A Man of GOP first, a Man of God second
by digby
The bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sioux Falls has sent a letter to clergy saying he isn’t endorsing a nun’s speech at a private Catholic college in Yankton because of her views on the new federal health care law.
Sister Simone Campbell was scheduled to speak Thursday night at Mount Marty College on the topic “Health Care and the Poor.” She is the executive director of NETWORK, a Catholic social justice education and lobbying group, and an outspoken supporter of the new federal health care law.
He’s against the Medicaid expansion. So much for that Catholic social justice mumbo jumbo. But, in fairness, he’s an outlier. The Catholic Bishops around the country have (mostly) been lobbying for the medicaid expansion, even in places like Texas. This article by Ryan Casey explains:
Bishop Paul Swain of the Diocese of Sioux Falls, SD is out of step with the official stated position of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which affirms that “health care is a basic right flowing from the sanctity and dignity of human life.” In the battle over Medicaid expansion, Bishop Swain chooses to remain steadfastly on the sidelines.
[…]
When questioned by local reporters and Catholic social justice advocates, Bishop Swain has so far refused to endorse the expansion of Medicaid in South Dakota. And while each bishop and his diocese are free to operate with relative autonomy, Bishop Swain is decidedly at variance with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, who wrote in a 2009 letter to the U.S. Senate:The bishops support the expansion of Medicaid eligibility for people living at 133 percent or lower of the federal poverty level. The bill does not burden states with excessive Medicaid matching rates. The affordability credits will help lower-income families purchase insurance coverage through the Health Insurance Exchange.
Furthermore, dozens of Catholic bishops across the country have themselves publicly and vigorously supported Medicaid expansion. Bishop Swain’s abdication of moral leadership is unacceptable for such a visible Church figure, especially on this urgent life issue.
Interesting little tid-bit about Bishop Swain here:
When criticized for remaining neutral on Medicaid expansion, Bishop Swain offered flimsy and inconsistent excuses. The bishop has asserted, for example, that it is not his role to be involved in the political process. Swain, who prior to converting to Catholicism served as Legal Counsel and Director of Policy for Governor Lee Sherman Dreyfus (R-WI), said on a Sioux Falls radio program in February, 2013:
Part of it is a difference of opinion in what the role of the Church is, of a bishop is. And part of it is based on my past experience as a lawyer and working in government and having an understanding of the legislative process. The teaching of the Church is that affordable health care ought to be provided for all. And how that’s done is a challenge that people of goodwill can disagree on. Medicaid is a fine way to do it. But the details of it are beyond my personal understanding. And so I’ll defer to those who are experts in the field, and particularly to our elected officials to figure out how to do it.
Speaking on special interests in the political process, he acknowledged that the Church has a role to play, but said, “We’re not a political part of that power in that sense. So the Church sets principles based on the teachings of Christ.”
[…]
[But] Bishop Swain’s claims of political abstinence are inconsistent with his own past behavior. In 2006, he told cheering congregants that he would proudly vote for an abortion ban on that year’s ballot, along with a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. “…We must take stands on issues in the public sphere,” he told the gathered crowd, “when they touch the core of what we know by reason to be true and affect the salvation of souls.”
He sounds much more like a Freedomworks operative than a priest — a hypocrite at the very least. But then a GOP operative is pretty much what he was until he decided to join the priesthood. Clearly he’s a man of the GOP first, a man of God second.
It’s hard to imagine anyone who considers himself a Christian much less a Catholic could be against helping poor people get health care, but there you have it.
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