Catholic League president William Donohue commented today on the resignation of Rev. Brenda Bartella Peterson as the Senior Religion Advisor to the Democratic National Committee (DNC):
“Rev. Peterson told Religion News Service that ‘it was no longer possible for me to do my job effectively.’ The Washington Post added today that her decision was made ‘after the New York-based Catholic League issued three blistering news releases attacking her positions.’
“The only question now is whether John Kerry and the DNC have finally got the message. When we exposed Mara Vanderslice as a Left-wing activist who cavorts with anti-Catholics, the Kerry camp silenced her as its Religious Outreach Director. When we exposed Rev. Peterson as a Left-wing activist who went into the U.S. Supreme Court on the side of atheist Michael Newdow to censor the words ‘under God’ in the Pledge, she was forced to quit her role with the DNC. The first hire may have been a mistake, but it is not credible to maintain that the DNC erred in hiring Rev. Peterson: they knew what they were getting and they knew what happened to Vanderslice, and yet they persisted anyway.
“Why are Kerry and the DNC imploding on religion? Because too many of the elites running the show are devout secularists who put a premium on freedom from religion. Their idea of religious liberty is banning nativity scenes on public property. Their idea of diversity is censoring ‘under God’ from the Pledge. Their idea of tolerance is forbidding a moment of silence in the schools. Their idea of a good Catholic is Frances Kissling of Catholics for a Free Choice. Their idea of compassion is hiking taxes. Their idea of helping the poor is giving them directions to a soup kitchen. And their idea of choice is abortion, not school vouchers.
“Kerry and the DNC now have two strikes against them in their religious outreach efforts. Whether they strike out is up to them. We’re certainly not dropping out of the game, and we’re certainly monitoring Bush and the RNC on this subject just as closely.”
