‘Top Line’ Book Corner: Rev. Jim Wallis’ ‘Rediscovering Values’

ABC News’ Rick Klein reports: Words like "crisis" get thrown around fairly regularly these days, in the era of the Great Recession, spiraling health care costs, and record budget deficits. Another kind of crisis is the focus of the Rev. Jim Wallis’ new book, "Rediscovering Values: On Wall Street, Main Street, and Your Street." Wallis, the president and CEO of the progressive Christian group Sojourners, told us on ABC’s "Top Line" today that the nation is ready for a deeper discussion — touching on values and faith — in these anxious times. "Underneath the economic crisis there’s a values crisis going on," Wallis told us. "I think Americans are ready for a conversation about values. Not just about faith — it's anybody who cares about values, because religion has no monopoly on morality. But underneath this crisis is a serious values question. So the politicians want to say, 'When will the crisis end?' I'm saying it’s the wrong question. 'How will the crisis change us?' is the better question." The anger at Wall Street bailouts and bonuses, while ordinary Americans struggle to stay in their homes and stay afloat, offers an opportunity for a broader reexamination of values, Wallis said. "I think the country is wanting to have this conversation. You mention populist rag — how about moral indignation? I mean, I was on the steps of the Treasury building before Christmas with some people being foreclosed upon, and the woman who spoke before me, she started crying. Her mortgage is now a time bomb. And you want to — in a religious sense, we extend grace to these big banks and Wall Street — we're worried about meltdown. They're extending no grace to the people who are being foreclosed upon." Watch the full discussion with the Rev. Jim Wallis HERE. Also on today’s "Top Line," we checked in with GOP strategist Kevin Madden about President Obama's plans to levy a new tax on big financial institutions, plus Sarah Palin’s new gig as a Fox News contributor. Plus, here was Madden’s take on why Republicans may be letting up just a bit in their pummeling of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: "I think if the face of the Senate is Harry Reid, the face of the Obama administration is a giant stimulus bill and a giant health care bill, and Nancy Pelosi is the face of the House, 2010 is going to set up for good results for Republicans." You can watch the segment with Kevin Madden HERE.