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All In The Family?

Obama to attend controversial breakfast; Jew-groups silent

by
Marc Tracy
February 03, 2010

Tomorrow, President Barack Obama, as well as numerous congresspersons and senators (oh, and graduating University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, who is fast becoming football’s answer to Sarah Palin), will attend the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. The event is run by the really secretive conservative Christian organization known as the Family or, alternately, the Fellowship—this thing really exists, we swear—and there tends to be a minimal place at it, if any place at all, for Jews, if not nearly as minimal place as there is for gays.

Gay-rights groups, as well as various progressive organizations, have no trouble speaking out against Obama’s participation in this event. But James Besser asks another question: where are the Jewish groups? You cannot hear a peep from them on this issue. Is the Anti-Defamation League, for example, really unopposed to the president of the United States attending a plainly sectarian event run by a group that allegedly inspired Uganda’s draconian Anti-Homosexuality Bill? If so, why hasn’t it spoken up? And if not, then why not? Silence is not the natural state of this and other groups, which makes their silence here all the more conspicuous.

Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.