McCain Played Well At Saddleback

The results of the political forum at Rick Warren's Saddleback Community Church are in, and according to most pundits and observers John McCain played very well to this crowd made up largely of Christian evangelicals.

On the hand hand, Barack Obama did himself no favors.

Despite the notion of Rick Warren and some within the evangelical movement that a Presidential candidate can waffle on issues such as abortion and when human life begins, the crowd that attended the forum Saturday night demonstrated that these things still matter to conservative Protestant Christians.

When asked when life beings, Obama claimed that the question is 'above his pay grade.'

That statement is simply not good enough, and most serious Christians know it.

McCain, on the other hand, answered by saying, simply, 'At the moment of conception.'

His answer is consistent with his long career in the Senate, during which McCain has demonstrated that he is as pro-life and anti-abortion as any politician in Washington.

Obama, by contrast, has proved in his short career as a state legislator in Illinois and a one-term U.S. Senator that he is one of the most extremist, militant, abortion-on-demand politicians in the country.

Further, Obama continued with his bash-America-first campaign by suggesting that the greatest mistake he ever made was living in a nation that he obviously thinks has been despicable in its policies.

In short, he never admitted to ever making a personal mistake but made some vague reference to America's failures as a nation.

McCain, however, openly admitted the failure of his first marriage and took full responsibility for it. This, he said, was his biggest mistake. With that one statement, McCain has disarmed those who would lump him in with the likes of John Edwards.

The difference between Edwards and McCain is that Edwards was unfaithful to his wife while she was sick with cancer and while he was pretending to be the 'a man of family values.' This is not to mention his numerous lies that he continues to tell about the matter even after he supposedly 'came clean.' McCain has no such baggage other than his first marriage failed, he made the mistake of having an affair as a result, and he takes full responsibility for this 'biggest mistake he ever made.'

As for the faith perspective of the two, McCain stated that he believes in Jesus Christ and is saved by His grace. Obama makes a similar claim, yet he maintained membership in a far-Left, extremist Church, in a far-Left, extremist denomination, the Pastor of which stated from the pulpit, 'God damn America.'

During the forum, McCain appeared comfortable and answered the questions in a logical, coherent fashion, while Obama's answers seemed forced, sometimes obscure, and certainly disjointed.

In fact, one political pundit has already described the Obama performance as 'a colossal failure.'

As a postscript, it is interesting to note that the candidates answered questions about oil during the forum. McCain stated forthrightly that he is for 'drill here, drill now,' in addition to developing various forms of alternative energy. This is one of the strongest statements yet from McCain concerning where his allegiance lies in the vitally important debate on the nation's energy needs.