Time to Choose Sides - Part II

A few weeks ago I joined a discussion on another blog regarding the upcoming presidential election. Below is my response to a fellow Believer who was considering voting for Obama because of frustration over their perceived 'lack of progress' under President Bush. I hope this speaks to others who may be feeling the same.

I could not resist responding to your last comment. First of all, I think you are missing the big picture and need some historical perspective. It seems like what you are frustrated about is our inability as believers to quickly turn back the clock on many of the secular progressive policies that have infultrated our country over the past 40 years and you are longing for us to restore our strong moral foundation, rooted in Judeo-Christian values, namely the Bible. This moral relativism teaches that there is no absolute truth, and thus no real right or wrong. Therefore, we should not make moral judgments and definitley not enshrine such 'close-minded and intolerant' moral judgments in our laws. Thus, if a woman wants to abort a baby, who is to say that is wrong if it is 'right' for her? Who is to say that homosexual marriage is wrong? It took many years, starting in the 1960's, to erode our moral culture to where we are now. We will not take it back during one president's administration, even if that president is a committed conservative Christian, especially if the president has a Democrat Congress to work with, like Bush does now and has had for the past 4 years. Please do not blame President Bush for not making as much progress as you would have liked in the past 8 years. Trust me, we will move a long way backwards in this regard if Obama is elected President with a Democrat congress to push their agenda through, especially with the likes of Nancy Pelosi (Speaker of the House) at the helm. We as Christians need to be in it for the long haul and stay committed, knowing that it will take years of hard work and prayer to take our country back.

Finally, to specifically address abortion and gay marriage. Both are primarily regulated by the individual states and what a president can do on both is currently limited by the courts. Abortion, especially before the second trimester, is specifically protected as a woman's 'choice' according to Supreme Court decisions. After that, neither states nor the federal government can put 'unreasonable' restrictions on abortions. Without a change in policy by the Supreme Court, Bush did about all he legally could do by pushing through Congress and passing the partial birth abortion ban, so give him some credit.

Gay marriage is also regulated by the states. They can either outlaw it or legalize it. Most states currently outlaw it, but it is legal in a few (Mass. & Cal. I believe), with more likely to come. The Federal Defense of Marriage Act says that a state which prohibits gay marriage does not have to recognize a gay marraige from another state. But that law will soon be challenged and probably be stricken down as gay couples move from state to state and want their marraiges recognized.
This brings us to the real crux of the matter, the fate of these two important issues really lies in the hands of the Supreme Court. The court is curreently split with 4 liberal justices (Stevens, Souter, Breyer, Ginsberg), 4 conservative justices (Roberts, Alito, Thomas, Scalia) and 1 swing vote (Kennedy). Pleae note that Bush's two appointees are Roberts and Alito. We all know that the President nominates the justices, with the approval of the Senate. So ... who we elect as our President and Senators really matters when it comes to these issues. I think so many people forget this whole aspect of elections and how it directly impacts us and our families, not to mention the moral culture of our country.

Obama has a very liberal voting record in the Senate and has said he would NOT nominate justices like Scalia, Alito, Thomas and Roberts, who are the moral conservatives on the court. Also keep in mind that being pro-abortion has been a long-time litmus test for leaders of the Democrat party, especially so for Democrat nominees to the Supreme Court. With the liberal interests that Obama will be beholden to, I would put the chances of him nominating a pro-life or anti gay marriage justice to the court at ZERO!!

Even if you are not a big supporter of McCain, please consider voting for him for this reason alone, as he has made it clear he would nominate conservative justices.

Until Next Time,
The Counselor