Ellison's Shameful Public Relations Ploy

I am surprised that Thomas Jefferson has not risen from his grave to forcefully denounce a recent action by a Muslim congressman who invoked his name in his oath of office. In a shameful public relations ploy, Congressman Keith Ellison, D-MI, took his ceremonial oath of office on a copy of the Koran that had once belonged to Thomas Jefferson.

As if to say symbolically that Americans have nothing to fear since Jefferson owned a copy of the Koran, Ellison hoped that such a display would help to restore his dubious reputation. After all, how can one argue with Jefferson?

The problem is that there is no argument with Jefferson. The argument is with Ellison.

Jefferson never took his oath of office with his hand on the Koran, as everyone knows. And owning a book is no indication that the reader concurs with the opinions expressed in that book. I own a copy of the Koran. And, as everyone should know by now, I detest the book and agree with Salmon Rushdie's assessment of the verses therein. Yet I have the book in my possession. I own lots of books that espouse views that I deplore for the simple reason that knowledge is power. It is vitally important to know what our enemies are saying.

Thinking people normally have hundreds of books in their personal libraries. Jefferson was a thinking man. And as such it is no surprise that one would find a copy of the Koran in his collection.

But Thomas Jefferson was not a Muslim.

I even have a copy of Hitler's 'Mein Kampf.' I deplore every word of Hitler's ideology. Thus, for someone in posterity to seize my copy of Mein Kampf to use for their oath of office, claiming they are justified in doing so, since, after all, D. Martyn Lloyd-Morgan owned this book, would be a shameful travesty of truth, not to mention a desecration of my memory.

For one thing, I deplore Adolf Hitler. The fact that I had the book means nothing other than I wanted to become knowledgeable concerning every bit of rubbish the book represents. In addition, I certainly would not support ANYONE at ANYTIME using Hitler's book in their oath of office.

The mere fact that Ellison seems to think that this shameful, dishonest display would help mend his reputation only points to how cynical he is about the intelligence of most Americans. Maybe those who voted for him are that stupid, but not the rest of us.

I can almost imagine Jefferson reaching up from the grave and indignantly snatching the book from the hands of Ellison and hitting him over the head with it. The Congressman has desecrated the memory of one of our country's founding patriots.