NPR : Christian Coalition's New Leader Steps Down

I can't begin to tell you how much I think this sucks. I really liked this guy's podcast and thought he had a very Christ-centered view of social ethics. I just hope that his stepping down sends a message to the radical right.

Christian Coalition's New Leader Steps Down: "Rev. Joel Hunter, president-elect of the Christian Coalition of America, is declining the job, saying the organization wouldn't let him expand its agenda beyond opposing abortion and gay marriage. A statement issued by the group said Hunter left because of 'differences in philosophy and vision.'

Hunter said he was not asked to leave. But, he says, he had wanted to focus on issues such as poverty and the environment.

But as the author of a book called Right Wing, Wrong Bird: Why the Tactics of the Religious Right Won't Fly With Most Conservative Christians, even Hunter admits he wasn't the natural choice to head the group.

Nevertheless, when Hunter accepted the job as president of the Christian Coalition last summer, he says he was reassured that the organization would support his efforts to expand the Coalition's agenda beyond the so-called moral issues of abortion and gay marriage.

"At first it seemed like they were open to that," Hunter says. "But when it came down to it, they just couldn't quite go there. The phrase that was used was, 'Those are fine issues, but it's just not us, that's not our base.'"