In February, Fox and the Christian right had a collective hissy fit over President Obama's Prayer Breakfast remarks about Christian junk in their trunk. So one wonders if Fox knows that their personal prelate, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, just told NBC's Chuck Todd that Obama was right!
Never mind a friend in Jesus. NY's Catholic Cardinal Timothy Dolan has a friend in Roger Ailes who allows his network to be a platform for those Catholic positions which coincide with right wing dogma. When the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, then headed by Dolan, opposed the Affordable Care's birth control mandate, Fox News provided a steady drumbeat of validation for that opposition. Dolan, himself, makes periodic appearances on Fox where he gives inspirational holiday greetings and promotes Catholic schools.
Dolan and Ailes have a close personal connection through Ailes' Catholic wife who raises lots of dough for Dolan's diocese. And it's just not Ailes who has less than six degrees of separation from Dolan. Alleged Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum, who breathlessly pimped Dolan's candidacy for the papacy, was mistress of ceremonies for a NY diocese Catholic Charity event. Ailes' personal lawyer, Peter Johnson Jr, is also a Dolan pal.
But it appears that Dolan may have strayed from the Fox/Christian right narrative that Obama hates Christians. This was reinforced when the President, at the National Prayer Breakfast, reminded folks that while ISIS is brutal, Christians have some brutality in their history. He specifically referenced the Crusades, the Inquisition, and slavery. The words were barely out of Obama's mouth when the Christian right and Fox News erupted into paroxysms of righteous Christian outrage because, as we know, Christians never do anything wrong.
Resident Fox priest claimed that Obama's comment was a "slight" to Christians. Devout Catholic Bill Hemmer was saddened by what he claimed was a false "moral equivalency." Right wing crazy, Star Parker told devout Catholic Sean Hannity that Obama's comment was "verbal rape" of Christians. Devout Christian and wall of genius Andrea Tantaros even asserted that the Inquisition was no big deal! (She didn't address the Crusades or slavery)
Flash forward to Easter Sunday when Cardinal Dolan was interviewed on Meet the Press, the following took place:
Chuck Todd: "What did you think of President Obama at the National Prayer Breakfast when he said this? "Unless we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ. In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ."
Cardinal Dolan: "I know there were some people that might've thought that his remarks were off the mark. I would simply say as an historian and as a believer, sometimes it's not all that bad to remind ourselves that we are not free from sin, either."
Chuck Tood: "You saw it as appropriate?"
Cardinal Dolan: "I mean, as a leader to say that at that time, whether that was appropriate or not. But I wouldn't say he was wrong."
Ruh, Roh! Is Dolan straying from the Fox sacristy? Hmmm.....