by Mario T. García
Jesus was born a poor man and he ministered to the poor. He spoke about his special love for the poor. Unfortunately, it seems his voice would not be welcomed among the Republicans, including Republican Catholics and Christians who have seemingly forgotten the roots of the very faith they claim to represent.
It is unbelievable that such Republicans and some Democrats would instead have a preferential option for the very rich that represent no more than 1 percent, if even that, of the total population.
These politicians would rather give unfair tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires than support the poor and unemployed through longer extensions of unemployment benefits, including to those who have exhausted their unemployment benefits. Instead of supporting immediate job creation programs, they instead want to allow the very rich more money to stash away or to buy one more luxury item.
Despite their clamor for reducing the deficit, they’d rather give more tax breaks to the very rich that almost all economist agree only adds to the deficit because those tax cuts are not paid for.
But it’s the callousness and lack of humanity that bothers me the most.
How these Republicans (and I signal them out because they could provide the needed votes to defeat the tax extension for the very rich) can, despite their stated Christian values, only prefer the rich to the poor is mind-boggling and un-Christian.
Can anyone really imagine Jesus standing on the floor of the House of Representatives or the Senate and calling for a preference for the rich?
