Give incoming Representative Keith Ellison credit for his response to Virgil Goode’s hateful remarks.
“I’m not a religious scholar, I’m a politician, and I do what politicians do, which is hopefully pass legislation to help the nation,” said Mr. Ellison, who said he planned to focus on secular issues like increasing the federal minimum wage and getting health insurance for the uninsured.
“I’m looking forward to making friends with Representative Goode, or at least getting to know him,” Mr. Ellison said, speaking by telephone from Minneapolis. “I want to let him know that there’s nothing to fear. The fact that there are many different faiths, many different colors and many different cultures in America is a great strength.”
Kudos. I know if a Virginia Congressman had started talking about how much he feared the coming election of Jews to federal office, I’d be far more intemperate. But Ellison’s calm, Jackie Robinson-esque (am I the only one seeing that parallel? It really jumped straight out at me, what with Branch Rickey’s warning that he can never respond to the inevitable taunts, never lose his cool, never strike back) statement is far more effective and will hopefully yield results over the long run.
Via Steve Benen.