- Democrat Al Franken has pulled to within 2 votes of incumbent Norm Coleman in the U.S. Senate recount in Minnesota. I’ve heard a lot of screaming from some conservatives about how Franken and his people are trying to steal the election, but after what happened in the 2000 presidential election in Florida, I’m all for making sure each and every vote is counted.
- The Milwaukee School Board voted 7 to 2 Thursday night to investigate whether board member Charlene Hardin violated the board’s code of ethics in connection with a trip she took to Philadelphia in July. Hardin was among the two board members voting against the investigation, and in a statement, she accused the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel of “a high tech lynching” of her. You’ll remember Dan Bice of the Journal Sentinel first broke the story about Hardin’s attendance – or lack thereof – at a conference in Philadelphia, a trip that was paid for by taxpayers.
- I know there’s been somewhat of a furor over president-elect Obama’s decision to have Rick Warren deliver the invocation at Obama’s inaugural ceremony, but I think this is just much ado about nothing. I know Rick Warren has some positions that many liberals don’t agree with – his stance on same-sex marriage being one I can think of off the top of my head – but I see this as a principled decision by a man who’s always held Rick Warren in high regard. President-elect Obama had this to say in defense of his decision:
“And I would note that a couple of years ago, I was invited to Rick Warren’s church to speak, despite his awareness that I held views that were entirely contrary to his when it came to gay and lesbian rights, when it came to issues like abortion. …
“And that dialogue, I think, is part of what my campaign’s been all about: That we’re not going to agree on every single issue, but what we have to do is to be able to create an atmosphere … where we can disagree without being disagreeable and then focus on those things that we hold in common as Americans.”
President-elect Obama had to know his choice of Rick Warren to give the invocation at the inauguration would raise eyebrows and elicit criticism from many on the left, and the fact that he chose Warren knowing the likely repercussions speaks volumes about president-elect Obama’s willingness to stand on principle rather than doing what’s most politically opportune.
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