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  <updated>2008-08-07T16:00:53-05:00</updated>
  <entry>
    <title>Religious Right Claims Obama&#039;s Faith Itself to be &#039;Attack&#039; on Christianity</title>
    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/religious-right-claims-obamas-faith-itself-be-attack-christianity" />
    <id>http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/religious-right-claims-obamas-faith-itself-be-attack-christianity</id>
    <published>2008-07-21T16:52:34-05:00</published>
    <updated>2008-08-07T16:00:53-05:00</updated>
    <author>
      <name>Ezra</name>
    </author>
    <category term="Christian Anti-Defamation Commission" />
    <category term="Gary Cass" />
    <category term="James Dobson" />
    <category term="Religion" />
    <summary type="html"><![CDATA[<p>When James Dobson decided to begin a   radio broadside <a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/the_rights_new_1.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/the_rights_new_1.html">against   Barack Obama&rsquo;s religious faith</a>, he responded to criticism that he was   &ldquo;throwing stones&rdquo; by <a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/the_rights_new_1.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/the_rights_new_1.html">repeating his   attack</a>&mdash;even implying Obama is &ldquo;deceitful&rdquo; when claiming to have become   Christian&mdash;all while expressing outrage that anyone might take issue with his   pronouncements.</p>
<p>Now Gary Cass, a former lieutenant   of the late D. James Kennedy, is trying out the same reverse-umbrage. Cass   started a group last year called the <a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/former_reclaimi.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/former_reclaimi.html">Christian   Anti-Defamation Commission</a>, which clumsily tried to equate gay-rights   legislation, a TV report on the Religious Right, and a killing spree at a   Colorado   church under the general rubric &ldquo;<a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/fred_thompson_a.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/fred_thompson_a.html">Christian-bashing</a>.&rdquo; </p>
<p>But Cass really seemed to hit his   stride when he fine-tuned his &ldquo;Christian-bashing&rdquo; concept to focus on attacking   the faith of his political opponents, <a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/playing_the_vic.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/playing_the_vic.html">starting with   Mitt Romney&rsquo;s Mormonism</a>. He launched a &ldquo;<a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/religious_right_30.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/religious_right_30.html">True   Christian VP</a>&rdquo; campaign last month to advance the notion that those who   disagree with his position on abortion and gay marriage are not &ldquo;real   Christians.&rdquo; That included Barack Obama and Hillary   Clinton.</p>
<p>Responding to Dobson&rsquo;s attack on   Obama, Cass reiterates his claim that Obama is not Christian&mdash;and makes Obama out   to be the &ldquo;bully&rdquo;:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;Like a typical playground bully,   Obama takes the first swing then get's angry when the victim of his attack tries   to defend themself.[&rdquo;]</p>
</blockquote>
<p>According to Cass, Obama&rsquo;s &ldquo;first   swing&rdquo; was to say he is Christian.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;In a calculated ploy to strip away   votes from Christian pro-life / pro-family conservatives, Obama has made a   concerted effort to make his faith a campaign issue. But when his faith and   ethics are scrutinized and revealed not to be Christian, Obama then claims he is   a victim of conservative Christians like Jim Dobson and organizations like CADC. </p>
<p>&quot;If Obama is a victim, he is a   victim of his own radical theology and policies. They are so radical in fact   that faithful Christians cannot simply stand by and let Obama defame and attempt   to redefine the Faith by associating it with his wildly aberrant beliefs and   radical policies. &hellip;</p>
<p>&quot;To the extent that Obama wants to   make headlines by making his faith an issue, he should be required to define and   defend his beliefs and actions. The mainstream media cannot or will not do it.   Thank God for Dr. Dobson and others who will not sit back and watch the   Christian faith be defamed by being associated with Obama's most radical beliefs   and policies.</p>
<p>&quot;CADC pleges be there to defend   those who will oppose any politican like Obama who seeks to exploit the Faith by   distorting and attacking the scriptures.&quot;</p>
</blockquote>
    ]]></summary>
    <content type="html"><![CDATA[<p>When James Dobson decided to begin a   radio broadside <a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/the_rights_new_1.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/the_rights_new_1.html">against   Barack Obama&rsquo;s religious faith</a>, he responded to criticism that he was   &ldquo;throwing stones&rdquo; by <a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/the_rights_new_1.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/the_rights_new_1.html">repeating his   attack</a>&mdash;even implying Obama is &ldquo;deceitful&rdquo; when claiming to have become   Christian&mdash;all while expressing outrage that anyone might take issue with his   pronouncements.</p>
<p>Now Gary Cass, a former lieutenant   of the late D. James Kennedy, is trying out the same reverse-umbrage. Cass   started a group last year called the <a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/former_reclaimi.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/former_reclaimi.html">Christian   Anti-Defamation Commission</a>, which clumsily tried to equate gay-rights   legislation, a TV report on the Religious Right, and a killing spree at a   Colorado   church under the general rubric &ldquo;<a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/fred_thompson_a.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/fred_thompson_a.html">Christian-bashing</a>.&rdquo; </p>
<p>But Cass really seemed to hit his   stride when he fine-tuned his &ldquo;Christian-bashing&rdquo; concept to focus on attacking   the faith of his political opponents, <a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/playing_the_vic.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/12/playing_the_vic.html">starting with   Mitt Romney&rsquo;s Mormonism</a>. He launched a &ldquo;<a title="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/religious_right_30.html" href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2008/06/religious_right_30.html">True   Christian VP</a>&rdquo; campaign last month to advance the notion that those who   disagree with his position on abortion and gay marriage are not &ldquo;real   Christians.&rdquo; That included Barack Obama and Hillary   Clinton.</p>
<p>Responding to Dobson&rsquo;s attack on   Obama, Cass reiterates his claim that Obama is not Christian&mdash;and makes Obama out   to be the &ldquo;bully&rdquo;:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;Like a typical playground bully,   Obama takes the first swing then get's angry when the victim of his attack tries   to defend themself.[&rdquo;]</p>
</blockquote>
<p>According to Cass, Obama&rsquo;s &ldquo;first   swing&rdquo; was to say he is Christian.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;In a calculated ploy to strip away   votes from Christian pro-life / pro-family conservatives, Obama has made a   concerted effort to make his faith a campaign issue. But when his faith and   ethics are scrutinized and revealed not to be Christian, Obama then claims he is   a victim of conservative Christians like Jim Dobson and organizations like CADC. </p>
<p>&quot;If Obama is a victim, he is a   victim of his own radical theology and policies. They are so radical in fact   that faithful Christians cannot simply stand by and let Obama defame and attempt   to redefine the Faith by associating it with his wildly aberrant beliefs and   radical policies. &hellip;</p>
<p>&quot;To the extent that Obama wants to   make headlines by making his faith an issue, he should be required to define and   defend his beliefs and actions. The mainstream media cannot or will not do it.   Thank God for Dr. Dobson and others who will not sit back and watch the   Christian faith be defamed by being associated with Obama's most radical beliefs   and policies.</p>
<p>&quot;CADC pleges be there to defend   those who will oppose any politican like Obama who seeks to exploit the Faith by   distorting and attacking the scriptures.&quot;</p>
</blockquote>
    ]]></content>
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