Video- President Obama on mine blast at prayer breakfast

Tea Bagger: " I would like to think that Bebe Netanyahu is watching this tonight."

By GottaLaff

Liveblogging the prayer leader at the Tea Tantrum Convention:

If we don't defend the U.S., who will defend Israel... We must stand with the state of Israel... I would like to think that Bebe Netanyahu is watching this tonight.

Yes, I'm sure he's glued to the set.

VIDEO: Barrasso confirms Coburn's prayer answered

By GottaLaff

By now you've heard about Doctor Senator Coburn's prayer for "someone" to miss the health care vote, the implication being his wish for the ailing Senator Byrd to be, um, "unable" to make it:

United States Senator Tom Coburn asked people to pray for a Senator to miss the health care reform bill vote. Those prayers were fulfilled because United States Senator James Inhofe missed the vote.

Irony is not dead:



H/t: Hippie_Cyndi

VIDEO: Rabbis protest outside Joe Lieberman's home

By GottaLaff

From a few days ago, but still relevant:

"We ask you Joe, look into your conscience". He assumes Traitor Joe has a conscience:

--Sen Joseph Lieberman, Nov 8, on Fox News Sunday.

Rabbi Fish of Beth El, in Norwalk, calls on Lieberman's conscience to do the right thing. His invocation of the Torah commandment (Lo taamod al dam reakha, "Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbors") was especially poignant.

Amen.

H/t: Pearlagogo, JayAckroyd

Sarah Palin's prayer remark angers former staffers

By GottaLaff

The Praying Can'tis (original video/post here) is getting some mighty negative feedback. That's what happens when you diss your former (running mate's) staff who knocked their brains out for you, don'tcha know also too:

Some of Sarah Palin's former campaign aides are frustrated with the Alaska governor for remarking in a lengthy, freewheeling speech that she had refused to pray with them before last October's vice presidential debate. [...]

A handful of the McCain campaign staffers who traveled with the former vice presidential nominee nearly every day for two months caught wind of Palin's remarks on Thursday morning — and they aren't thrilled with her quip.

"We all talked this A.M.," said one former Palin aide in an e-mail. "This set off a nerve for sure with a lot of people."

What?! The Praying Can'tis abrasive? Insensitive? Tin-eared? Offensive? Reeee-dicklus!

Just kidding.

If only someone would speak candidly:

"It's yet another example of the few staff still loyal to Palin questioning their loyalty and ardent defense of her over the several months since the campaign," said the aide, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly about campaign colleagues.

Since election day, Palin has publicly griped about the way she was handled by the McCain team and pushed back against some of the campaign advisers who attacked her anonymously in the press.

But another former staffer said that in doing so, Palin is failing to distinguish between the strategists at McCain headquarters and the people who were at her side every day from late August through election day.

She's not too bright, is she? Not too aware. Not too wise. Everyone who already knew that, raise your hand. ... Wow! I can't see the sky any more! Hands down!

"It's about us people who were on the plane, who showed extreme loyalty to Palin, continually getting thrown under the bus or slapped in the face by her comments, whether she means it or not," the staffer said, adding that Palin's remarks "cause you to question not only your loyalty but her judgment as a leader."

Isn't that cute, how Praying Can'tis is digging herself into a hole all by herself with no help from anyone? Isn't she just precious? What a big girl is she!

The former aides said they place part of the blame for Palin's post-campaign candor on the governor's staff in Alaska. Several have reached out individually to offer advice or assistance to the governor, but "have gotten only pleasantries in response," said one aide.

And who hired that staff, if you don't mind my asking?

"Who is the one making the decision that she needs to be out there saying these things?," the second staffer asked. "Someone needs to be telling her, 'Listen, let's not talk the campaign any more.' We need to talk about what's relevant and thinking about her influence as a voice in the Republican Party."

"The people that she has, either working at her PAC or advisers in Alaska, aren't exactly making the best decisions for her," the staffer said.

Palin's office in Alaska did not respond to a request for comment.

Apparently the staff (that she hired) that make all those decisions (which she approves) didn't want her to get in more hot water with a comment (that she would okay).

BuzzFlash has a little something to add.

VIDEO: Praying alone is no fun! Plus bonus "Sarah stiffs Alaska legislature" story!

By GottaLaff

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Let us pray for Grabby McEarmarks, who just doesn't seem to have a clue about, well, anything. Whazzat? Mixing religion and politics is not a good and healthy thing? My bad. If only Grabby knew that. (see video) But while we're waiting for her to catch on, let's take another peeky-weeky into Grabby World:

Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) backed out a scheduled meeting Thursday with state legislative leaders who have publicly criticized her plan to turn down a portion of the state’s federal stimulus funds.

“We had a meeting scheduled with the governor today and her legislative liaison told us that she wasn’t there and that we could meet with the staff,” said Gary Stevens, the state’s Republican Senate President, at an afternoon press conference. “We’re here, we’re available, and unfortunately she is not.”

She was out looking for a new Prayer Partner.

Palin fired back in a statement released during the press conference, claiming that the lawmakers cancelled the meeting with her so that they could “host their own press conference.”

Stevens said Palin’s account of events “is absolutely false.”

“To say that we cancelled the meeting to have a press conference is absolutely untrue and somebody should be brought to task on that,” he said.

God will smite her for lying. And yes, I just wanted to use the word "smite".

Stevens said the lawmakers turned down the offer because Palin’s staff “often has trouble answering questions.”

So does Palin herself.

The meeting was scheduled to negotiate a solution to the conflict between lawmakers and Palin over the 31 percent of federal stimulus package funds the governor said she plans to turn down. [...]

“I can't predict how much or what funds legislators might add to my request, and we haven't heard all the public testimony yet,” Palin said. “To say now what might happen with an unknown bill would be premature.”

With that, Grabby walked into a wall and kept right on going.

VIDEO: Bishop V. Gene Robinson’s Invocation, which HBO will air

By GottaLaff

There's been an uproar about Bishop Robinson's prayer being omitted from the HBO broadcast yesterday.

Sarah Pulliam of Christianity Today shot a video of Robinson’s invocation:

Leah McElrath Renna reports: "A PIC source reports that some clips from the Lincoln Memorial event, including Bishop Robinson's prayer, will be played on the Mall prior to the swearing in ceremony. In addition, there are reports that HBO will likely include the prayer in its re-broadcast of the event."

Will that be enough? Not likely.

Obama says they'd always intended for HBO to broadcast Robinson

By GottaLaff

Was it one of our commenters who attended the event and said that the audio of gay bishop Gene Robinson's prayer was garbled? So was it, indeed, a tech issue, or as Josh Earnest's message (below) suggests, an "error" by HBO (who blamed Team Obama for the omission)? HBO says it wasn't them:

Contacted Sunday night by AfterElton.com concerning the exclusion of Robinson's prayer, HBO said via email, "The producer of the concert has said that the Presidential Inaugural Committee made the decision to keep the invocation as part of the pre-show."

Uncertain as to whether or not that meant that HBO was contractually prevented from airing the pre-show, we followed up, but none of the spokespeople available Sunday night could answer that question with absolute certainty.

However, it does seem that the network's position is that they had nothing to do with the decision.

Via AMERICAblog:

“We had always intended and planned for Rt. Rev. Robinson’s invocation to be included in the televised portion of yesterday’s program. We regret the error in executing this plan – but are gratified that hundreds of thousands of people who gathered on the mall heard his eloquent prayer for our nation that was a fitting start to our event.” -- PIC communications director Josh Earnest

At least the Obama people think it important enough to weigh in, and that's a good thing.

Amen.

The next Rick Warren controversy: The inaugural prayer

By GottaLaff

Here we go again. If Rev. Rick prays in the name of Jesus, we could be in for a few more weeks of in-fighting, troll comments, and cable TV free-for-alls:

At George W. Bush's 2001 swearing-in, the Revs. Franklin Graham and Kirbyjon Caldwell were criticized for invoking Christ. The distinctly Christian reference at a national civic event offended some, and even prompted a lawsuit.

Warren did not answer directly when asked whether he would dedicate his prayer to Jesus. In a statement Tuesday to The Associated Press, Warren would say only that, ''I'm a Christian pastor so I will pray the only kind of prayer I know how to pray.''

''Prayers are not to be sermons, speeches, position statements nor political posturing. They are humble, personal appeals to God,'' Warren wrote. His spokesman would not elaborate.

I'd pray that he just goes away, but that one wouldn't be answered any time soon.

Evangelicals generally expect their clergymen to use Jesus' name whenever and wherever they lead prayer. Many conservative Christians say cultural sensitivity goes way too far if it requires religious leaders to hide their beliefs.

The Rev. Joseph Lowery, a United Methodist who is considered the dean of the civil rights movement:

''[W]hatever religion the person represents, I think he has a right to be true to his religion.''

Three words: Can. O'. Worms. Anyone else wish this would just go away? Hands?

Leaders of other traditions with experience in interfaith work said they respected Christians who felt strongly that they should pray in Christ's name.

But they argued that a request for some modification is reasonable for a presidential inauguration, considering it's an event representing all Americans. [...]

Rabbi Burt Visotzky, a professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary, the flagship institution of Conservative Judaism, said he invokes ''God'' for interfaith prayer.

''I know that for Christians, Jesus is part of their Trinity,'' said Visotzky, who has taught at Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and at Protestant seminaries in the U.S. ''For me as a Jew, hearing the name of a first-century rabbi isn't the worst thing in the world, but it's not my God.''

Rabbi Burt sounds a little like my grandma. I wonder if he makes good knaidlach.

Police: Woman's Loud Prayer Foils Robbery

Who says prayer doesn't work?

GREENSBORO -- A Greensboro, N.C., woman's prayers spooked a would-be robber who ran away after complaining that she was making too much noise.

Greensboro police said Kathy Headen, 38, was getting books from the back seat of her car Wednesday night at about 8 p.m. outside the Vance Chavis Library when a man with a gun demanded her purse and cell phone, Wintson Salem station WXII reported.

Police said Headen started praying aloud and the man asked her to stop talking so loudly, then left without taking anything. Police dogs tracked him but the trail ended.