02/07/2007
Catholic Leader Demands John Edwards Fire "Pro-gay" Bloggers
John Edwards' recent hiring of Amanda Marcotte and Melissa McEwan to do outreach to liberal activists and voters on the internet has prompted an outcry from Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights.
Donohue's demand: "John Edwards is a decent man who has had his campaign tarnished by two anti-Catholic, vulgar, trash-talking bigots. He has no choice but to fire them immediately."
Donohue is angry that Marcotte and McEwan recently criticized the Catholic Church and the Pope on their positions regarding abortion, homosexuality, and contraception, citing this phrase from Marcotte's blog: "The Catholic church is not about to let something like compassion for girls get in the way of using the state as an instrument to force women to bear more tithing Catholics."
On McEwan's blog, Donohue cited a passage about religious conservatives "keeping your noses out of our britches, our beds and our families?"
Oh, and they used profanity.
Donohue's from the Hate-a-Palooza crowd. It's completely obvious Edwards hired the right chicks.
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Posted 12:45 PM EST by Andy in Catholic Church, Election 2008, John Edwards, News, Pope Benedict | Permalink
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Most of the Catholics I know think Donohue is a kook. Besides--he wouldn't vote for a Democrat in any case. Edwards (with whom I'm not overjoyed) should, hopefully, ignore this blowhard.
Posted by: Daniel | Feb 7, 2007 12:56:42 PM
Donohue is known as an idiot even in Catholic circles. The "Catholic League" is nothing more than a front for his own aggrandizement. (Its logo is a crusader's shield and sword, for Christ's sake, talk about being out of step with the times.) If everyone just ignored this ass he would probably die of underexposure.
Posted by: Christopher | Feb 7, 2007 1:09:15 PM
The right chicks, except for that part where Marcotte has also written sarcastically about the news media coverage of the three Duke lacrosse players accused of sexual assault, saying: “Can’t a few white boys sexually assault a black woman anymore without people getting all wound up about it? So unfair.” that's just damn vulgar, not that Donohue is any better. I'm ready for some real thinkers, those who are moderate and work for solutions instead of stirring the turd.
Posted by: Jocko | Feb 7, 2007 1:13:03 PM
Well, we'll all get to see how Edwards reacts to this now, won't we? Will he step up to the plate?
Posted by: MikeM | Feb 7, 2007 1:15:57 PM
Not that the Edwards campaign is going anywhere, but this just goes to show that no one person or organization can cave-in to every pressure group demand. It's impossible.
Posted by: anon | Feb 7, 2007 1:22:45 PM
Anon actualy edwards is polling higher than Hillary in some of the key first primaries states.
Anyway; isn't Bill Donohue the same guy who a few months ago pushed that woman down and assaulted her at some rally? Isn't he in a court case about it?
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Feb 7, 2007 1:40:28 PM
Bill Donohue is a self-appointed pit bull operating without the official endorsement from the Church. They certainly don't need him to make them look bad. He should be jeered at for ambushing a major world religion to push his own agenda.
I'm a proud member of the Legions of Mary's, but I would never insist others adhere to our teachings.
I would certainly listen to John Edwards over that ranting right wing fundamentalist.
Posted by: FASTLAD | Feb 7, 2007 1:45:17 PM
Jocko, I'm pretty sure that statement was meant to be ironic. I don't find it any more vulgar than what you see in the rest of the media.
Posted by: Daniel | Feb 7, 2007 1:52:16 PM
Tithing Catholics are unheard of. Anyone who speaks of tithing Catholics has little creditibility on Catholic issues.
Posted by: luann | Feb 7, 2007 3:12:25 PM
he fired them
Posted by: dsa | Feb 7, 2007 4:22:10 PM
Amanda Marcotte will surely be facing lawsuits before long. To actually state that the (obviously innocent) Duke lacrosse defendents are guilty of rape is unbelievably stupid (and malicious).
Posted by: Joe T. | Feb 7, 2007 4:28:48 PM
If Edwards even so much as acknowledges this idiotic request then he's toast as a candidate in my eyes.
Besides.... is Edwards even Catholic?
Posted by: Jonathon | Feb 7, 2007 4:38:59 PM
In this day and age, every campaign hires all (sometimes maybe some not the best choices) that may help. To say that Edwards
did this as a malicious act against God and the right is ridiculous. Republicans do it ALL THE TIME to smear their opponents. This so-called Catholic Donohue is a hate-monger. I Hope Edwards ignores him like most do.
Posted by: Andrew | Feb 7, 2007 4:47:23 PM
and no...Edwards is not a Catholic.
Posted by: Andrew | Feb 7, 2007 4:49:33 PM
Looks like Marcotte was fired (at least that's what I just heard). Don't know about the other lady. But Marcotte deserved to be fired, as she would genuinely make false statements on her blog and was known for deleting her own statements that she was called on, so it would have been dumb for Edwards to keep her. Too much of a liability.
Posted by: Joe T. | Feb 7, 2007 4:52:08 PM
Not to beat a dead horse (which I have been accused of doing), who gives a shit what Donohue says? Even though I am a Catholic-when was the last time one was elected President?
Exactly-so why care?
I personally like Edwards and his message.
Posted by: Andrew | Feb 7, 2007 4:52:24 PM
Joe T.
I am not informed about the particulars of marcotte's rant against the Duke Lacrosse team, BUT!!!! I do know that one of the main supposed perpetrators was busted for anf put on prohbation for assault in Washington DC a few months prior to the rape charge. He and some friends ragged on a guy calling him "fag@ot" etc...and when the guy confronted them they gay bashed him.
Now, knowing that bit of info.....it was not a far stretch for many many many people to jump to conclusions in the beggining of the Duke rape case. I did, and said QUILTY just based on the one guy's recent past experience with gay bashing and getting arrested.
Also, in the american justice system NOBODY is ever actualy pronounced innocent of any crime. You are found not guilty on the evidence they have (which doesn't mean certain other evidence or more evidence might not find you guilty). An acquittal just means that the evidence their is isn't enough to even have a trial. None of which means the Duke Lacrosse team did not comit any crimes. There is a huge difference.
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Feb 7, 2007 5:19:27 PM
As far as the Finerty "gay-bashing", it wasn't prosecuted as a hate crime, and even the Blade, the D.C. gay paper, said it wasn't a hate crime. Finerty, in a mutual drunken fight in a bar, called the other guy "gay" (which also means "retarded" in today's jargon) and never laid a hand on him. He threw some air punches. But apparently throwing air punches is enough to bring an assault case in DC. Funny how all the people that loved making a nothing incident like that into a "gay bashing" said nothing about the homophobic New Black Panthers screaming death threats at the lax team when they went to Durham, and the DA's extremely homophobic right-hand woman, black activist Victoria Peterson, inciting the crowd to actually burn down the lax house. As far as the guilt of the lax guys: no, nobody touched that woman. It was a false allegation. Otherwise there wouldn't be the DNA evidence from five men in her and on her and not one match to a single lacrosse player (which the D.A., Nifong, conspired to hide from the Grand Jury, which is why he's in such deep trouble himself now). The story is far from over though. The other two have to be acquitted (one of the three had the charges against him dropped) or the case will be dropped, and then the major lawsuits against Durham County will start. Everybody but the NY Times (and Amanda Marcotte) knows the truth: it was an attempted lynch mobbing of people just for who they are: white, heterosexual, and upper middle class. All gay activists should have been on the side of the accused to begin with. Gays should know what it's like to be hated, not because of anything they did, but just because of who they are.
Posted by: Joe T. | Feb 7, 2007 5:44:24 PM
You failed to mention that Ms. Marcotte suggested that the Virgin Mary should have used Plan B if it had been available to her, in the process equating the Holy Spirit - in other words, the Christian God - with semen.
I'm a Democrat (at least currently). I'm gay. I'm Catholic. I don't agree with Bill Donohue on much of anything, but I agree with him on this. Marcotte should be kicked to the curb for her virulent anti-Catholicism, and I'll not vote for Edwards in the primaries or in the general election if she isn't. What's more, given his lapse in judgment for hiring an extremist like Marcotte in the first place, I'll likely not vote for him now no matter what he does. He can fire her or not. The fact that he hired her in the first place says to me that he's not presidential material.
Posted by: Nate Nelson | Feb 8, 2007 12:19:56 AM
Hi Nate: In fairness to Edwards, a lot of the belief out there is that it was a lower-level employee of his who hired Marcotte, and that Edwards himself had no idea.
Posted by: Joe T. | Feb 8, 2007 2:07:27 AM
The fish rots from the head baby. Haven't we had enough of putative leaders who evade responsibility? Yet another reason not to vote for the Edwards. All he brings to the table is ambition and good hair. Not enough to entrust him with cleaning up the current mess.
Posted by: rudy | Feb 8, 2007 7:21:09 AM