Fox & Friends has been steadfast in pimping the US Conference of Catholic Bishop's opposition to the HHS mandate which requires employer health plans to provide free birth control. And despite the administration's efforts to form a compromise with religious non-profits (churches are exempt), by having the insurer cover the cost, the world's oldest men's club Catholic bishops have been steadfast in their opposition to the mandate - despite the reality that they employ women who are not bound by Catholic theology on those evil slut pills that are taken by a vast majority of Catholic women. In none of the many segments, which I covered, were there any guests who defended the mandate. Fox hosts, the majority Catholic, made no attempt to rebut the Catholic position which was advanced by several right wing Catholic priests and a Catholic bishop. Yesterday, Steve Doocy interviewed the new head bishop honcho about the mandate. Good Catholic Doocy kept on pimping!
The segment was part of Fox & Friends patented "Eyes on Obamacare" feature which opens with throbbing music and a dark, photo negative image of the White House. Doocy immediately framed the propaganda with the patented Fox "war" vocabulary: "The battle over the contraception mandate hitting religious groups. Now an archbishop is taking the President to task. He wants to know if others are getting an exception why can't he and his groups, he writes 'one category of Americans, however, has been left out in the cold: those who due to religious and moral conviction cannot, in good conscience comply with the HHS regulation requiring sterilization and contraceptives'."
He introduced the new head of the US bishops, Archbishop Joseph Kurtz. As he said how thrilled he was to be on Fox & Friends, Doocy sported an ear to ear grin. Doocy, in keeping with the agitprop script he noted that the bishop wrote his letter because he has been "provoked by the law." Doocy got serious as he raised his voice and cited "crippling fines, which really are taxes, which would be levied against your church."
Kurtz spoke about the wonderful work of Catholic groups who are just trying to "follow their faith." The chyron reflected his plaintive plea: "Archbishop Pens Plea." He claimed that the mandate is "outrageous" and whined about - wait for it - the Little Sisters of the Poor who have become Fox News' new BFF's. His claim, that the nuns should not be "forced" to violate their faith, matches the narrative that Fox has been spinning on this issue. Naturally, in playing to the conservative Catholic seats, he didn't mention that the nuns, who are exempt from the mandate, are refusing to certify their exemption.
In expressing his desire for a further delay in the mandate, he cited delays for other groups. As he spoke about how "people of conscience's" religious rights are being violated, Doocy nodded in agreement. Neither Doocy nor the bishop Doocy mentioned that the church already had a year's delay in the implementation of the rule. As the homily progressed, the Fox message was summed up on the chyron as Fox fact: "Fight for Faith." Doocy validated the bishop with his comments about all the waivers that the administration has already given. In speaking about the employer mandate delay, he gave the impression that it was related to birth control and that is misleading because the birth control mandate has been in effect for a year. The chyron stated, as Fox Fact, that this is about "Religious Rights." The bishop said that he is encouraged by all the stays that have been given in cases brought against the birth control mandate and that he is "optimistic that religious liberty is gonna prevail."
The bishop was also interviewed by CNN's Dana Bash. Unlike Doocy she asked him hard questions including one about the rights of women employees not to have the religious views of their employers foisted upon them. She also asked how the church's opposition squares with the reality of the non-profits receiving government money. Obviously, you wouldn't get these types of questions on Fox & Friends which has clearly taken a side which, as defined by Megyn Kelly, is on the "side of the angels." Ya think?!
Why do I have a feeling that FoxNoise does NOT object to THAT certification? In fact, didn’t FoxNoise get its collective underwear in a bunch when the IRS “targeted” teabagger groups seeking non-profit status? (Not that any of those groups was actually prevented from getting or using the status.)