A number of people can affect a public official's decisions and the church, or a person of faith, can be in any of these groups. This might be a public official's staff person, a personal friend, a committee colleague, or even a family member. Public officials often see the church as one of these special interest groups. Public officials pay most attention to this group when making decisions, according to Watkins. The decision-making influences of these different groups is not necessarily an evil influence, according to Watkins.
Every public official needs to be educated beyond their intelligence.
There is simply too much to know about too many things for a public officials to always make an informed and educated decision. This is where churches and their members can play an important role in public politics. The morning continued with a presentation by Illinois State Senator Barack Obama. Mr. Obama, speaking from his own personal faith perspective, declared that public service has never been easy. Yet, working for the public good is good.