Barack Obama Faces False Choices

Congressman Warns of Obama Dictatorship

Monday, November 10, 2008 6:44 PM

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WASHINGTON — A Republican congressman from Georgia said Monday he fears that President-elect Obama will establish a Gestapo-like security force to impose a Marxist or fascist dictatorship.

"It may sound a bit crazy and off base, but the thing is, he's the one who proposed this national security force," Rep. Paul Broun said of Obama in an interview Monday with The Associated Press. "I'm just trying to bring attention to the fact that we may — may not, I hope not — but we may have a problem with that type of philosophy of radical socialism or Marxism."

Broun cited a July speech by Obama that has circulated on the Internet in which the then-Democratic presidential candidate called for a civilian force to take some of the national security burden off the military.

"That's exactly what Hitler did in Nazi Germany and it's exactly what the Soviet Union did," Broun said. "When he's proposing to have a national security force that's answering to him, that is as strong as the U.S. military, he's showing me signs of being Marxist."

Obama's comments about a national security force came during a speech in Colorado about building a new civil service corps. Among other things, he called for expanding the nation's foreign service and doubling the size of the Peace Corps "to renew our diplomacy."

"We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set," Obama said in July. "We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded."

Broun said he also believes Obama likely will move to ban gun ownership if he does build a national police force.

Obama has said he respects the Second Amendment right to bear arms and favors "common sense" gun laws. Gun rights advocates interpret that as meaning he'll at least enact curbs on ownership of assault weapons and concealed weapons. As an Illinois state lawmaker, Obama supported a ban on semiautomatic weapons and tighter restrictions on firearms generally.

"We can't be lulled into complacency," Broun said. "You have to remember that Adolf Hitler was elected in a democratic Germany. I'm not comparing him to Adolf Hitler. What I'm saying is there is the potential."

Obama's transition office did not respond immediately to Broun's remarks.

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Doug of PA 9:21AM November 11, 2008

Obama is a pragmatist with liberal leanings, but I think that a great many of us voted for him, despite his relative inexperience, precisely because he's shown a knack for critical thinking and nuanced analysis of complex issues.

When I first heard his name and looked him up -- I'm not the most politically engaged person, so this was about two years ago -- I discovered his "Call to Renewal" keynote speech for a Christian interfaith group devoted to community service. (Fancy that.)

What impressed me about this speech was that he was challenging his party's modus operandi regarding religion in politics -- refusing to discuss religion except in terms of where it shouldn't be preached, which ceded all discussion of religion and God to right-wing evangelicals.

He said, first, that it was possible for progressive to discuss their own beliefs as public figures, and indeed it was necessary to do so, so that the evangelicals wouldn't be able to falsely smear them. (Looks like he still has learning to do on that front.)

He said, second, that while freedom of religion is a vital part of the constitution, that religious faith plays a vital role in shaping the ethics and inspiration of many Americans. That MLK and Lincoln used religious language and God to frame important truths and arguments because it helped make these arguments accessible to people for whom God is meaningful. That one CAN invoke God without forcing God on people who believe differently. (See below.)

Third, Obama pointed out the vital role of religious communities (like the one he was addressing) in helping those in need from Katrina victims to at-risk youth to AIDs victims to the poor. Churches help take care of people. They should be praised for that. So to that extent he recognizes the value of faith-based initiatives.

However, he also noted the vital importance of separation of Church and State, in keeping religion from DICTATING law, and vice versa.

I've noticed a subtlety about Obama that demonstrates this perfectly. He ends speeches with "God bless you, God bless America" -- a prayer, a wish, born of his own Christian faith. But when he speaks of America as an institution, he speaks of America, the UNITED STATES of America, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all... but he doesn't include the McCarthy-era revision to the Pledge of Allegiance "Under God" (most people don't seem to realize that is an addition). That would be to declare America as a Christian nation, as opposed to simply invoking his own God's blessing for the country he loves -- shifting religion to the official, rather than personal level.

That's a subtlety I bet most people miss, and it speaks to the way Obama looks at sticky and volatile issues.

I don't think we have to worry about him falling into black versus white mentality. He can't. He's a mutt!

K. Miller of CA 2:28PM November 10, 2008