I don’t know about you but I don’t buy for one second Bill O’Reilly’s claim that he only fights the war on Christmas because he has to. I’d say he does it because it gets him lots of attention and almost certainly doesn’t hurt in the ratings department. Oh, yeah, and it gives him an excuse to go after his favorite targets while putting on his Christian martyr halo. So it was with more than a little skepticism that I watched him announce tonight on The O’Reilly Factor that he wished he didn't have to fight the war on Christmas, it's just his duty “to keep this country sane” and “it’s not an easy deal.”

O’Reilly opened up last night’s War on Christmas segment with his sad story:

Every year I have to deal with assaults against Christmas That does not make me happy. I don’t want to do this. But I, personally? I’m fed up. The people who want to diminish the Christmas federal holiday are insulting me. And they’re insulting you, if you’re a Christian and believe in traditional America.

But fear not, traditional Americans. O’Reilly assured us he is “not gonna back away from my campaign to keep Christmas, Christmas in this country.” Tonight, he brought on Father Jonathan Morris to discuss this valiant stance.

Yesterday, Father Jonathan Morris visited Fox & Friends in a segment some viewed as a smackdown of Fox’s war on Christmas. But I did not. What Morris said then and what he reiterated tonight, is that the “assault” is real but people shouldn’t let it get them down.

The reason I’m not angry is that, yes, I think it’s silly, it’s out of place for people to dedicate so much energy to try to get rid of Christmas scenes like this. The good news is when Christianity has been persecuted, when it has been outlawed, when people have died for their faith, it hasn’t gone away. Everybody has an opportunity to make sure their faith does not go away in this Christmas season to live that faith as a family, as a community. What should we do about these, I think very small percentage of people who are working to try to get rid of these public expressions of faith? I think we should speak up. That’s why I am doing it. That’s why I think it’s important we have these stories to show what they are trying to do — without losing the peace. If our Christmas is going to be all about getting a upset at people trying to take away Christmas, isn’t that silly too?

Thin-skinned O’Reilly told Morris, “It isn’t silly… my campaign. Mine is very deadly serious.” O’Reilly said, “I see this as a much larger picture. It’s not about the crèche, it’s not about a Christmas tree, it’s not about tinsel and Charlie Brown. This is about an assault on Christian America that’s been going on for many, many years.”

Morris agreed that it’s important to “speak out” against the so-called assault on Christmas “but not to get upset to the point in which our Christmas – my Christmas – becomes all about being angry at people who are not (unintelligible) Christianity.”

Laughably, O’Reilly said, “I don’t think anybody’s in that category. I’m certainly not.” Oh, no. It’s out of the joy of the Christmas spirit that every year O’Reilly goes out of his way to use the holiday as some kind of malicious crusade against those who disagree with his idea of how to recognize it.

O’Reilly “explained” further:

My charge here is to keep this country sane, OK? That’s what I have to do. And it’s not an easy deal.  And I don’t have a lot of people coming up behind me.

While you’re looking out for the sanity and values of America, Bill, don’t you think that disregarding your marriage vows might also contribute to the downfall of “traditional,” Christian America?