A reading from the gospel according to Barack, and not for the first time either. I get a kick out of it, partly because it’s healthy to see how shameless religious politicking looks when it comes from the other side and partly because I think the Christian ethos points more towards his side of the argument on this one. Yes, granted, there’s nothing in the Bible about caring for the sick by rendering unto Caesar, but if it’s a choice between that and letting millions of people go without treatment, what’s the more Christian-y option? Schultz’s point about democracy is interesting, too. It’s one thing to have Herod sending down diktats about taxes for his personal policy whims, but if a majority of the public supports taxes as a way of covering the uninsured, isn’t that a form of private charity albeit through a public mechanism? And if the answer to that is, “No, because those in favor should just start their own private institution devoted to covering the uninsured and donate to it voluntarily,” then what, if any, divine repercussions should there be for people who don’t donate to it? Is Jesus A-OK with you letting people suffer without care even if you have spare income you could offer them? Inquiring atheists want to know!

FYI, the line about Jesus supporting the public option isn’t in this clip. Watch Newsbusters’s edit from earlier in the show for that.