Vetting their pastors

-- by Dave

Musing over Tim Russert's brandishing of the Farrakhan card at last night's presidential debate, one couldn't help be amazed at the classic guilt-by-association game that Russert played. In observing this, one of Josh Marshall's readers gives us the following breakdown of the logic:

I think that breaking down Russert's Wright/Farrakhan questioning helps illuminate how truly bizarre it is:
1. The title of Obama's book, "The Audacity of Hope," came from a sermon delivered by Jeremiah Wright. Wright is Obama's pastor.

2. Wright is the "head" of United Trinity Church.

3. Wright said that Louis Farrakhan "epitomizes greatness."

4. Wright went with Farrakhan in 1984 to visit Muammar Gaddafi in Libya.

5. Farrakhan has said that Judaism is a "gutter religion."

6. Wright said that when Obama's political opponents found out about the Libya visit, Obama's Jewish support would dry up "faster than a snowball in Hell."

I'm especially struck by how much weight Russert gives to the views of Obama's pastor. This obviously introduces a new standard for judging our presidential candidates -- the pastor connection.

Clearly, any candidate aspiring to the presidency must henceforth prove that his pastor has never said or done anything undesirable, because those pastors, as we know, control the minds of their entire congregations.

In the future, I trust that all other candidates' pastors will be as thoroughly vetted. Next up on Russert's list, no doubt: North Phoenix Baptist Church, where John McCain is a congregant.