(Diarist's note: Satire.)
WASHINGTON — Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, introduced a bill on the floor of the House of Representatives today that would make Jesus Christ an honorary American citizen.
"Mr. President, we've seen a lot of erosion of our Christian morals and values over the years," King said, speaking about his bill on the floor, "and so I come before you today to ask for consideration of House Bill 4503, which would grant American citizenship to Jesus Christ, our eternal Lord and Savior."
Drew Hammill, spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's, D-Calif., said the measure was "more jingoistic nonsense from the Party of No," noting that "honorary citizenship is legally meaningless."
Honorary American citizenship has been conferred on six people, most recently Gen. Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette, in 2002.
A Republican aide speaking on condition of anonymity said the measure was meant to "draw attention to the issue of whether or not the president is even a citizen of this country. Certainly there are different views on that, so if you have Jesus as an honorary citizen, that might help people feel better if they think Obama might need something similar."
The idea that President Obama is not a native-born American citizen has been propagated, despite evidence to the contrary including Obama's birth certificate, as part of a so-called "birther" movement among those on the far right wing.
House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, released a statement called King a "great American and a great statesman for introducing this critical piece of legislation that reinforces America's need for moral and spiritual guidance in an uncertain world."
"Tomorrow, the president may ask us to vote to institute government-run health care," the statement read. "Or he may send us a bill that removes support for our fighting American men and women. He may again try to raise taxes on the middle class. Or he may again try to convince Americans to allow dangerous terrorists, Muslim jihadists, into our communities via prisons that just were not built to hold these people who will do anything to hurt America. This bill that Rep. King has written would certainly be a great spiritual blessing upon our nation and help steer those of us in Congress toward more Christ-like, more Christian decisions."
Boehner wouldn't say what the legal effect would be of making the Jewish prophet an honorary American, noting only that "in these troubling times, the more spiritual guidance and strength we can afford ourselves, the better for the Congress and, frankly, the country." When asked if he thought Obama was an American-born citizen, Boehner said that was a question for Obama, not the Ohio Republican.
Others upon whom honorary citizenship has been bestowed are Mother Theresa, in 1996; former Pennsylvania Gov. and Mrs. William Penn, in 1984; Swedish diplomat World War II hero Raoul Wallenberg, in 1981; and former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, in 1963.
Reached for comment, the White House responded with a statement saying the president "remains committed to working to reach bipartisan solutions to the problems facing America. He trusts that Rep. King is also concerning himself with the problems of health care reform, advancing America's renewable energy interests, improving our schools and supporting our troops." Aides declined to comment on the specifics of the bill because they said they hadn't read it.
Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, said he planned to vote against the measure.
"This bill, I think, at this time is not the most pressing matter before this Congress," Loebsack said. "I understand and agree with King that we are facing tough times, but I think the approach I use to address that is to just hunker down and do my best for my constituents, not propose measures like this."
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said Loebsack was ignoring "America's fundamentally Christian heritage. And it's not the first time. Maybe Rep. Loebsack has forgotten that Iowa is a deeply religious place, a place with people who go to church on Sundays. And I've never seen Dave on a Sunday. But the bottom line is that America is a nation founded by Christians with Christian morals and values and beliefs and ideals, and this is just another example of the Democrat Party running away from our very foundation."
Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, called the bill "a joke and a waste of time."
"Let me get this straight," Harkin said. "We're facing a recession, two wars, health care reform, the auto industry in crisis, global warming and ... and this is what Steve King things should be the House's priority, and then the Senate's? I get calls from working Iowans every day, and they're concerned about their mortgages, their jobs, their children, their fighting loved ones overseas and their environment. They most certainly are not concerned about whether or not Jesus is an honorary American."
After submitting the bill, King reportedly sent a request to his fundraising list asking for calls to the offices of congressional leaders "so your representative in Washington knows where you stand on this critical spiritual issue. Call, don't e-mail, your senator and your member of Congress. We need your help to overcome the anti-Christian bias pervasive in government thanks to Liberal factions like Daily Kos."