Catholic League president Bill Donohue responds to an AP story, “Demonization of Soros Recalls Old anti-Semitic Conspiracies,” written by Vanessa Gera:
The AP news story is a wholly indefensible whitewash of George Soros, one that accuses his critics of anti-Semitism. Yet not a single anti-Semitic quote that his critics have made is cited.
AP would have us believe that Soros has “advanced human rights,” along with many other noble goals. Not for Catholics. In fact, Soros has funded more anti-Catholic groups than any person in American history. That he is a self-hating Jew who has worked tirelessly against Israel is also indisputable.
After quoting a Catholic woman broadcaster from Poland accusing Soros of using his foundations to “finance anti-Christian and anti-national activities,” the story says, “Sociologists see such rhetoric…as a modern manifestation of old anti-Semitic conspiracies.”
A Polish sociologist, who relies totally on conjecture, is then mentioned. He must resort to conjecture: He offers no evidence that anti-Semitism is driving Soros’ critics. I am a sociologist, too, and I see the broadcaster’s remark as spot-on.
I will now do what AP cannot do: I will offer proof of my accusations against Soros. I could say a whole lot more, but the following will do.
The AP story focuses mostly on Soros’ campaigns in Central and Eastern Europe, detailing his work amidst charges that he is interfering in the internal affairs of these nations. Guilty as charged—injecting himself into the sovereign affairs of other nations is what Soros does.
His many foundations, in particular his Open Society Foundations, fund anti-Catholic projects in Ireland, as well as in many African, Asian, and Latin American nations. How so? By promoting abortion and working to sideline the Catholic Church.
“For George Soros, Ireland Abortion Fight May be First Step Against Catholic countries.” That was the title of an article last year by Kevin Jones posted on the website of Catholic News Agency. Soros’ foundations funded Abortion Rights Campaign, Amnesty International Ireland, and the Irish Planning Association, all aimed at repealing Ireland’s anti-abortion law. Jones also detailed similar efforts in Mexico, Zambia, Nigeria, and Tanzania.
The Soros document that Jones cited shows how Soros’ Open Society Foundations boasted that if they won in Ireland, “a win there could impact other strongly Catholic countries in Europe, such as Poland, and provide much needed proof that change is possible, even in highly conservative places.”
In 2005, the Soros-funded PAC arm of MoveOn.org posted a smiling picture of Pope Benedict XVI holding a gavel outside the U.S. Supreme Court. Above the picture it said, “God Already has a Job…He does not need one on the Supreme Court. Protect the Supreme Court Rules.”
In 2016, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, lavishly funded by Soros, worked against the Catholic Church’s efforts to promote religious liberty; the Church was campaigning against the HHS abortion-inducing mandate being foisted on it by the Obama administration
In 2012, Faith in Public Life, a Soros-funded entity, provided talking points to its ideological kin by instructing them on how to handle “the war on the Catholic Church.” The following year, Faithful America, which is funded by Faith in Public Life, condemned two cardinals, and the Catholic University of America, for upholding Catholic values.
Catholics for Choice is a pro-abortion, anti-Catholic letterhead that has no members, but is nicely greased by Soros. Its sole purpose is to sell the invidious notion that being pro-abortion is an acceptable Catholic position. Soros has also funded Catholics United, a bogus Catholic group that triggered a campaign against me in 2008. It tried to get me kicked off CNN and it abetted a failed IRS probe against me.
Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good, which had its IRS tax-exempt status pulled in 2013, is a real Soros gem. It was founded by John Podesta for the purpose of planting “the seeds of the revolution” in the Catholic Church. We know this because of the infamous Wikileaks documents.
Imagine a Catholic foundation that funded a “revolution” in the Jewish community by setting up dummy Jewish organizations. Would AP do a story painting the primary donor as a hero?
Jews have been harshly critical of Soros as well. In 2003, the ADL accused Soros of blaming anti-Semitism in Israel on the Israeli government. In 2006, an article in the Jerusalem Post accused Soros of weakening support for Israel in the Democratic Party, seeking “to undermine Israel’s positions in the U.S. in general.”
In 2007, the Jewish Forward said that “The editor of the New Republic, Martin Peretz, renewed an attack on Soros that he began a month ago when he called the Hungarian-born Holocaust survivor a cog in the Hitlerite wheel.” In 2016, the Jerusalem Post noted that some hacked emails show that the stated goal of Soros’ Open Society Foundations was “challenging Israel’s racist and anti-democratic policies.”
This news story by AP is an affront to the sensibilities of those Catholics and Jews who know better. George Soros is no champion of human rights. He is a manipulative atheist billionaire deserving of our condemnation, not commendation. Shame on AP for trying to make him a victim—he is a master victimizer.
Contact Vanessa Gera: vgera@ap.org
