Senator Obama, are you TRYING to eliminate all daylight between yourself and Senator McCain?

In 2000, enough people voted for Ralph Nader, believing that there was no difference between George W. Bush and Al Gore, despite all evidence to the contrary, that it put us on the path to the mess in which we find ourselves today.

In 2006, Democrats won a razor-thin majority in Congress, and its approval ratings are below that of George W. Bush -- not because the Democrats aren't conservative enough, but because they are still capitulating to the Bush Administration.

And now, between Barack Obama's capitulation on FISA (which is likely to persist, Keith Olbermann's hopes notwithstanding), his jettisoning of Wesley Clark as if questioning whether being shot down was a sufficient condition by itself to warrant a free pass to the White House, and now a pledge to continue George W. Bush's program of Tax Dollars for Jeebus, I'm starting to wonder just how much daylight there is between Obama and John McCain -- and just what the hell happened.

It isn't that I ever believed Obama was some sort of progressive dreamboat. I felt he was marginally more progressive on defense issues than the war hawk Clinton, but I figured he was going to have to run as a moderate, lest he scare the white people too much. I also realize why he's had to thump his Christianity, given that I know people who have chosen to believe the "He's a secret Muslim terrorist" e-mails.

But I don't know whether he's decided he's really a DLC-er, or if running to the right was the price he had to pay for the Clintons' endorsement, or if he's really this tone-deaf to the pulse of the nation.

But that he is planning to not just continue, but expand, George W. Bush's program of steering federal tax dollars to religious organizations for social programs is just another troubling sign that the new boss isn't going to be that much different from the old boss:

Reaching out to evangelical voters, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is announcing plans that would expand President Bush's program steering federal social service dollars to religious groups and — in a move sure to cause controversy — support their ability to hire and fire based on faith.

Obama was unveiling his approach to getting religious charities more involved in government anti-poverty programs during a tour and remarks Tuesday at Eastside Community Ministry in Zanesville, Ohio. The arm of Central Presbyterian Church operates a food bank, provides clothes, has a youth ministry and provides other services in its impoverished community.

"The challenges we face today, from putting people back to work to improving our schools, from saving our planet to combating HIV/AIDS to ending genocide, are simply too big for government to solve alone," Obama was to say, according to a prepared text of his remarks obtained by The Associated Press. "We need all hands on deck."

But Obama's support for letting religious charities that receive federal funding consider religion in employment decisions was likely to invite a storm of protest from those who view such faith requirements as discrimination.

David Kuo, a conservative Christian who was deputy director of Bush's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives until 2003 and later became a critic of Bush's commitment to the cause, said Obama's position has the potential to be a major "Sister Souljah moment" for his campaign.

This is a reference to Bill Clinton's accusation in his 1992 presidential campaign that the hip hop artist incited violence against whites. Because Clinton said this before a black audience, it fed into an image of him as a bold politician who was willing to take risks and refused to pander.

"It would be a very, very, very interesting thing," said Kuo, who is not an Obama adviser or supporter but was contacted by the campaign to review the new plan.

Kuo called Obama's approach smart, impressive and well thought-out but took a wait-and-see attitude about whether it would deliver.

"When it comes to promises to help the poor, promises are easy," said Kuo, who wrote a 2006 book describing his frustration at what he called Bush's lackluster enthusiasm for the program. "The question is commitment."

Obama proposes to elevate the program to a "moral center" of his administration, by renaming it the Office of Community and Faith-Based Partnerships, and changing training from occasional huge conferences to empowering larger religious charities to mentor smaller ones in their communities.

This business of reaching out to Evangelicals is troublesome. I realize that younger Evangelicals aren't just about hating Teh Gayz and Teh Evil Unchase Temptresses Who Can't Keep Their Legs Closed, but proseletyzing and conversion is an inherent part of this form of Christianity, and there is no way that these groups are going to be delivering services without efforts to convert those who would partake of their services. And that is a flagrant violation of the Establishment clause.

And by the way, in case anyone is tempted to think that Hillary Clinton would be one iota better on this, guess again.