There's a giant sucking sound emanating from Fox News every time the newly red hatted Cardinal Timothy Dolan's name is mentioned. And it's not just verbal adulation. It's also the undying Fox loyalty to the position taken, against the HHS birth control mandate, by the United States Council of Catholic Bishops of which Dolan is the head. Some counterpoint was provided. A Reformed rabbi appeared on Hannity while a female Unitarian minister and female Episcopalian priest appeared on O'Reilly. But the preponderance of the coverage, especially on Fox & Friends ( Eight segments in support of the bishops) is squarely on the side of the men in black. While alleged "news" host Megyn Kelly did one "fair & balanced" discussion (during which she lied about abortion pills), the others, including an all male panel in opposition to the mandate, were not so much. On Friday's America Live, Ms. Kelly was able to combine her love for Cardinal Dolan while pimping his position about how the HHS mandate violates "religious liberty." Oh, and Peter Johnson Jr., live from Rome, got to recycle the same old agitprop on behalf of the bishops and the awesome Catholic Church.

Megyn immediately framed the issue: "The debate between religious liberty and mandated contraceptive coverage is not letting up." (Key words - religious liberty and mandated). She talked about the back and forth on Obama's policy "forcing" religious employers to provide contraception coverage "even though it violates their conscience." (Key words - forcing, violates their conscience). She asked how this is being seen "beyond our borders" and showed a shot of the Vatican where, she explained, Timothy Dolan was going to be (she spoke louder) "elevated to Cardinal this weekend." She wanted to know what those at theVatican are saying about this and tossed to Fox legal analyst, NY Diocesan employee, and Knight of Malta, Peter Johnson Jr. who seems to be the unofficial liaison between Fox and the USCCB.

Johnson said that "the eyes of the Vatican are on the White House."  He reported that Dolan gave a speech about the evils of secular humanism. The chyron reinforced the Fox/Bishops agitprop: "Religious Liberty Debate: What Rome Thinks About the Issue." Johnson said that the Catholic Church is making an effort to assert itself "in terms of political activity" and "asserting itself in terms of constitutional rights in the US." Kelly commented that the Pope must be worried about secular humanism because "he sees" the US "shifting in that direction." She cited Fox's coverage of the "administration, the birth control, and the religious liberty infringement" and asked if the Pope would be "paying attention" to that. Johnson responded that the Pope is very concerned as are other American religions. He named those anti-choice religious groups that say that the "rights" of the Catholic Church "have been abrogated." (He mentioned Lutherans but didn't say that it's only the conservative Missouri Synod that agrees with the bishops. The liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church is fine with the mandate.)

After Johnson talked about how the red hat is so important as it symbolizes how cardinals are willing "to shed blood for their faith" (And I thought it meant a lifestyle of the rich and famous!) Kelly said it's "a very big deal" for Dolan "and all those of us in NY who are practicing Catholics in particular have been watching that for him and are excited to see it happen." She enthused that Dolan could "possibly be the next pope."  When Kelly joked about a new Twitter page for Dolan, Johnson said that the Church is using 21st century technology. (Meanwhile, their views are just fine for the 13th Century!) Kelly gushed that it's great to listen to Dolan because "he's a no-nonsense kind of guy who represents the best of the Catholic Church."

While Kelly has been covering the "religious liberty infringement," she hasn't mentioned the Catholic groups who support the policy. She hasn't mentioned that the original Obama policy mirrors that of 28 states in which Catholic organizations are providing birth control coverage. She hasn't mentioned legal opinions that do not feel that this is a constitutional problem. I guess, as a "practicing Catholic," she has her priorities. But wait, isn't  Ms. Megyn  divorced and remarried (not in Catholic Church)? And didn't she tell Don Imus, in 2010, that because her first marriage wasn't annulled, she was having problems finding a Catholic priest willing to baptize her son? Maybe the red hatted Dolan, with a little "donation" to his favorite charity, intervened on her behalf? And if so, maybe her support for the bishops is just a nice quid-pro-quo? Fair & balanced and all that....