Monday, December 21, 2009

A Prayer God Probably Didn't Appreciate

The Last Chance Democracy Cafe

It’s fashionable, at least among polite company, to break Republicans into two groups: first, the fringe-nutcase-teabagger-birther types and; second, the "establishment Republican Party." There is increasing compelling evidence, however, that this separation is wholly artificial.

Last night Tom Coburn provided the latest — and perhaps most obnoxious yet — example of this:

At 4 p.m. Sunday afternoon — nine hours before the 1 a.m. vote that would effectively clinch the legislation’s passage — Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) went to the Senate floor to propose a prayer. "What the American people ought to pray is that somebody can't make the vote tonight," he said. "That’s what they ought to pray."

It was difficult to escape the conclusion that Coburn was referring to the 92-year-old, wheelchair-bound Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.V.) who has been in and out of hospitals and lay at home ailing. It would not be easy for Byrd to get out of bed in the wee hours with deep snow on the ground and ice on the roads — but without his vote, Democrats wouldn’t have the 60 they needed.

If there is a God who hears the prayers of his flock, one suspects he wasn’t all that happy with Coburn’s suggestion. I mean, imagine you’re God, and prayers are flying in, one after the other, at the speed of light:
...

From Jessie in Mobile: "God, my wife . . . I’m sorry to be so emotional, but we have a son . . . he’s only eight. Anyway, she needs an operation for cancer and she’ll need lots of expensive medicine. The thing is . . . my wife and I both have other medical problems and we couldn’t get insurance after I was laid off. I don’t know what we’re going to do. Please God . . "

From Senator Coburn’s followers: "Lord, please let Senator Byrd die so there won’t be 60 votes for health care reform."

Yeah, I bet that last one was well received.

In some respects this bill stinks (e.g., no public option). But man the opposition to it on the right stinks so much worse.

Amen.

Whatever you think about praying, praying for the demise and suffering of others is despicable. And typical of phony religionists.

Update:

Windy City Watch, with video:

I call on the distinguished gentleman from Illinois, Senator Durbin to take his foot out of Sen. Coburn's ass

Today the pride of Springfield, Illinois, Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL), called out Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) on the United States Senate floor for asking that the American people pray that a US Senator not be able to make it to the late night/early morning vote on health care reform. Despite Durbin's request that Coburn come out on to the Senate floor to explain his comments, the cowardly Senator from Oklahoma went into hiding.

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