Tea Party Congressman Links Colorado Shooting To Attacks On Christianity (updated) [View all]

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Last edited Fri Jul 20, 2012, 10:52 AM - Edit history (1)

Tea Party Congressman Links Colorado Shooting To Attacks On Christianity

By Igor Volsky

Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have expressed their sympathies for the victims in Friday morning’s shooting in Aurora, Colorado, but at least one Republican lawmaker is using the tragedy to discuss the alleged war on Christianity.

During an appearance on The Heritage Foundation’s Istook Live, Tea Party Congressman Louie Gohmert (R-TX), a former judge, began talking about “ongoing attacks on Christian-Judeo beliefs” when asked about Aurora shootings. Later, in the program he seemed to blame atheists for violence:

ERNEST ISTOOK (HOST): What was your experience as a judge, when you’re on the bench, this is Congressman Luie Gohmert, when you’re on the bench, what was your experience with people who had mental health issues that were involved in crimes of violence?

GOHMERT: Well, it’s always a problem and there are some people who require medication … But you know, I might mention something else that hadn’t been public yet. Most of us that follow the military, love the military know that we have had an extraordinary increase in suicide rates in the military and it’s just heartbreaking … There was a study commissioned, 6,000 personal of index profiles and what they found, and I don’t ‘know if they’ll make it public…but all of the people who have committed suicide within their two percent studied, were part of their 2 percent most atheistic members of the military. We’ve lost our faith.

Listen:

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http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2012/07/20/554761/tea-party-congressman-links-colorado-shooting-to-attacks-on-christianity/

Updated to add this from Steve Benen:

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I see. So, in the mind of this strange Republican congressman, a madman killed 12 people because of ... the separation of church and State? The First Amendment is to blame for a shooting spree in a movie theater?

If decency had any place in American politics, this would be an immediate career-ender for the ridiculous congressman from Texas. Some political missteps are simply unforgivable.

Update: Gohmert also wondered aloud why no one else in the theater was armed, complaining that the victims should have shot back.

http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/20/12856827-how-not-to-respond-to-a-tragedy