Rev. Patrick Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition provides two possible explanations for Barack Obama’s “resignation” from Trinity United, both of which accuse Obama of base political maneuvering: “Only one of the two following options may be true; for the past twenty years Senator Obama was a member of a church fellowship that was the foundation of his spiritual and moral reasoning — or — he sat in the pew of Trinity United Church simply for the political gain such relationships could bring….If his church membership was truly spiritual — then this action shows a fundamental lack of integrity. Obama’s resignation of membership in Trinity United Church demonstrates that he will trade even on his faith for political advantage.”