Obama's First Days According to Rev. Gene Robinson 

Did you ever get clear on how it happened that your
comments weren’t included in HBO’s
production of the opening ceremony? No, so here’s what I decided about that.
First, there was probably no way to determine where
and with whom that decision got made. Second of all,
it was over, and I think the last thing the gay community
needs to be doing right now is picking a fight with
the new president or his inaugural committee. My
feeling was, it was done, it was over, let’s move
on. I received formal apologies from both the inaugural
committee and HBO. And I was just willing to let that
go.

And as much I
would have liked the viewing audience to have heard it, the
attention that was drawn to the words I had spoken because
of the controversy about why it had been eliminated,
probably gave it more attention than it would have
gotten if it had been included in the broadcast. The
video of my prayer on YouTube, has had a quarter of a
million hits and I’m getting feedback from all over
the country about people who printed out my prayer and
used it at a meeting, or used it at a church service,
or whatever.

Is it true, as the London Times reported, that
President Obama sought your counsel during the election,
on what it was like to be a first? Partly true, partly not true. The headline gave
people that impression that Barack had sought me out
about that. Well, that’s ludicrous. Barack
Obama is quite his own person, and I’m the last
person he needs to seek out about anything.

However, early on
in the New Hampshire primary, we did get a chance to
meet several times, and once we had quite a lengthy
conversation about being the first. That’s sort
of a special bond I feel that I have with him because
there are particular joys and especially particular burdens
that come with being the first at anything. The very first
thing he said to me when we met for the first time
was, 'Well, you’re a trouble maker,' and I said
something like, 'It takes one to know one,' and we both
laughed. Of course, at that point, he was on nobody’s
radar screen, in April or May of 2007.

Do you have anything to add? I continue to be confident that the new
president understands us and our issues and that this
will be the friendliest president to LGBT people that
we have ever had in the White House. At the same time, I was
very critical of his decision to invite Rick Warren
and I really do believe that just because we are
feeling positive, doesn’t mean we can stop being
vigilant or stop holding his feet to the fire about our
issues.

In moments of disappointment, like when you first
heard about Rick Warren, what spiritual concepts do you
turn to in order to temper that disappointment? Right off the bat what I thought and what I
often think is, no one of us always gets it right.
That’s just the human condition. Not even the best
of us will always get it right.