They say the last refuge of a scoundrel is patriotism.
Maybe for some.
For Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., though, it’s his shameless exploitation of his “Christian faith” for political expediency.
He’s got a new campaign ad out in which he claims, holding a Bible, “This is my compass, my North Star. It gives me comfort and guidance to do what’s best for Arkansas.”
[See the ad:]
[jwplayer mdOsKZIL]
What’s wrong with that?
Nothing, if it’s true. Nothing, if it is substantiated by a public record of votes and policy positions by a sitting senator. Nothing, if it’s sincere. If it is none of these things, one must question the motivation. And the motivation for Mark Pryor to play the Bible card couldn’t be more obvious.
Mark Pryor, like every other Democratic senator facing re-election next year, is looking at the polls. And he is sure not to like what he sees. Six weeks ago, his re-election appeared all but assured. But that was before the ugly truth about Obamacare became self-evident to all but those who will never see it or admit to seeing it. This ad comes out shortly after the polls showed Pryor in a statistical dead heat in his bid to remain in the Senate.
But could it be true, nonetheless?
It may be true that Pryor genuinely believes he’s a Christian. It may even be true that he is a believer. But it can’t true that his North Star is the Bible:
- No one could support the Obamacare legislation that ripped health care insurance away from millions if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could support borrowing money from future generations to spend wildly now without even subjecting spending programs to standards of effectiveness if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could refuse to oppose same-sex marriage if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could refuse to protect property rights from the government’s desire to seize land from rightful owners for use as parks if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could be rated at 16 percent by the Christian Coalition if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor was.
- No one in Congress could vote himself a raise during the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one would oppose requiring a photo ID to vote in federal elections if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could support warrantless wiretaps if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could support an open-border policy if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could vote to keep providing farm subsidies to people earning more than $750,000 a year if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could vote with the Democratic Party 87 percent of the time if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could vote against raising the death tax exemption or the estate tax exemption if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
- No one could be rated by the National Taxpayers Union at 19 percent if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor was.
- No one could favor permitting federal grants to organizations that perform abortions if the Bible were truly his North Star. Pryor did.
I could go on and on.
Pryor has been in the Senate a long time – too long.
In 2008, Arkansas Republicans did not even bother to field a challenger to Pryor, and he ran essentially unopposed. But the political landscape is much different now, and in 2014 he’s perhaps the most endangered member of a small club: Democratic senators in Republican enclaves.
To give you an idea of just how unrepresentative of Arkansas Pryor truly is, the state voted for Mitt Romney by 61 percent in 2012.
But Pryor is a solid supporter of Barack Obama.
In 2014 he most definitely has opposition – real opposition – in the person of Rep. Tom Cotton, a popular veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan.
But the real reason he is talking about the Bible for the first time in ads is because he still has a chance to win. Though he should be buried politically in his state, he isn’t yet. So he’s playing the Bible card.
And that’s why I say for Mark Pryor the last refuge of a scoundrel is the shameless exploitation of his “Christian faith” for political expediency without having any works to support his claim to using the Bible as his “North Star.”
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