'The War on Religion is Now Formally Declared'
After promising American Catholics that his health care law would not force Catholic hospitals and universities to buy insurance that includes contraception and abortion services, President Obama has done the opposite.
In a column for the Washington Post titled "Obama plays his Catholic allies for fools," columnist Michael Gerson notes the history of negotiations between the president and American Catholic leaders. There is no question that the president betrayed them in exchange for the continued support of many of them.
This smells of a vendetta against the Catholic church. Contraception and abortions are widely available, so why force Catholic institutions to violate church teachings and their consciences for a political end? Gerson writes, "Both radicalism and maliciousness are at work in Obama's decision." He concludes, "The administration's ultimate motivation is uncertain. Has it adopted a radical secularism out of conviction, or is it cynically appealing to radical secularists? In either case, the war on religion is now formally declared."
Indeed. So how should Catholics vote in the next election?
I'm Cal Thomas in Washington.
Publication date: February 3, 2012
Originally published February 03, 2012.
