On May 13, Bill Donohue participated in a teleconference with other Catholic leaders demanding the ouster of Harry Knox from President Obama’s Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships; many from the media heard what was said. A letter signed by some two dozen Catholic leaders called on Obama to oust Knox.
Knox has had plenty of opportunities to take back his hate speech against the pope and orthodox Catholics, but refuses to do so. Among other things, he has implied that the pope is a liar and has called Catholics who oppose gay marriage “foot soldiers of a discredited army of oppression.”
Also, people like Rep. Mike Pence have asked for Knox’s dismissal. When questioned about Knox’s appointment, Democratic leaders like Nancy Pelosi and White House spokesman Robert Gibbs profess ignorance of his anti-Catholic record. This kind of stonewalling explains why the teleconference was called.
If all Knox had done was to criticize the Catholic Church on public policy issues, there would have been no problem. But he is not content to disagree: he must demonize the opposition. Moreover, football coach Tony Dungy was pressured to decline an invitation to serve on the same board, simply because he believes marriage should be between a man and a woman. But there’s room for a bigot?
Justice demands that Knox be removed. To top things off, Knox, who is not Catholic, has a record of slamming the Catholic Church on internal matters that are none of his business.
