Sen. Frist Rebuked by Key Christians

Senator Bill Frist has made something of an issue of participating in a planned broadcast on Sunday, sponsored by Focus on the Family, the Family Research Council, and other mullahs of the Christian Right, called "The Filibuster Against People of Faith." The idea of the telecast is to rouse the Christian Right to support Frist's "nuclear option" -- changing Senate rules to prohibit the Dems' use of the filibuster against judicial nominees -- by alleging that Democrats are "against people of faith" in opposing a handful of Bush's judicial nominees. (Current polls show that 50 percent of Americans are opposed to the nuclear option, a highly suspect poll, since it seems unlikely that 50 percent of Americans even understand what the battle is about or what Republicans are proposing to do and why. But whatever.)

Frist is under fire from moderate Christian leaders, including a top dog in the Presbyterian Church, the denomination to which Frist himself belongs. Several religious groups are holding a conference call today to criticize Frist's appealing to the bigotry of religious divisions.

Frist, who evidently fancies himself as "presidential," is revealing himself as actually quite ... small in terms of statemanship by stooping to such tactics. But, then, he knows the audience he has to play to to win the Republican nomination. It's his party, and he's welcome to it.