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Donahue Defends Notre Dame Invite
Notre Dame Alum Hits Local Airwaves; Discusses Obama’s Chance To Speak At School
By Chris Freind, The Bulletin
The controversy surrounding the University of Notre Dame’s hosting of President Barack Obama as its commencement speaker, whose staunch support of abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research places him in opposition to Catholic doctrine, erupted on Philadelphia’s airwaves last evening.
Longtime television personality Phil Donahue, a Notre Dame alumnus and self-proclaimed Catholic — but one with a long-running feud with the Church — was the featured guest of WPHT 1210 talk show host Dom Giordano.
The men sparred on whether it is hypocritical for a Catholic university to offer a platform to an ardent abortion-rights supporter and if doing so offers a tacit endorsement of the speaker’s viewpoints.
Mr. Donahue was unabashed in his support of the university’s decision, claiming that “most Catholics” favored abortion rights. Without providing hard proof behind his claim, he stated that the outcry against Notre Dame was the work of “self-righteous, right-wing Republicans” with a “narrow agenda” who were attempting to embarrass his alma mater for short-term political gain.
Ironically, in chastising the Church as “homophobic,” Mr. Donahue asked when it would come to the realization that “all of us are irreplaceable children of God.” Prior to his comment, a caller pointed out she believed all children were irreplaceable, including those in the mother’s womb.
Mr. Giordano addressed the hypocrisy issue by asking Mr. Donahue whom he considered a hypocrite in the Democratic Party.
Mr. Donahue responded by stating, “Well, honestly, I’d have to think about that. [Democrats] don’t come to mind as much as Republicans do.”
Despite the host’s repeated attempts to stay on topic, Mr. Donahue spent the majority of his airtime discussing other issues, such as former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s position on abortion, the impeachment hearings of President Clinton and “anachronisms” of the Catholic Church.
Mr. Giordano said he believed Notre Dame had erred in inviting the president, and said Mr. Obama’s views on abortion rights were considerably outside the mainstream, including his support for the extreme partial-birth abortion procedure.
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops spoke out against the practice of hosting speakers who are outspoken against Catholic doctrine in 2004.
“The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles,” said the bishop’s conference in a statement. “They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.”
The outcry across the nation from Notre Dame alumni, and Catholics and non-Catholics alike, has resulted in hundreds of thousands signing petitions demanding the university rescind its invitation to the president.
Mr. Obama is scheduled to receive an honorary doctorate degree in law at Notre Dame’s 164th commencement ceremony on May 17.
Chris Freind can be reached at cf@thebulletin.us
Longtime television personality Phil Donahue, a Notre Dame alumnus and self-proclaimed Catholic — but one with a long-running feud with the Church — was the featured guest of WPHT 1210 talk show host Dom Giordano.
The men sparred on whether it is hypocritical for a Catholic university to offer a platform to an ardent abortion-rights supporter and if doing so offers a tacit endorsement of the speaker’s viewpoints.
Mr. Donahue was unabashed in his support of the university’s decision, claiming that “most Catholics” favored abortion rights. Without providing hard proof behind his claim, he stated that the outcry against Notre Dame was the work of “self-righteous, right-wing Republicans” with a “narrow agenda” who were attempting to embarrass his alma mater for short-term political gain.
Ironically, in chastising the Church as “homophobic,” Mr. Donahue asked when it would come to the realization that “all of us are irreplaceable children of God.” Prior to his comment, a caller pointed out she believed all children were irreplaceable, including those in the mother’s womb.
Mr. Giordano addressed the hypocrisy issue by asking Mr. Donahue whom he considered a hypocrite in the Democratic Party.
Mr. Donahue responded by stating, “Well, honestly, I’d have to think about that. [Democrats] don’t come to mind as much as Republicans do.”
Despite the host’s repeated attempts to stay on topic, Mr. Donahue spent the majority of his airtime discussing other issues, such as former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s position on abortion, the impeachment hearings of President Clinton and “anachronisms” of the Catholic Church.
Mr. Giordano said he believed Notre Dame had erred in inviting the president, and said Mr. Obama’s views on abortion rights were considerably outside the mainstream, including his support for the extreme partial-birth abortion procedure.
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops spoke out against the practice of hosting speakers who are outspoken against Catholic doctrine in 2004.
“The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles,” said the bishop’s conference in a statement. “They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.”
The outcry across the nation from Notre Dame alumni, and Catholics and non-Catholics alike, has resulted in hundreds of thousands signing petitions demanding the university rescind its invitation to the president.
Mr. Obama is scheduled to receive an honorary doctorate degree in law at Notre Dame’s 164th commencement ceremony on May 17.
Chris Freind can be reached at cf@thebulletin.us
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