Rep. Ellison to be sworn in on Thomas Jefferson's personal copy of Koran
In an absolutely marvelous and well-orchestrated political maneuver, Congressman-elect Keith Ellison (D-MN) has announced that he will place his left hand on Thomas Jefferson's personal copy of the Koran when he is sworn in tomorrow. Clearly a shrewd fellow, Mr. Ellison (the first Muslim elected to federal office in US history) seems to have a very bright career in the House of Representatives ahead of him, though he also arguably has the largest burden to bear among the 432 member delegation, as the sole voice representing a faith that has become deeply misunderstood.
In recent comments issued in a public letter responding to Ellison's announcement that he would be the first American Congressman sworn-in using the Koran, Virginia Congressman Virgil Goode (R-VA) felt it was his place to issue a public statement that asserted more than half of his constituents would much prefer the freshman Congressman use a Bible, going further to not-so-vaguely assert that it is dangerous for Muslims to be elected to Congress (comments which I have wrote about both here and here). I won't give the gentleman from Virginia's comments anymore attention here than to say once more, he is an embarrassment to every Republican in the country and the party should have repudiated them from day one.
Interestingly, Congressman Goode represents Thomas Jefferson's birthplace of Albemarle County and was unavailable for comment when asked about Ellison's use of his district's favorite son's Koran during Thursday's ceremonies. My guess is that it took several hours for his staffers to convince him that Thomas Jefferson did in fact possess some of the intellectual curiosity that has seemingly been lost on him. I guess the only conclusion I can come to is that Virginia don't raise 'em like they used to. But in today's intellectually-deficient political culture I don't think a man of Jefferson's capabilities would have had much of a taste for the political life.
In recent comments issued in a public letter responding to Ellison's announcement that he would be the first American Congressman sworn-in using the Koran, Virginia Congressman Virgil Goode (R-VA) felt it was his place to issue a public statement that asserted more than half of his constituents would much prefer the freshman Congressman use a Bible, going further to not-so-vaguely assert that it is dangerous for Muslims to be elected to Congress (comments which I have wrote about both here and here). I won't give the gentleman from Virginia's comments anymore attention here than to say once more, he is an embarrassment to every Republican in the country and the party should have repudiated them from day one.
Interestingly, Congressman Goode represents Thomas Jefferson's birthplace of Albemarle County and was unavailable for comment when asked about Ellison's use of his district's favorite son's Koran during Thursday's ceremonies. My guess is that it took several hours for his staffers to convince him that Thomas Jefferson did in fact possess some of the intellectual curiosity that has seemingly been lost on him. I guess the only conclusion I can come to is that Virginia don't raise 'em like they used to. But in today's intellectually-deficient political culture I don't think a man of Jefferson's capabilities would have had much of a taste for the political life.
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