Only yesterday I wrote about Fox legal analyst and Maltese Knight Peter Johnson Jr. and his undying loyalty to the anti-choice agenda of his Catholic Church which is fine as a personal position but not so fine when you're pushing this position on a network that is supposedly "fair & balanced." So, as the "Church Lady" would say, "isn't that special" that Johnson was back for the third installment of his "prescription for truth" regarding how the Obama administration is putting the Catholic Church in an "untenable position" over the requirement that they provide no cost contraception (a Catholic "no-no") to their employees. And funny, Catholic Cardinal Wuerl said the same thing during his Sunday interview with Chris Wallace. Do I detect a bias in favor of the Catholic Church on the "Fair & balanced" Fox News network. Oh, bless me father for I have sinned?

This morning, Clayton Morris claimed that not only Catholics but a "broad coalition of non Catholics and Jews" are "crying foul" over the contraception mandate. Of course he didn't mention that this "broad coalition" consists of right wing evangelicals and Orthodox Jews both of which are conservative and anti-choice. And speaking of Wuerl, Morris read an "action alert" e-mail from the cardinal in which he claimed that the contraceptive requirement puts the church in an "untenable" position between following the law and following their teaching. To Morris' question of   "is he on to something," Fox News employee and Catholic Archdiocese litigator Peter Johnson Jr. agreed.

Once again, Johnson DID NOT DISCLOSE his connection to the diocese at the beginning of his screed on behalf of the Catholic men in black. He cited the First Amendment and how that allows religious groups to practice their own religion without government regulation. He cited the "conscience exemption" and how, in this case, is too narrow. Again, Johnson lied when he claimed that the Obama regulations require that Catholic hospitals provide abortions and "abortion inducing drugs." The reality is that the "conscience exemption" still stands for Catholic hospitals. What's changed is that they must now provide emergency contraception which the Catholic Church equates with abortion because it prevents a fertilized egg (a "baby" in the eyes of the Catholic Church) from attaching to the wall of the uterus. And if one is pregnant, Plan B DOES NOT "induce an abortion."

Morris provided the requisite Fox validation for the message which, in this case, is that the Catholic Church is being treated unfairly by the Obama administration. When he asked "what's left" after the Catholic schools and hospitals are not granted an exemption, Johnson said that his point was well taken. Diocesan litigator Johson suggested some mendacity on the part of the Obama administration. As he spoke, the chyron set the offical Fox "fact" - "Forced to Act Against Faith, Catholic Bishops Fight Contraceptive Mandate." Johnson expressed his and the desire of his liege lords in the bishop syndicate that Obama change the policy. Johnson articulated the position of the bishops regarding "religious liberty" without mentioning the rights of women (including those not Catholic) to access health care of which contraceptive coverage is a vital part. Johnson's contention that "people of all faiths" are coming together to say "this should not stand" is laughable considering that the "faiths" are very conservative. Johnson did admit, finally, that he "litigated cases on behalf of the church." (Something he didn't mention during his first two screeds). He scored another propaganda point when he commented that "a lot of people" say "this is a problem with Obamacare" because of all-encompassing government interference."

Hmmm, if Johnson's bishop pals get their way, abortion will be criminalized and, to my way of thinking, that's the ultimate government interference with one's privacy rights; but I digress. I watch both CNN and MSNBC and haven't seen this issue covered. That's not to say it hasn't; but if it has, odds are that there would be an opposing view. But this seems to be quite the priority for the "fair & balanced" Fox News which has provided the decidedly non-objective Johnson with three separate segments during which he presented only the position of the Catholic Church. Time was when the Catholic bishops had emperors and kings to fight their battles. This very powerful lobby group now has Fox News. As the "Church Lady" would say, "isn't that special."

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1351409882001/