Catholic bishops on Thursday rejected the White House’s latest attempt at compromise on contraception, saying it did not adequately accommodate religious organizations that object to covering free contraception in employee health plans.
“Throughout the past year, we have been assured by the administration that we will not have to refer, pay for, or negotiate for the mandated coverage,” Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in a statement. “We remain eager for the administration to fulfill that pledge.”
It seems that the body of bishops simply doesn’t want to hear the word “contraception.” Too bad. They aren’t being asked to pay for it and religious houses are exempt and always have been.
The bishops’ ongoing opposition elicited an angry response from Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards.
“It is becoming clear that some people just will not rest until they have found a way to deny women access to birth control coverage,” she said in a statement. “Despite the latest complaints from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the bottom line is that places of worship are exempt from the birth control benefit, and they always have been.”
The administration last Friday had offered a revised policy that exempted more religious nonprofits, and tried to wall off religious’ groups’ money so it wasn’t used to provide the benefit, which women would still get.
At what point do the American people just say screw you and stop trying to appease a bunch of moss-back clergy? I say that time is now. The Bishops can tell their own flock what to do. That flock can comply or not comply. But they need to keep out of the other flocks.
This situation has zero to do with religious freedom. It has everything to do with “Obama-care” and the President. Right now I believe we are all looking at freedom FROM Religion.
And right now religious groups are looking at freedom FROM Government. Tit-for-tat so to speak (whatever that means).
So much for compromise 🙁