Wingnuts Raging at John Brennan for Not Swearing on a Bible
The latest ludicrous right wing anti-Obama talking point, brought to you by the Weekly Standard’s Daniel Halper (as so many of them are): No Bible for Brennan Swearing in.
John Brennan was sworn in today at the White House. He was confirmed as the new CIA director yesterday.
“Brennan was sworn in with his hand on an original draft of the Constitution, dating from 1787, which has George Washington’s personal handwriting and annotations on it,” according to the White House. He does not appear to have placed his hand on a Bible, a Torah, a Koran, or other sacred religious text as he said the oath.
GASP! No Bible? The horror!
You know, last time I checked, the Constitution specifically says that the federal government is not supposed to be in the business of endorsing religion. I look forward to the day when no politician ever feels compelled by thin-skinned religious fanatics to swear on a Bible, or any other “sacred religious text.”
But wait — the outrage isn’t finished yet!
UPDATE: Empywheel.net notices that this Constitution lacks a Bill of Rights: “That means, when Brennan vowed to protect and defend the Constitution, he was swearing on one that did not include the First, Fourth, Fifth, or Sixth Amendments — or any of the other Amendments now included in our Constitution. The Bill of Rights did not become part of our Constitution until 1791, 4 years after the Constitution that Brennan took his oath on.”
I suppose if you’re the kind of person who thinks swearing an oath on a Bible imbues the oath with magical power, swearing on a historic copy of the Constitution without the Bill of Rights means that John Brennan is now magically committed to destroying America.
Seriously — what the hell is wrong with these people?