Needed: We The People

So, after all, a gay man will be giving the invocation on Sunday to begin the inauguration festivities. Bishop Gene Robinson has been invited to starts things off with a bang, and people are wondering why he received the invitation to do so at this time.

Robinson believes that this was in the works from the start of the planning. I believe that this is, again, a political decision, one where Obama needed to balance things out after asking Rick Warren, the anti-gay California pastor, to start of the inauguration on Tuesday.

I made my case very clearly on December 27, 2008:

"I'm not one of the people who says that this decision will either lead to the downfall of Obama or be indicative of how he will govern. I do believe that it is a clear political decision, not a spiritual one. Yes, Warren and Obama do not agree on many things, and politically that can be a strong suit for Obama - especially since he is such a strong believer in the proverbial "Team of Rivals."

"However, is not the invocation meant to be a symbolic spiritual part of the inauguration? What does this symbol, therefore, symbolize? It should represent our significance in God's presence, all of us, united. Here is where Obama misread the power of his decision and the potentially negative impact it could have on America. He has shared so frequently a message of unity, but with this decision, he has sown division.

"It's just a shame that Obama, who felt the pulse of America so sensitively over such a long period of time, decided to feel his own, personal, individual pulse instead - and in so doing laid a lot of hurt and separation on many, many people."

Since then, thousands of people expressed their concern and outrage regarding the invitation of Warren. It appears that Barack Obama was nudged enough to move in the direction that is truly inclusive, something I believe reflects his true sentiments. It's just that he tends to vacillate between what is politically expedient and what reflects the beliefs of the majority of people.

So, M.O. is something we need to keep an eye on. Obama has a tendency to slide to the right of his beliefs initially. Then, pressure comes from his supporters to glide him back to the left a tad.

It's a reminder that first, Obama is flexible and second, he must be held accountable in the months and years ahead if he is to hold fast to many of the positions he held during the campaign.

It will require, therefore, that Obama must regularly hear from us and that We The People maintain an active and loud vox populi, a compass that will keep him moving in the right direction.