So It Shall Be Written

I was stuck in Highway 101 traffic this morning, so I spent some time listening to Rush Limbaugh. He was playing audio clips from Obama's health care "dialogue" with some religous leaders. The dialogue was actually done via conference call, which would seem to interfere with the spirit of communion. More important, Obama's attempts at quoting Scripture were ... can I say apocalyptic? Regardless, he is adding to the list of gaffes that the political pros refuse to label as such, but which ordinary folks are noting:

1. he complained that people had been lying about his plan and asked, with professorial earnesty, "Doesn't the Bible say, 'you shall not bear false witness?'" Hey! I think it does! I am so filled with shame. As others have noted, he was essentially calling everyone not on his side a liar. Does anyone still think of him as post-partisan?

2. He said we have partnership with God in matters of life and death. We do?! And don't mention death panels! That's bearing false witness!

3. My favorite: he said - in making the moral case for progressive health care reform - "Doesn't the Bible say 'we are our brothers' and sisters' keeper?'" It sure does, in a way. But Cain, the "brother's keeper" guy, is not someone who is often quoted approvingly by most Christians. Also, he was responding sarcastically to God's query as to whether Cain knew where Abel was, not providing a ready quote for the moral urgency of providing, say, health insurance to illegal aliens. I would note that the "brother's keeper" verse comes on, like page 2 of the Bible. I'll be impressed when Obama starts quoting from Leviticus.

The only thing I hate more than progressive's green eyeshade act is their Holy Roller routine: we don't like religious people, but we are not above using religion to make a moral argument for our preferred policies! Yuck.