Posted on 02/28/2009 6:20:44 PM PST by Born Conservative
Vice President Joe Biden’s sister and mother will be honored by the Society of Irish Women at its annual St. Patrick’s Day dinner, a society founder confirmed Friday.
Valerie Biden Owens, Mr. Biden’s sister and lifelong campaign manager, will be a principal speaker at the event. Jean Finnegan Biden, Mr. Biden’s mother, will be an honored guest. She will sit at the head table but will not give a speech, said Evie Rafalko McNulty, one of the society’s founders.
“Oh, my God, it’s wonderful, because she is Scranton; she’s from Scranton,” Mrs. McNulty said about the confirmation that Mrs. Biden Owens will be a speaker at the event.
The vice president, she said, “wouldn’t be where he is without her.”
Mrs. Biden was born in Scranton. Her daughter managed all of Mr. Biden’s campaigns except his recent, successful vice-presidential bid. Although she held no official position in that campaign, she remained a close adviser.
In Mr. Biden’s 2007 autobiography, he referred to his sister as “my best friend.” He also wrote that, as a campaign manager, “Valerie Biden did not go into any race to lose.”
The Society of Irish Women’s 11th annual dinner will be held March 17 at the Radisson at Lackawanna Station hotel.
The announcement of whom the society would honor at its event was eagerly anticipated, in part because of a controversial letter recently sent to the group by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton.
In it, Bishop Joseph F. Martino warned that he may close St. Peter’s Cathedral during St. Patrick’s Day celebrations if the society features elected officials who support abortion rights at its dinner.
The diocese had no comment on Friday about whether or not the Bidens’ presence will violate Bishop Martino’s call for the group not to honor “pro-abortion officials.”
In response to an earlier inquiry about whether the bishop’s warning applied to relatives of an elected official who supports abortion rights, diocese spokesman William Genello said, “The language of the letter speaks for itself.”
This is going be gooddddd
I don’t get it. Neither of these women is an elected public official. Martino’s target is Catholic politicians who vote pro-abort. These women are not. They may be proaborts but they have not created pro-abort legislation etc.
What do you want the bishop to do? Go after everybody’s sister-in-law and pet poodle?
Be glad for what the good bishop has done. Don’t up the ante that he has to satisfy before you will consider him a true defender of the faith.
Let him pick his battles. He doesn’t need you picking them for him. If it’s Biden’s mother and sister who are showing up it looks like Bishop Martino successfully cowed the pro-abort elected officials into staying away. Give him credit for that.
She must be the brains of the operation - there's got to be a brain cell somewhere there...
Does the good bishop make his point publicly, or just in "letters?"
Does he name names?
Or does he skirt carefully around the edges of the issue out of fear of giving offense to anyone in power?
He makes his letters public.
What in tarnation is your problem? Martino is the most outspoken of all the bishops except Chaput.
Why do some Catholics have to tear down absolutely everyone?
Ah the reporter (journalist or whomever) has decided the letter is controversial, lots of judgmental reporters these days.
They like to add their opinion, I just want the news
Perhaps that is one of the biggest reasons the MSM is hurting.
Does he name names?
Or does he skirt carefully around the edges of the issue out of fear of giving offense to anyone in power?
Where have you been? Google for Scranton and Bishop Martino. He publicly released two letters reading the riot act to Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. He has publicly instructed priests and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion to deny communion to publicly pro-abort politicians. He publicly released his letters to the Scranton St. Patrick's Day organizations warning them not to invite or honor pro-abort guests. That's what this news article is about.
Yet you assume the worst about him. That is just plain wrong. If you don't know, find out before reaching a judgment and criticizing. Martino has gone farther than any other bishop in standing up to Catholic pro-abort politicians. He interrupted a parish meeting during the fall election to tell people they can't vote for Obama. He is fearless as far as the "don't lose your tax exemption" crowd are concerned.
Yet you assume the worst about him.
Bishop Martino is indeed a stalwart on this issue. You know darn well that had he not released that letter it would be the dimwit VP Biden being honored.
Dittos and Amens to Bishop Martino.
He is right on.
Being that Biden’s sister is his “lifelong campaign manager”, it’s very possible that the Bishop could make this an issue, as she is indirectly related to pro-abortion legislation. IIRC, the Bishop has spoken out against EVERY Catholic who is not pro-life. He is clearly drawing a line in the sand on this (and I respect him for doing so); it will be interesting to see how this plays out.
And I’m NOT picking his battles; he’s doing that himself. (did you happen to notice in the title that there is a question mark after “showdown w/Bishop?)
It’s rather obvious that Biden and Casey are in his crosshairs, and only a matter of time before Martino pulls the proverbial trigger.
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