My Congressman Virgil Goode: The Mortification Continues

Yesterday I blogged that I was mortified by my Congressman Virgil Goode (R-Va.) because of a bigoted anti-Muslim letter that he sent out to selected constituents. According to the Washington Post, Virgil Goode (R-Va.) is standing by that missive. The Post reports:

In his written response, Goode said he will not apologize and does not see why his comments could be offensive to some Muslims. "The voters of each Congressional district select the representative that they choose to represent them, and perhaps voters in all districts will now ask prospective candidates whether they will use the Bible, the Koran, or anything else," Goode said.

The Post also points out:

When members of Congress are sworn in, they simply raise their right hand. In a ceremony afterward, they may take the oath of office on a Christian Bible, another religious book or no book at all.

Nihad Awad, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, responded:

Congressman Goode's ignorant and divisive statements are an affront to Muslims in his district and to Americans of all faiths who believe in our nation's longstanding traditions of religious tolerance and diversity.

Sounds about right to me.

Disclosure: For the first time since 1972, I voted a straight Democratic ticket in the last election, which means I voted for Goode's Democratic opponent.