Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments today on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s continued dispute with the Catholic Church:

“On August 24, Pelosi contested the fact that the Catholic Church has always been unequivocally opposed to abortion. After being roundly criticized by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, and many individual bishops—led by Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput—as well as ten Catholic congressmen, the Catholic League et al., Pelosi’s office admitted yesterday that ‘Catholic teaching is clear that life begins at conception.’ Unfortunately, after this confession of ignorance, the statement continued by offering the quip that ‘many Catholics do not ascribe to that view.’ The release also said she shared the view of St. Augustine on the subjects of abortion and ensoulment.

“Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Melbourne, Australia, wrote in his 1997 book, Issues of Faith and Morals, that St. Augustine ‘believed that the embryo was ensouled at 46 days. Nevertheless, he also believed that it was gravely wrong to kill a formed or unformed fetus.’ It is instructive to note that philosophical discussions about the soul, and research on embryology, continue to advance beyond the knowledge available in the 5th century. In any event, Pelosi will find no relief for her bizarre reasoning by citing St. Augustine, or any other Church Father.

“Nor does her argument gain strength by pointing out that not all Catholics agree with the Church on this subject. So what? There are plenty of Catholics living a life rife with sin that seek to justify their behavior by saying they disagree with the Church on the source of their delinquency. What the House Speaker doesn’t get is that the Church is no more a democracy than the Democratic and Republican parties are: none arrive at conclusions based on referenda. Moreover, in the instance of the Catholic Church, the Magisterium is not the functional equivalent of the DNC or the RNC.

“Maybe that’s the source of Pelosi’s confusion—she really doesn’t understand the difference between the teaching authority of the Catholic Church and the DNC.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on Sen. Bob Casey, Jr.’s speech last night at the Democratic National Convention:

“It was billed as the breakthrough moment: the Democratic National Convention, which prohibited Gov. Bob Casey, Sr. from making a pro-life speech at the 1992 Convention, allowed his son to speak last night on the subject. But what happened? Casey blew it: The best he could do was to offer the standard cliché about promoting the ‘common good’ by seeking ‘common ground.’

“Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. never settled for a ‘common ground’ approach to fight racism—he sought to win. Similarly, Gov. Casey did not seek to fight abortion by looking for ‘common ground’: He knew that the ‘common good’ could only be achieved by protecting the lives of innocent human beings. Moreover, when it comes to human trafficking, the Democratic Party Platform does not seek ‘common ground’—it wants ‘strong legislation and enforcement.’ But when it comes to abortion, the Party jettisons a legal strategy, offering instead the tired mantra about achieving ‘common ground.’

“The Casey collapse can only be understood against the forces he must deal with on a constant basis. For example, the Democratic National Convention has already been host to the presidents of NARAL and Planned Parenthood, and yesterday featured an Emily’s List event. Emily’s List is the nation’s richest PAC, and it only gives money to abortion-rights women candidates for office. At its special gathering on Tuesday, it was able to attract the most radical pro-abortion women in America: not surprisingly, Hillary and Michelle were there. That this is the only venue where those two could ever find common ground speaks volumes. It also explains why Casey settled for clichés.”

On yesterday’s NBC-TV show, “Meet the Press,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was asked to comment on when life begins. Here is what she said: “I would say that as an ardent, practicing Catholic, this is an issue that I have studied for a long time. And what I know is, over the centuries, the doctors of the Church have not been able to make that definition.”

When Tom Brokaw told her that the Catholic Church “feels very strongly” that life begins at conception, Pelosi said, “I understand. And this is like maybe 50 years or something like that. So again, over the history of the Church, this is an issue of controversy.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue responded as follows:

“Here is what the Catechism of the Catholic Church says: ‘Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception.’ It also says, ‘Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable.’ Looks like Pelosi didn’t study the subject long enough. But not to worry: We are sending her a copy of Catholicism for Dummies today (the Catechism is like maybe a bit advanced).

“Whether Joe Biden is as ignorant of what his religion teaches remains to be seen. What is not in doubt is the enthusiasm which NARAL showed when he was selected to join the ticket. The radical pro-abortion group was delighted, as were the radical pro-abortion delegates to the Democratic convention: as reported in today’s New York Times, 64 percent of Americans reject abortion-on-demand, yet only 23 percent of the delegates do. It is only fitting, then, that NARAL’s president will speak today at the Convention and Planned Parenthood’s president will speak tomorrow.

“So there we have it: the man running for president on the Democratic ticket supports selective infanticide, his running mate is a pro-abortion Catholic, the delegates are wildly out of step with Americans on abortion and the Speaker of the House hasn’t a clue what her religion teaches on the subject.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue speaks to the growing interest in Sen. Barack Obama’s abortion record:

“The pro-life community has been tracking Obama’s support for selective infanticide for quite a while, but only recently has there been a national discussion on this issue. On May 15, I said on ‘Fox and Friends’ that ‘There’s been a media cover-up on this [issue].’ But now the cat’s out of the bag.

“Last night on ‘Hannity and Colmes’ Bob Beckel tried to argue that neither Obama nor NARAL supports the selective killing of infants. Yet the bill that would offer protection to children who survived abortions is precisely what Obama opposed when he was in the Illinois state senate. As for NARAL, it initially opposed the bill when it was introduced in 2000 and then lied about it; in 2002, after it became clear that NARAL had no support from pro-abortion congressmen and senators, it changed its position.

“On July 20, 2000, NARAL issued a news release, Roe v. Wade Faces Renewed Assault in House: Anti-Choice Lawmakers Hold Hearing On So-Called ‘Born Alive Infants Protection Act.’ The news release stated that NARAL was opposed to the bill introduced by Rep. Charles Canady. Yet on October 29, 2000, NARAL’s New York executive director Kelli Conlin told WNBC-TV’s Gabe Pressman that NARAL was not opposed to the bill. I told her on the show that she was ‘an out-and-out liar’ and mailed her and Pressman the evidence following the show. Neither replied.

“It’s quite clear what’s going on: the radical pro-abortionists—and no one is more radical than Obama and NARAL—will even defend selective infanticide if there is one chance in a million that it will chip away at Roe v. Wade. Incredibly, even NARAL eventually dropped its opposition to the bill, something Obama never did (his campaign now admits that the wording of the Illinois bill and the federal bill were virtually identical). Which means that when it comes to abortion, Obama wins the Gold.”

Over 120 blogs have been credentialed as members of the media for the Democratic National Convention; those who have received credentials are allowed to cover the Convention at the Pepsi Center. While most of them offer legitimate commentary, some do not.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue is protesting two of the blogs:

“The list of credentialed blogs include radical sites like The Daily Kos. Worse are blogs that feature anti-Catholic and obscene material. The two most offensive are Bitch Ph.D. and Towleroad.

“On the home page of Bitch Ph.D. there is a picture of two children: one of them is shown flashing his middle finger. Today’s lead post, which was written August 17, is called ‘Jesus Christ.’ It begins with, ‘I’m a really crappy Catholic who hasn’t been to mass in ages because most parishes around here ‘will’ insist on being aggressively anti-abortion….’ The writer then objects to some children’s toys on the grounds that they are more offensive than desecrating the Eucharist. The toys are actually balloons that have been made to depict Jesus in various poses, including a crucified Christ; one of these images shows Jesus with a penis. Several who commented on this image made patently obscene comments.

“Towleroad describes itself as ‘A Site with Homosexual Tendencies.’ Accordingly, it shows men in jock straps and underwear. It also has a post on Pope Benedict XVI that takes him to task for wearing a cape with ermine. Some of those who commented on this described the pope in a vile and profane way.

“Both of these blogs should be cut immediately from the list of credentialed sites. Neither functions as a responsible media outlet and both offend Catholics, as well as others. To allow them access to the Democratic National Convention sends a message to Catholics they will not forget. We look for Leah Daughtry, CEO of the Convention, to nix them ASAP.”

Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey, Jr. will speak at the Democratic National Convention on August 26. His father, Bob Casey, was barred from speaking at the 1992 Democratic National Convention because he was pro-life.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue responded as follows:

“If a Democrat voted with the National Rifle Association two out of every three times, no one in his right mind would call that person an advocate of gun control. Yet Bob Casey, Jr., who has a NARAL voting record of 65 percent (click here)—meaning that he votes with the radical pro-abortion group two out of every three times—is somehow considered pro-life. Casey can mouth the virtues of pro-life all he wants, but at the end of the day what matters is his voting record.

“Casey’s father, contrary to the latest spin, was not denied the right to speak at the 1992 convention because he didn’t endorse Bill Clinton. As Bob Casey said at the time, California Treasurer Kathleen Brown (sister of Jerry Brown), was allowed to speak even though she endorsed her brother over Clinton. The difference was that Brown was pro-abortion.

“The Democrats—with the help of their friends in the media—will now use the Pennsylvania pro-abortion senator to sell the message that they have gotten beyond their anti-Catholic reputation. That reputation, which was played out in 1992 by delegates who wore anti-papal buttons at the convention, still sticks. If they are serious about reaching out to Catholics and jettisoning their anti-Catholic baggage once and for all, they can allow a prominent Catholic to speak in Denver who is truly pro-life. That should be an easy choice to make given the small pool of eligible candidates.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments today on the role that atheists are seeking at the Democratic National Convention:

“The Democrats are in a jam. Long the party of choice for atheists, they have profoundly alienated people of faith from joining their ranks, so much so that they have lost the last two elections because of these so-called values voters. But now that they are reaching out to the faithful, however clumsily, they have angered the atheists.

“No one is in a jam more than Leah Daughtry, the religious point-person for the Democrats and CEO of the Convention. She has been boasting a lot lately about her effort to have the first Democratic convention start with a religious service, but not only is her boast unwarranted, it has drawn fire from atheists.

“To begin with, the Democratic Convention is not starting with a religious service: it is being held on August 24, the day before the convention begins. It is still not clear whether clergy will be allowed to wear religious garb, but the venue has been decided. According to the New York Times, ‘the service [will] be held in a theater, in neutral, secular space, so as not to offend anyone.’ Among those who are already offended by the watered-down event is the Secular Coalition of America.

“The Coalition says the meeting ‘excludes nontheistic Democrats’ and is ‘divisive rather than unifying.’ Accordingly, they have asked Daughtry for an invitation to be there, adding, naturally, that ‘this whole situation could be avoided if no interfaith gathering existed in the first place.’ Daughtry, sporting her inclusive stripes, questioned, ‘Atheists speaking at an interfaith service…does that work? I don’t quite know. But they’re part of the Party, you treat them with respect.’ She still hasn’t answered.

“Meanwhile the Freedom from Religion Foundation is posting a billboard near the Convention Center that says, ‘KEEP RELIGION OUT OF POLITICS.’ Looks like they may have scored one with the Dems.”

According to an article in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal, Random House has reneged on an agreement to publish a novel about Aisha, Muhammad’s young wife. The Jewel of Medina, written by Sherry Jones, allegedly has some racy material, enough to provoke one of the writers who vetted the book, Denise Spellberg, to warn the publisher that it could inspire violence. Random House decided not to publish the book for “fear of a possible terrorist threat from extremist Muslims” and concern for “the safety and security of the Random House building and employees.”

Addressing this today is Catholic League president Bill Donohue:

“There are several issues here. First, where is the outcry from the academic community about the scare tactics of Denise Spellberg, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin? She was the one who sounded the alarms and even got her lawyer to warn Random House that her name was not to be associated with her demagoguery. Second, it is known that the woman whom Jones is writing about, Aisha, was, in fact, six years old when Muhammad wrote the marriage contract; she was nine when the marriage was consummated. So now no one can write a historical novel about his perversions? Third, Doubleday published Dan Brown’s anti-Catholic novel, The Da Vinci Code, and Doubleday is owned by Random House. So what does it take for Random House not to offend religious sensibilities? Threats of violence? Great message.

“The Catholic League will continue to speak out against anti-Catholic books, movies, artwork, music, plays and the like, and we will continue to do so by exercising our First Amendment right to freedom of speech. And we will continue to blast all those phony ‘free speech’ advocates who remain silent about matters like this. Next time they accuse us of censorship for merely voicing our objections about anti-Catholicism, we will be sure to throw this one in their face.”

Before leaving for Beijing tomorrow, President George W. Bush will give a speech in Bangkok, Thailand that cites the lack of religious liberties, as well as other human rights, that exist in China.

In his speech, Bush will say that “America stands in firm opposition to China’s detention of political dissidents, human rights advocates and religious activists.” Moreover, Bush will say that “I have spoken clearly, candidly and consistently with China’s leaders about our deep concerns over religious freedom and human rights.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue applauds what President Bush is doing and draws a contrast with what Sen. McCain and Sen. Obama have said about this matter:

“This is good news. In addition to President Bush’s statement on religious freedom that he is expected to give following a Beijing church service, the president is now going to call attention to China’s human rights deficit shortly before he arrives for the Olympic games. And Bush well knows that the first liberty is religious liberty, without which all freedoms are meaningless. His comments on this subject come on the heels of a plea by Pope Benedict XVI to Chinese leaders ‘to open [China] to the Gospel.’

“By contrast, Sen. McCain and Sen. Obama look weak. For example, McCain recently implored the president not to be ‘confrontational’ with Chinese officials about the issue of human rights. Should he be obsequious? Obama has spoken out about the rights of Tibetans (as has McCain) but has been singularly silent about the religious rights of the Chinese people. Will he now say something?

“Bush has shown the way. The ball is now in the court of the presidential candidates.”