Just days ago, Joe Biden became the latest politician to castigate the offering of prayers in response to tragedy.

Speaking at a lunch with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti Wednesday, the 2020 hopeful referenced the terrible Colorado shooting, in which student Kendrick Castillo was fatally shot while charging a gunman and throwing him against a wall. For more on that situation, please see here.

Joe claimed it’s “outrageous that we still only talk about offering prayers.”

Of course, when a Democratic politician uses such words regarding a crime involving a firearm, what they really mean is that it’s inexcusable for the world not to enact left-wing legislation, aka gun control.

Therefore, the statement is actually, “It’s outrageous that we’re not all Democrats.”

Here’s what he had to say:

“[I]t’s outrageous — it’s outrageous that we still only talk about offering prayers. Look, I don’t know enough detail to know — maybe you guys do — about whether or not, what kind of weapon was used, what the background checks were of the detail. But the idea the we don’t have universal background checks, the idea that we don’t outlaw a number of the weapons that I was able to get outlawed in the crime bill, from large magazines and assault weapons, this is crazy. By the way, it has no — it doesn’t impact on the First, the Second Amendment at all.”

Speaking of “by the way”: By the way, handguns are used in the majority of crimes, not “assault weapons” using large magazines.

The former vice president then moved to trigger locks:

“Look, if you left your car out there with the keys in it, and some kid took it? You’re gonna be sued for that and responsible. Why in God’s name — I don’t know where the gun came from, but if the gun came from somebody who didn’t have a trigger lock on it and the person doesn’t own it, they should be held responsible. It’s a requirement for public safety; it’s necessary. … The idea we have to rely on a young man throwing his body in front of, you know, someone who’s firing on our children? It’s just bizarre.”

Joe’s polishin’ his presidential shoes. But is the dismissal of prayer and the glomming onto a teen’s murder in order to push for trigger locks the best way to do so? Maybe it is.

CNN host Chris Cuomo’s surely on board; he responded to November’s 12-casualty Thousand Oaks shooting thusly:

“’First, I would like to offer my thoughts and prayers.’ Because that’s what you do when you offer, thoughts and prayers. You mock those who lost loved ones, because if you gave it any thought at all, you would never walk away from any of these without figuring out a better way to deal with them. And prayer — you think leaving it to God is the answer? ‘We pray for strength; we pray for wisdom; for resolve.’ But we clearly don’t want to act on any of those here. So what are you praying for?”

Democrats used to publicly value communication with a Creator. Consider this Inaugural Invocation from Billy Graham:

“And now, on this twentieth day of January, 1993, we commit to you President-elect (Bill) Clinton and Vice-President-elect (Al) Gore, who you have permitted to take leadership at this critical time in our nation’s history. Help them always to see the office to which they’ve been elected as a sacred trust from you. We pray that you will bless their wives who will share so much of the responsibility and burdens. Make President-elect Clinton know that he is never really alone but that the eternal God can be his refuge and he can turn to you in every circumstance. Give him the wisdom you’ve promised to whose who ask and the strength that you alone can give. We thank you for his predecessor President Bush and the dedication he gave to this office. Bless him as he and Mrs. Bush continue their dedicated service to our country in other spheres. We commit this inaugural ceremony to you and ask that the memory of this event may always remind us to pray for our leaders. I pray this in the name of the one that’s called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, the Everlasting Father and the Prince of Peace. Amen.”

Billy Graham was — it should be noted — a Democrat.

We’ve come far. But not in the good kind of way.

I don’t think the Joe’s intent was to say prayer is a bad thing, but the tactic is lame. Will his rhetoric bolster chances for an Oval Office triumph? And should people talk into microphones while they eat? I lean toward No on both counts.

Joe did get manage to get in some jabs at Trump, including a bunt of this softball: A report goofily asked, “Mr. Vice President, are we in a constitutional crisis  at this point?” JB offered the ominous “It will depend on how the administration acts from here.”

-ALEX

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