Free Republic

The Rev. Patrick Conroy, chaplain of the House of Representatives, said in a letter on Thursday that he was rescinding his resignation amid his high-profile ousting by House Speaker Paul Ryan. The Associated Press reported that Conroy wrote in a two-page letter to Ryan, the retiring Wisconsin Republican, that he has never "heard a complaint about my ministry" as House chaplain. Democrats have expressed outrage over Ryan’s decision to push Conroy out of the job. Ryan has told fellow Republicans that he fired the House chaplain, a Roman Catholic priest from the Jesuit order, after complaints from members that he...

House Speaker Paul Ryan has forced out the House chaplain, Reverend Patrick Conroy. Conroy had served as the chamber’s chaplain since 2011 but offered his resignation last week at Ryan’s urging. Conroy’s resignation letter said he was offering to step down at Ryan’s request, calling his seven years of House service “one of the great privileges of my life.” Ryan spokeswoman Ashlee Strong would not reveal the speaker’s reasons for forcing Conroy out. A top Democrat, Rep. Joe Crowley of New York, said he believes it was because of a prayer Conroy gave during last fall’s tax debate urging that...