Faithful God-o-Meter reader Paul Shiras writes about the Wright/Obama controversy:

Can we give this a rest? When I challenged my pastor over things he said from the pulpit, I was sanctioned by the church board. Let’s talk about the issues that face the nation and stop dwelling on the rantings of a man no longer on the stage.

God-o-Meter would like to challenge Shiras’s let’s-just-talk-about-the-issues rationale for downplaying the Wright flap. The controversy died down last week, of course, but GOM feels that dismissing the flap as a distraction from “real issues” let’s the Democrats unfairly have it both ways on religion–to use it when it suits them and to brush it aside when it doesn’t.

If the party and its presidential candidates are going to wage a vigorous campaign to win back religious voters, largely by spotlighting their own personal faith, including the importance of spiritual mentors like Wright, they should have to answer tough questions about their religious resumes, too. Otherwise, White House hopefuls are permitted to exploit religious purely for their own political purposes while avoiding explaining the implications of their religious faith on the nation, should they land in the White House. Isn’t that what Republican candidates–Huckabee and Romney come to mind–have been doing for years?

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