'Don't want an atheist, don't want a Muslim': Oregon GOPer wants Christian-only government
Any lawmaker who isn't Christian or stands as a disbeliever in his faith has no place serving in elected office, one Republican is advocating.
Oregon's Rep. E. Werner Reschke (R-Malin) expressed the take while appearing on the Facebook-streamed "Save The Nation" talk show, which has ties to the National Association of Christian Lawmakers.
When posed by host, former Arkansas lawmaker Jason Rapert, about adding a "spiritual component" in government, Reschke returned that those in power need an "awakening" and that more Christians “be involved in government” and "voting."
“You go back in history, and you look at men, and the struggles that they faced, and the faith that they had, and those are the types of people you want in government making tough decisions at tough times," he said, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB).
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"You don’t want a materialist. You don’t want an atheist. You don’t want a Muslim… You want somebody who understands what truth is and understands the nature of man, the nature of government, and the nature of God. If you don't understand those things you're going to get things wrong.”
He then lamented that in Oregon, many people are "godless" and "leading the way, and it's the blind leading the blind."
Rapert ended the 28-minute episode in a prayer where he praised Reschke for trying to get people to steer away from the "scourge" of drugs and also for a "revival to turn the state around."
According to the outlet, Reschke has been a hardliner seeking laws that are harsher toward drug users and homelessness.
In an email to the OPB, Reschke claims his comments on the show have been “grossly taken out of context.”
House Republican Leader Jeff Helfrich seemed to steer clear of Reschke’s remarks.
“House Republicans, like all elected members, swear an oath to the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Oregon,” Helfrich said in a statement to OPB. “Neither document contains a religious test for elected office. We welcome all people, regardless of religion, who share our values and wish to see Oregon set a new course away from the radical and destructive policies of the majority party.”