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Bill Maher answered his own question while discussing the political prospects for Anthony Weiner and whether he is able to make a comeback in New York, compared to Mr. Appalachian trail, Mark Sanford, who has already been forgiven and won his party's primary for the upcoming House race in South Carolina.

As Maher explained during his New Rules segment this Friday, the Republicans are the Christian party and "there's nothing Evangelicals eat up like a redemption story," but when it comes to the Jewish guy from New York, "no Jesus mulligan for him."

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Chris Hayes and his Story of the Week on the predicament for Republican party and conservatives who are "creating their own electoral enemies" with "its visceral appeal to anxieties and fears of white Christians."

After listening to Republicans discussing their some of their losses after this last election, I'd say they're more than aware that they've got a problem, but are unwilling to admit they need to do more than put a little nicer window dressing on their policies. And I don't see them giving up on the fearmongering any time soon. It's all they've got left.

White identity politics doomed 2012 Republican effort:

Of all the surprising and revealing results from Tuesday night, there is one relatively small bit of exit polling data that I think is the key to understanding the entire evening.

You’ve probably heard by now that Mitt Romney won white voters by a sizable margin, while Barack Obama ran up huge margins among African-Americans and Latinos.

In fact, he won Latinos by 71% to 27%, an even wider margin than in 2008 when he won them 67% to 31%. But almost no one has noticed what to me is the most shocking result, and that’s how the two candidates did with Asian-American voters.

Now, Asian-Americans made up a very small sliver of the electorate, just 3%, so a presidential candidate’s performance within that group doesn’t necessarily carry with it massive electoral consequences.

But Asian-Americans are also, according to the latest census, the fastest growing racial sub category in America. In fact, the census projects that by mid-century they will make up 9% of the country. And as it happens, Asian-Americans are also the nation’s highest earning ethnicity, with median incomes even higher than those of whites.

So you might have predicted that Mitt Romney would do well with them, since he won among voters making more than $100,000 a year.

But he did not. He got creamed, losing Asian-American voters 73% to 26%. This is a shocking result not only because just 20 years ago George HW Bush carried Asian-Americans comfortably, or because the margin is so wide,but because the entire category of Asian-American is so obviously a construction there’s little reason to suspect members of the group would vote with each other in any discernible pattern.

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Bill Maher took a shot at those so-called Christian conservatives who laud torture in his "New Rules" segment on Real Time:

MAHER: And finally New Rule, if you're a Christian who supports killing your enemies and torture, you have to come up with a new name for yourself.

Maher also took a shot at those who say they're following the teachings of Christ but lauded the killing of Osama bin Laden last week and explained why he didn't feel bound to that same set of morals, and why he felt those that claim to be following the teachings of Jesus are hypocrites if they were cheering bin Laden's death.

I think Maher makes some great points here and on a regular basis about what has become of the Christian right these days where there are way too many of them lauding violence and with no regard for the poor and the downtrodden and that seem to love the Old Testament while ignoring pretty much all of the New Testament and the message of nonviolence and social justice.

If anyone ever expects him to make those points gently when it comes to any religion, well, you're better off just not watching his show, because that ain't gonna' happen just as it didn't here.

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Apparently the GOP's favorite fake plumber Joe Wurzelbacher speaking about Nancy Pelosi and saying that "those kind of people I usually took behind the woodshed and beat the livin' tar out of" was a bit hit at Americans for Prosperity's right wing conference that they held as their alternative to Netroots Nation.

It's so nice to see these good self proclaimed Christians having no problem with advocating violence as a means to an end that they would prefer to use. I don't have a lot of use for Mrs. "Impeachment is Off the Table" Pelosi myself, but I find it extremely offensive that someone would even suggest that violence would be a suitable means to get that or any other point across to her.

I'm sure Mr. Wurzelbacher will feign ignorance once called out on this and say he wasn't actually calling for anyone to beat the crap out of Nancy Pelosi. Sorry Joe... or is it Sam? If you put the suggestion out there that this is acceptable behavior, you are advocating violence towards the Speaker. It's unacceptable and given the fringe that's been whipped up into a frenzy these days, it's dangerous. Shame on you.

If you're worried about responsibility, you'd better take some for the words that come out of your mouth.

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From the Cafferty File:

As the debate about torture rages on in Washington — with calls for investigations of the Bush administration — here’s a perhaps surprising nugget about how Americans view torture of suspected terrorists.

Turns out the more often people go to church, the more likely they are to support torture — that’s according to a new survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.

The poll finds that of more than half of Americans who attend church services at least once a week, 54 percent say the use of torture is often or sometimes justified.

Only 42 percent of people who seldom or never go to church agree…

Evangelical Protestants are the religious group most likely to agree; while people unaffiliated with any religious group are least likely to support torture.

Of course evangelicals were a major voting bloc courted by President Bush both times he ran for office; and former Bush officials continue to speak out now about how the harsh techniques yielded critical information that helped keep this country safe. But it’s ironic that the faithful are more supportive of torture, isn’t it?

Overall, Pew found 49 percent of Americans say torture is at least “sometimes” justified; while 47 percent say it rarely or never is. Republicans are more likely to support the actions than Democrats; while a majority of Independents believe that torture is sometimes justified.

Here’s my question to you: Why is it that the more often Americans go to church, the more likely they are to support torture of suspected terrorists?

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