Bill Donohue and the Catholic League won.

[madfloridian]

Edit for more permanent link:
http://pandagon.net/2007/02/12/announcement /

"I was hired by the Edwards campaign for the skills and talents I bring to the table, and my willingness to work hard for what’s right. Unfortunately, Bill Donohue and his calvacade of right wing shills don’t respect that a mere woman like me could be hired for my skills, and pretended that John Edwards had to be held accountable for some of my personal, non-mainstream views on religious influence on politics (I’m anti-theocracy, for those who were keeping track). Bill Donohue—anti-Semite, right wing lackey whose entire job is to create non-controversies in order to derail liberal politics—has been running a scorched earth campaign to get me fired for my personal beliefs and my writings on this blog.

In fact, he’s made no bones about the fact that his intent is to “silence” me, as if he—a perfect stranger—should have a right to curtail my freedom of speech. Why? Because I’m a woman? Because I’m pro-choice? Because I’m not religious? All of the above, it seems.

Regardless, it was creating a situation where I felt that every time I coughed, I was risking the Edwards campaign. No matter what you think about the campaign, I signed on to be a supporter and a tireless employee for them, and if I can’t do the job I was hired to do because Bill Donohue doesn’t have anything better to do with his time than harass me, then I won’t do it. I resigned my position today and they accepted.

There is good news. The main good news is that I don’t have a conflict of interest issue anymore that was preventing me from defending myself against these baseless accusations. So it’s on. The other good news is that the blogosphere has risen as one and protested, loudly, the influence a handful of well-financed right wing shills have on the public discourse."

More there, including a letter from the president of Catholics for Free Choice...which the NYT did not even print. Be sure to read it.

[madfloridian]

1. And just in case you missed what was going on....

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/...

From Bill Donohue
"Edwards said today that 'We're beginning a great debate about the future of our country, and we can't let it be hijacked.' I have news for him--the Catholic League--not Edwards--will decide what the debate will be about, and it won't be about the nation. It will be about the glaring double standard that colors the entire conversation about bigotry."

Because Edwards did not fire the bloggers...he will have to pay.

"We will launch a nationwide public relations blitz that will be conducted on the pages of the New York Times, as well as in Catholic newspapers and periodicals. It will be on-going, breaking like a wave, starting next week and continuing through 2007. It will be an education campaign, informing the public of what he did today. We will also reach out to our allies in the Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist communities. They worked with us before on many issues, and are sure to do so again. What Edwards did today will not be forgotten."


More at the link. Sounds like the Catholic League is telling our party what to do.

[More Than A Feeling]

2. We totally could have kicked Donahue's ass over this. Now he's already won.

With little to no effort on his part.

[KingofNewOrleans]

15. Unfortunately it sounds like Amanda

wanted to kick Donahue's ass over this and she couldn't do that from within the campaign.

[IndianaGreen]

3. Hollywood is run by secular Jews that hate God

Keith Olbermann's show had that gem of a quote by our illustrious head of the Catholic League, Bill Donohue.

Why do some of our Democrats always cede ground to rightwing kooks like Donohue and Dobson?

[xxqqqzme]

20. I do not undestand the democrats cowering

when these whack-os start yelling - It is comforting to hear Keith treat them like the marginalized freaks they are.

[dsc]

4. Why does this bigot get to dictate our policy is beyond me

Donahue said stuff about gays that should disqualify him from public discource. Instead he gets to lecutre others about bigotry. Only in America.

[IndianaGreen]

5. He has also said very bad things about Catholic women that support

opening the priesthood to women.

I don't know if Donohue is Opus Dei, but he surely is a fellow traveller.

[dsc]

6. He is an equal opportunity hater, that is for sure

He is a total piece of work.

[madfloridian]

7. Might be a violation by Donohue...here's mention from another website.

http://jeffrey-feldman.typepad.com/frameshop/2007/02/fr...

Of course, my first thought is well sure it is.

"According to United States law governing the behavior of 501(c)(3) organizations, it seems highly likely that William Donohue--President of the Catholic League, a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization--may have broken the law by attempting to intervene in a political campaign.

The IRS document Organizational Test – IRC 501(c)(3) (link opens PDF file) states explicitly that an organization with this tax exempt status cannot intervene in a political campaign.

Despite the legal restrictions on his organization, Donohue appears to be using the Catholic League to campaign against John Edwards bid for the 2008 Democratic nomination for President, in particular the IRS strict prohibition for 501(c)(3)'s on "issue advocacy" as a form of political intervention.

Beyond Donahue's appearances on broadcast media, during which he has spoken out against the John Edwards campaign, The Catholic League which Donahue used its 501(c)(3) non-profit status website to publish the following Press Release that included this explicit attempt to intervene in a political campaign"

I know a 501 that held a meeting to announce to media that Dean was not the right man to be president. Oops.

[Canuckistanian]

8. Whoo-hooo, Amanda! you tell 'em!

About time someone separated Catholics from Bill Donahue!

[mmonk]

26. We already are.

[Freddie Stubbs]

9. John Edwards won

He doesn't need a loose cannon out there distracting him from the issues he is campaigning on.

[IndianaGreen]

10. Edwards appeared weak in the face of rightwing attack

He made the often made mistake of surrendering to rightwingers who, more often than not, are more bigoted than the people they accuse of being bigots.

[FrenchieCat]

11. Edwards fired them, then rehired them, now they resign.....

seems like a lot, considering Edwards should have told the rightwing to kiss his ass from the gate.

Edwards loses for not knowing what to do.....and having to wait to see what the "temperature" was before being decisive.

After personal phone calls to the bloggers from the candidate, the Edwards campaign has rehired the bloggers who were fired yesterday, according to sources inside and close to the campaign.

Salon reported yesterday that on Wednesday morning the Edwards camp fired Amanda Marcotte and Melissa McEwen, the two bloggers whose hiring had sparked an uproar by conservatives.

But almost as soon as the decision had been communicated to the bloggers, a struggle arose within the campaign about possibly reversing it, the sources said, as the liberal blogosphere exploded.

The campaign remained silent all day about the status of Marcotte and McEwen, and neither woman posted to the John Edwards blog yesterday. There was also radio silence from the campaign for the hours following Salon's report of their initial dismissal, after a promise from a campaign spokeswoman that there would be more information later.
more....
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2007/02/08/bloggers_r... /

[Freddie Stubbs]

16. How exactly did he surrender?

He kept the bloggers, and one of them quit.

[madfloridian]

12. That's why I will keep posting about the right wing of our party.

You call her loose cannon....I say she is exercising her free speech.

It is like years away from the rest of us.

[DonkeyInChinaShop]

13. Compare this to Obama's zing back at Australia's Howard

Obama's and Edward's political instincts are like night and day!

[Cameron27]

14. Wow, Obama

zapped Howard a good one! And he didn't wait...he hit back fast!

At last we've got a fighter

[mrgorth]

17. I just read what they wrote

He not only should have fired them, he should've banned them from HQ. What she wrote was highly offensive to almost anyone religious and it is political suicide to have them on the campaign.

[madfloridian]

18. I am religious....I call what they said "free speech."

This is saying that we must never offend religious people. I don't, but one yelled at me in my own home not to criticize Bush because he was chosen by God.

Other good Christians in our neighborhood took our Dean and Kerry signs and smashed them.

Still more had signs in their yard calling for the war..saying they supported the war. This was before the vote and before the shock and awe.

They all offended me. But they are religious and you say we must not offend them. Ok. You have free speech too.

[mrgorth]

21. Well that shouldn't have happened either

Newsflash: Edwards is running for office. These people can say whatever they want but sometimes you have to pay the piper for that. They did and Edwards might. Clearly, Edwards was trying to damage control.

[madfloridian]

22. I still like Edwards a lot. I don't think the candidates fully understand

what is going on. I think they really don't see the full power behind these groups that demand a Christian country.

I don't think they understand what they are facing. Amanda's fellow blogger was trying to point out that a 501 like Donahue's group is not supposed to be influencing what a candidate does or doesn't do. And now the blog is having to shut down because of attacks.

But then our side has a history of doing that as well....to each other.

Remember when this 501 interfered in 03?
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/...

[mrgorth]

23. Look,

I don't like Donohue or his group either but you are being very hardheaded about this. He is not, in this instance, trying to get Edwards to demand a Christian country. What this blogger said was beyond the pale and very, yes, very, offensive even to progressive or lefty Christians. If I was in Donohue's shoes I would've gone after the Edwards' campaign too. Frankly, we'll (because I like Edwards quite a bit) be lucky if Donohue's group is the only one that raises a cry.

[madfloridian]

25. So...should HIllary and Obama apologize for and condemn the bloggers

They are being asked to do that by another Catholic group. I am sorry you think I am being hardheaded, but it does not bother me anymore what people think.

It just does not.

Our country is in the toilet, and the religious groups are deflecting from the evils we are doing in Iraq by condemning a blogger for free speech.

And those religious groups are being enabled here.

So should Hillary and Obama condemn them as well? And should they do the whatever the heck Fidelis and Catholic League decide next for them to do?

What do you think?
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/...

[madfloridian]

19. Amanda just posted a note...she has had to suspend the site,,,attacks

So....what can one say to that?

[OHdem10]

24. In the future when someone such as Donnahue

comes after Democrats, take a deep breath. Think, How
many Catholics in the ilk of Donnahue do you think would
vote for a Democrat. In other words, how many Donnahue
Catholics would have voted for Edwards????