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Conservatives say that America is largely a conservative country and that conservatives are the majority of Americans. If they’re right, moments like this make it seem like their success is based on the fact that their movement is, at its core, a movement of hate, and it’s a lot easier to hate than to try to make things better; I should know, I love to hate, I hate things up and down all day every day. I hate people while driving my car and while sitting on my duff on the couch with a beer. I hate noises and weird foods and bureaucratic nightmares. I’m like a hate Olympian. Odds are even that I probably hate something about you. But I’m not going to build the rest of my life on it like a mantra.

America, Not Keith Ellison, decides what book a congressman takes his oath on
… Forgive me, but America should not give a hoot what Keith Ellison’s favorite book is. Insofar as a member of Congress taking an oath to serve America and uphold its values is concerned, America is interested in only one book, the Bible. If you are incapable of taking an oath on that book, don’t serve in Congress. In your personal life, we will fight for your right to prefer any other book. We will even fight for your right to publish cartoons mocking our Bible. But, Mr. Ellison, America, not you, decides on what book its public servants take their oath.

Naturally, the vast majority of commenters on the article are foaming-mouth conservative pseudo-Christian wackjobs who seem just as hungry for bloodshed as the extremist Muslims they fear.

“This man should not even be considered for government office of any kind. The Liberals posting here constantly remind me why I hate them!”

“Congratualtions Minnesota. You sent a filthy animal to congress, and now look whats going on. Did he state during his campaign that, if elected, he would take his oath on the murdering handbook insyead of the bible? If so, the people who voted this America hating dog in to office, are themselves America hating dogs! If liberals don’t like this post…TOUGH! Believe me, thanks to your consistant stupidity, I, and all America Loving Conservatives, will have the chance to say I TOLD YOU SO!”

“swearing on the Bible is an act of Submission to our Constitution.” [I love that logical power-move.]

“Terrorists and liberals hate what America stands for. So, while our Armed forces have the terrorists engaged in their part of the world, they have sought, and received, the help of liberals here to carry out what they can not.”

A few people have pointed out an inconvenient fact pulled straight from the Constitution:

The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the members of the several state legislatures, and all executive and judicial officers, both of the United States and of the several states, shall be bound by oath or affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any officeor public trust under the United States.

But the Radical Right doesn’t seem to care. Jesus built this country, and you can go to hell if you think otherwise. (I’m sure Jesus would be a big fan of our ever-polarizing wealth distribution.)

Republicans say the Democrats are not worth electing because they don’t have a coherent vision. But if this rabid pseudo-religious Right is going to be the army that carries the vision to which the GOP is hitching its wagon, I’d rather have no vision at all. There are good Republicans in this country, and there are good, devout Christians, too, but the company they’re keeping is more poisonous to what I thought this country was than any tax-hiking booty-sexing cross-dressing peace-loving pot-smoking weirdo I ever did saw.