A few of you had written to me about an article in Politico claiming that MoveOn had abandoned gay rights and basically sided with Obama over the Rick Warren affair. MoveOn says that's a flat out lie. Here's a statement they just released:
We've had disagreements with Politico's reporting in the past. But even we were surprised by the shoddy reporting in Andie Coller's recent article, "Will MoveOn Live Up To It's Name?" which raises new questions about the Politico's rumored bias to the right.MoveOn is right. If you asked me what are the top issues facing the nation this year, I'd say the economy and the war, followed by health care. I wouldn't call Rick Warren one of the top issues facing America. That doesn't mean I'm giving Obama a pass, or that the Rick Warren fiasco doesn't matter.
Though we went over it with her, Coller omitted the historical context of our organization advocacy. MoveOn members have consistently prioritized universal health care, building a green economy/stopping climate change, and ending the war in Iraq since 2005--long before President-elect Obama was even a widely known player on the national political stage. The new priority that has emerged--economic recovery and job creation--is an obvious reflection of the dire situation so many American's face due to eight years of mismanagement on Wall Street.
To claim, as Coller does, that these priorities represent "leaving some of [MoveOn's] high-minded ideals behind" is nothing short of journalistic malfeasance. That our members recognize that the battle field has changed after this historic election shows strategic smarts, not retreat.
As for her claim that our silence on Rick Warren's inaugural invocation represents some sort of compromise, Coller misses the point. There are few Americans who would suggest that the statements of an inaugural speaker are one of the top four issues facing the country – egregious though they may be. Our members contributed over $350,000 to defeat Proposition 8 last month and are deeply committed to fighting for the civil rights of all Americans. Rather than focus on contrived division, Coller and Politico would serve their readers, and the truth, much better if they would do some homework before writing their articles.
