McCain: Constitution establishes a ‘Christian nation’

I've always thought the constitutional language was straightforward: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." The Constitution is entirely secular -- there's no mention of God, the Bible, the Ten Commandments, or the Judeo-Christian tradition.

With this in mind, one wonders what Constitution Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has been reading.

A recent poll found that 55 percent of Americans believe the U.S. Constitution establishes a Christian nation. What do you think?

I would probably have to say yes, that the Constitution established the United States of America as a Christian nation. But I say that in the broadest sense. The lady that holds her lamp beside the golden door doesn't say, "I only welcome Christians." We welcome the poor, the tired, the huddled masses. But when they come here they know that they are in a nation founded on Christian principles.

John McCain has been in Congress for several decades, and he's sworn to uphold the Constitution on more than a few occasions. One would like to think he's read it enough times to know this is nonsense.

Indeed, what BeliefNet did not mention in the question is that the poll was conducted by the First Amendment Center, which released the results on Constitution Day. The accompanying report noted that far too many Americans are confused about the Constitution.

Apparently, it's not just the electorate that's mistaken.