New York Times report paints ‘practicing Catholic’ Biden as ‘uneasy champion’ for abortion

New York Times White House correspondent Michael Shear wrote a piece Sunday that appeared to suggest President Joe Biden's Catholicism makes him an unfit leader for "post-Roe America."

Shear called Biden an "uneasy champion" for abortion and said, "Mr. Biden, a practicing Catholic who has drawn on his faith to shape his political identity, is now being called on to lead a fight he spent decades sidestepping — and many abortion rights advocates worry that he may not be the right messenger for the moment." 

Shear explained, "Once an outright critic of abortion rights and later a committed but quiet defender of them, Mr. Biden has a history that gives activists pause."

He recounted past statements from Biden, noting: "By his own admission, Mr. Biden is a deeply religious person who rarely misses a chance to attend Mass."

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He illustrated further that "For five decades, Mr. Biden has talked openly about the power of his religion, portraying himself as an advocate for workers and a warrior for social justice. His faith also had guided him toward what he once called a ‘middle of the road’ approach to abortion — essentially, not voting to limit abortion, but not voting to fund it either."

But, Shear continued, "Now, a growing chorus of women’s groups, progressive Democrats and abortion rights activists see the decision to overturn Roe as an indictment of that middle-ground approach, saying Democrats like Mr. Biden have tiptoed too carefully around the issue for years."

They want a more "fierce legal, political and rhetorical response" to the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision and to "run more assertively on the issue" of abortion.

"But the president’s history on abortion — informed by his religion and the Democratic Party’s years of careful political calculations — has left him struggling to live up to the expectations of those in his party who want a new strategy and a new energy," Shear wrote.

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The White House correspondent cited past support of a constitutional amendment to overturn Roe v. Wade, the Mexico City Policy that bans funding for abortion overseas and the Hyde Amendment that bans taxpayer funding of abortion - all of which Biden now opposes as president - as well as his attempt as vice president to "exempt Catholic institutions from the Affordable Care Act requirement to provide coverage for contraception."

The Catholic Church in America has made very clear that Joe Biden is not in good standing with their teachings.

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The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) voted overwhelmingly in mid-June to draft a formal document on the meaning of the Eucharist after a fierce debate over whether Biden and other politicians who support abortion should be able to receive Communion at Catholic mass services.