Obama invites Tony Dungy to join White House faith council

[theHandpuppet]

Oh just furkin' great.... :banghead:

http://content.usatoday.net/dist/custom/gci/InsidePage.aspx?cId=cincinnati&sParam=34624564.story

Obama invites Tony Dungy to join White House faith council
Updated 3/31/2009 6:13 PM ET

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — President Obama wants former NFL coach Tony Dungy on his team, even if others contend Dungy's deeply religious views won't make him the nation's best team player.

A publicist confirmed Tuesday that Dungy has been asked to serve on the Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, although Dungy has not yet decided whether to accept the invitation. White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton declined comment on what is expected to be a 25-member council.

<snipping>
Two years ago, at an Indiana Family Institute dinner, Dungy embraced a move in Indiana to ban same-sex marriages. He was given the "Friend of Family" award.

"We're not trying to downgrade anyone else," Dungy told the crowd of about 700. "But we're trying to promote the family — family values the Lord's way."

In a brief aside, the article also noted that Harry Knox of the Human Rights Campaign is also among those being invited to join the council.

[madrchsod]

1. the white house religious bigots council...?

i find the whole notion of the government having any thing to do with any religion is offensive. the founding fathers thought so but somewhere that concept was lost.

[zipplewrath]

2. Poor title

The council is called "President's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships" by the administration and looking at some of the names on it, he's up to his old "community organizing" activities again. He is basically recognizing that much of what goes on in communities is done through various religious related organizations. The local JCC here is a classic examples, as well as "Catholic Charities" which employs alot of social workers, most of them not catholic, nor even christians.

Here's a list of some of the 25 ultimate members to be appointed to 1 year terms. You'll notice some secularly based organizations as well.

Judith N. Vredenburgh, President and Chief Executive Officer, Big Brothers / Big Sisters of America Philadelphia, PA

Rabbi David N. Saperstein, Director & Counsel, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, and noted church/state expertWashington, DC

Dr. Frank S. Page, President emeritus, Southern Baptist ConventionTaylors, SC

Father Larry J. Snyder, President, Catholic Charities USAAlexandria, VA

Rev. Otis Moss, Jr., Pastor emeritus, Olivet Institutional Baptist ChurchCleveland, OH

Eboo S. Patel, Founder & Executive Director, Interfaith Youth CorpsChicago, IL

Fred Davie, President, Public / Private Ventures, a secular nonprofit intermediary New York, NY

Dr. William J. Shaw, President, National Baptist Convention, USA Philadelphia, PA

Melissa Rogers, Director, Wake Forest School of Divinity Center for Religion and Public Affairs and expert on church/state issues Winston-Salem, NC

Pastor Joel C. Hunter, Senior Pastor, Northland, a Church DistributedLakeland, FL

Dr. Arturo Chavez, Ph.D., President & CEO, Mexican American Cultural CenterSan Antonio, TX

Rev. Jim Wallis, President & Executive Director, SojournersWashington, DC

Bishop Vashti M. McKenzie, Presiding Bishop, 13th Episcopal District, African Methodist Episcopal ChurchKnoxville, TN

Diane Baillargeon, President & CEO, Seedco, a secular national operating intermediary New York, NY

Richard Stearns, President, World VisionBellevue, WA

[Ian David]

8. No Unitarians? n/t

[trotsky]

3. McClurkin part 2.

I am very disappointed, but unfortunately not surprised.

[Bluenorthwest]

4. This continued crap

Coupled with the administrations disgusting silence on the excecutions of gay people in Iraq, one has to being asking just how bigoted these people are at the core.
When will the 'Faith and discrimination office' speak out about the atrocities in Iraq? If Iraq were not a picture of all religious peoples, we'd see religious people opposing this right along with us, but they are silent, and that is all that needs to be said about their humanity.

[TechBear_Seattle]

5. Honestly, who is still surprised by this shit? n/t

[theHandpuppet]

6. Not surprised at all -- just DISGUSTED

And my lack of "faith" has once again been reaffirmed.

[Ian David]

7. Obama Chooses Anti-Gay Activist for White House Role

Obama Chooses Anti-Gay Activist for White House Role

For Immediate Release: 3/31/2009

Contact:
Drew Courtney or Stacey Gates
People For the American Way

E-mail:
[e-mail]

Phone:
202-467-4999

According to media reports today, the White House has invited anti-gay activist and retired NFL Coach Tony Dungy to join its Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Dungy actively campaigned for an anti-gay ballot initiative in Indiana that banned same-sex couples from being civilly married.

"President Obama was given a mandate to bring people together," said Tanya Clay House, Director of Public Policy at People For the American Way. "But his selection of Tony Dungy is extremely divisive. Dungy campaigned specifically to discriminate against a particular group of people, and he’s been closely aligned with the far-right Indiana Family Institute."

As part of its campaign to ban same-sex couples from getting civilly married, The Indiana Family Institute pushed dishonest, over the top rhetoric about gay and lesbian Americans, posting on their website: "The enemies of are far more dangerous than the media and even most Christians realize. They not only want to destroy marriage and create a society free from any and all sexual boundaries, they will spare no effort to attain their ultimate goal of silencing all those who oppose them."

At a 2007 banquet sponsored by the Institute, Dungy declared, "IFI is saying what the Lord says. You can take that and you can make the decision on which way you want to be."

"There's a Constitutional way for the government to work with religious groups, and it's appropriate for it to do so," said House. "But the Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships council shouldn't be used to reward voices of intolerance like Tony Dungy. If President Obama is looking for a religious leader to offer counsel and advice there are better people to fill the role."

More:
http://site.pfaw.org/site/PageServer?pagename=media_2009_03_obama_chooses_anti_gay_activist_white_house_role

[Marrah_G]

9. Actions speak louder then words.

Is Obama a bigot?

In the case of GBLT citizens, I believe he has show that he is indeed a bigot.

Shame on him.

[TechBear_Seattle]

19. Why do you hate America?

If you say anything against President Obama, you are a Republican-loving, neo-con Talibangelical Freeper, after all. Just wave, cheer loudly and don't let the Thought Police catch you or you will find yourself in room 101 at the Ministry of Love.

[Deep13]

10. "we're trying to promote the family — family values the Lord's way"

Whatever, but that's not the purpose of public law. Why the hell should the rest of us be held to his religious standards? This is what is wrong with the whole religious values agrument. Invariably, the burden of compliance falls on an innocent third party. Just like when a pharmacist refused to fill a prescription on religious grounds, the patient ends up paying the price for someone else's irrational beliefs.

[FreeState]

11. Please tell me this is an April Fools joke n/t

[theHandpuppet]

12. I'm afraid not

But I guess the real joke is on those who had any expectations for "change".

[FreeState]

13. What gets me is that he is not reaching out to those on the right that are decent people

their are plenty of GOP members who are not bigots who hold many of the same goals but Obama keeps picking the ones that have no interest in seeing gay people as their equal yet alone as human.

[mitchtv]

14. I was expecting , at best a benign neglect from the Savior

but instead we see a beligerent disgust for us. He mocks us similarly to how he mocked the Marijuana question at the Town Hall. Essentially , we are a non issue for all of them, except maybe Tammy and Barney and the new guy

[TEmperorHasNoClothes]

15. WTF??????????????

Faith of a hater maybe. Dungy is an awful homophobic monster who once, when asked, said he would allow a gay player on his team if he played well enough and if he listened to Dungy's pray away the gay philosophy.

[NMMNG]

16. Apparently Obama doesn't have any religious friends/associates

who aren't virulent homophobes. He's much like another recent president in that way...

[bluedawg12]

17. I'm still jarred by the words: White House faith council

WTF?

This is why. :grr:

[RetiredTrotskyite]

18. I Believe That With This Invitation

Obama has shown his true colours vis a vis LTBTQ people. Mc Clurkin might just have been a gaffe. Rick Warren might have been a gaffe (though two in a row is a bit harder to swallow), but with this latest invitation, Obama has shown that all his talk about change where LGBTQ people are concerned is just that--talk. I really expect nothing out of this administration. A place at the table? LGBT people are under the bus and getting repeatedly run over.