed to alienate lots of the very rural voters that the campaign originally set out to reel in.

So now, they've achieved a double-whammy of campaign stupidity -- they've alienated both gays AND rural socially moderate-c­onservativ­e Democrats.

Adding the gay preacher isn't likely to assuage many of the gays put off by initially hiring the anti-gay firebrand, and will just unsettle a lot of people who may have actually considered voting for Obama.

What shoddy campaign strategy. All the consultants should be fired.

[genmalia]

So Democrats should ignore religion and leave them to the far-right? There are plenty of religious Democrats! Why ignore them?

[gallstones]

Not, "Ignore religious Democrats", religious Democrats need to keep ther religious dogmas out of our secular government.

[KarlRoves3rdchin]

Whoa -that guy looks really scary in that picture! Not human -kind of like a Stepford wife!

[pangardenguru]

I don't mind straight people....­..as long as they act gay in public!

[ang4ever]

That banter alone will cost Obama less votes.

[pangardenguru]

lighten up. where's your sensayuma ?

[Larry of Corrales]

Obama long ago lost my vote when he started telling us how he found god and how important his religion will be to his presidency. I can't stand the religious right and have no better feelings toward the religious left. What I am looking for is someone who can convince me he or she will be best for this country. Hopefully someone who will keep their religion to themselves.

[kurttrail]

What's next Obama?

A campaign event where you have anti-semite campaign for you, and then you bring out your token Jew.

[VOTER]

Senator Obama SHOULD END this bruhaha immediately

by asking his distant cousin, Cheney's gay daughter,

her partner and their infant to appear with him

this weekend.

[ScorchedEarth]

pander pander pander