Barack Hussein Obama is the flavor of the month for the Democratic Party. Unlike the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Mr. Obama has no substantial track record on which to judge him. Ms. Clinton is respectively loved or hated for the views she holds, and even if they are ever-changing she does have a record on which she can be judged. Until now, the primary criticism from the right-wing is that Mr. Obama’s father and stepfather were both Muslims, although this fact has been called into question by some liberal pundits but never denied by Senator Obama. However the fact remains that despite his inconvenient middle name, which he has conveniently omitted from his official Senate biography, Obama is not a Muslim but a member of the United Church of Christ.

In theory, the view that a man’s religious beliefs should not disqualify him from serving as president is widely accepted. The reality is far different. At this time in our nation’s history a member of the Muslim faith could never be elected to the presidency. Right or wrong that is just a fact. Soon we will see a behind-the-scenes effort by the left-wing media to attack the Church of Latter Day Saints in an effort to derail Mitt Romney’s presidential aspirations. Despite the fact that the Mormons are some of the most decent and ethical people in American society their beliefs differ widely from mainstream America. It will take little effort on the part of the left-wing media to tarnish a Mormon presidency as unacceptable. However, Mr. Obama, on the surface, should not face these problems as he presents himself as a member of a mainstream Christian church and, despite some claims to the contrary, he maintains that he is not a Muslim. In fact his Muslim father abandoned the family when he was about two years of age, so it is unlikely he had that much influence on the young Obama.

Surprisingly Barack Obama’s Achilles Heel might very well be his choice of Christian churches. Despite its mainstream name the "United Church of Christ" holds many beliefs that many Americans would find highly questionable. The United Church of Christ was formed in 1957 and is estimated to have approximately 1.2 million members. The Church itself gives local congregations a great deal of control over individual doctrines. Mr. Obama and his family belong to Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. It is always refreshing to see a politician who is active in his local church; however, in Mr. Obama’s case his choice of congregations might raise some eyebrows.

Trinity United Church of Christ is a church which seems on the surface to exclude people based on race. In short, Trinity United Church of Christ is segregationist. The Church’s Web site declares, "We are a congregation which is unashamedly Black…We are an African people, and remain ‘true to our native land,’ the mother continent, the cradle of civilization." In this declaration of belief Mr. Obama’s church seems to make it very clear that they are not welcoming of other Christians based solely on their race. If a white politician were a member of a church which declared itself to be “unashamedly white” he would be rightfully run out of public service.

The United Church of Christ is also the largest American denomination to accept the concept of gay marriage. A resolution adopted by 80 percent of the church’s delegates at its General Synod in 2005 urged its local churches “to consider adopting Wedding Policies that do not discriminate against couples based on gender.” Homosexual unions or marriages are overwhelmingly opposed by the vast majority of Americans and Senator Obama will certainly be confronted with this question in the near future.

Homosexual marriage is not the only politically sensitive subjects that his church has seemed eager to confront. The United Church of Christ also requires the Church’s “Corporate Social Responsibility Ministry to begin the process of divestment from companies involved with Israel’s illegal… occupations of the West Bank and Gaza, the building of the ‘security fence,’ and the Israeli settlements within Palestinian Territory” (Twenty-fourth General Synod XV held in Atlanta, Georgia). Mr. Obama’s affiliation with a church that actively supports the terrorist government in the Palestinian Territory should be the nail in his political coffin. The Simon Wiesenthal Center stated in 2005 that the church’s policy was “functionally anti-Semitic”; while, the Anti-Defamation League called the policy “deeply troubling.” Mr. Obama’s failure to distance himself from these church policies will likely severely harm his electoral chances with Jewish voters and members of fundamentalist Christian churches which have become ardent supporters of Israel in recent years.

As Mr. Obama’s popularity grows, it is predictable that Hillary Clinton’s supporters in the mainstream media might begin to report on some of the more disturbing beliefs of Senator Obama. In short, Senator Obama’s lack of a track record which may seem so beneficial this early in the campaign may become his undoing when the American public and rational voters begin to feel the heat and teach Mr. Obama a lesson in real world politics.

- William John Hagan has most recently served as Communications Director for former Congressman Mac Collins. His editorial work has appeared in the Providence Journal, the Houston Home Journal, the Canada Free Press, World Net Daily, Freedom Today Magazine (U.K.), and in other publications. He can be reached at: William_Hagan@excite.com.