Marco Rubio, David Daleiden; Chi-Town priest 'outs' himself

By Matt C. Abbott

The young investigative journalist and pro-life activist David Daleiden – whom GOP presidential hopeful Marco Rubio recently defended – will present himself before Judge Brock Thomas in Houston on February 4.

Peter Breen, special counsel for the Thomas More Society, has issued the following statement:

'The charges against David Daleiden are legally and factually baseless. David used standard undercover journalism techniques to catch Planned Parenthood staff agreeing to alter abortion procedures to get more intact organs and tissue from aborted babies, presumably without telling their patients. David also caught Planned Parenthood staff discussing how to adjust accounting line items to conceal profits from baby body part transactions.

'Planned Parenthood's lawyers in Houston have now admitted they dreamed up and demanded the charges against David, apparently in order to distract prosecutors and the public from their own bad acts. We intend to seek to have these charges dismissed at the earliest opportunity.'

Daleiden faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted of these "crimes." He's also facing lawsuits from the abortion industry. Pray for him.

Father Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, said in a statement:

'This latest development reveals the abortion industry true to form. Its strategy, when caught doing wrong, is summarized by four words: deny, distract, deflect and project.

'I have been involved in ripping the veil off of the abortion industry since the mid-1990s, and their approach has always been the same. They deny the obvious (starting with the fact that they kill babies), and then they engage in a massive effort to distract the public from what the abortion industry is doing, and try to point instead to what the pro-life movement is doing. Distraction is the best defense for the abortion industry, because they have no defense when the discussion focuses on what they are doing.

'Then, in distracting the public, they engage in massive projection by accusing us of exactly what they themselves are guilty of doing. The abortion industry is an industry of violence, but they constantly portray the pro-life movement as violent. The abortion industry is a massive criminal enterprise, breaking federal and state laws left and right, but they constantly try to accuse pro-life activists of being criminals. The abortion industry is devoid of compassion, and they constantly complain that pro-life activists are devoid of compassion.

'The story continues in a consistent line right from the beginning until today.

'And the defense of pro-life people is simple: redirect and focus. Focus on what they are doing. Planned Parenthood is harvesting and selling intact bodies of babies, and in order to do so, you have to avoid both dismembering them and poisoning them. Instead, they are born alive and then killed. Bottom line: Planned Parenthood is guilty of murder, and it's time to force them to stop changing the subject.'

(Chicago-area pro-lifers can see and meet David Daleiden at Illinois Right to Life's "Leaders for Life" banquet on April 26. Click here for details.)

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And speaking of Chicago...

Chi-Town's Father Michael Shanahan is the latest priest to come out of the closet and fancy himself a dry martyr.

From The Washington Post (Jan. 31):

'There's a level of witnessing here that's important for me to do. The Christian faith has a lot to say about the underdog, about the marginalized or the leper, the blind, the lame, the ostracized woman prostitute, widow, the little one,' he said.

'I'd like to be one of those priests, who, with great respect for the church's teaching, can say: I'm a human being. I'm a son – one of six – I'm gay and I'm a priest, period.'

Prayer has led him to believe this article is part of that witness. He has decided he wants to be known: His name is Michael Shanahan.

Interestingly, while he "doesn't disregard the church's teaching on sexuality," he makes no assertion in the article that he's living or promoting a chaste life. One can only wonder what he's been advising penitents in the confessional.

Funny thing is, Father Shanahan couldn't have been too closeted. After all, the reporter didn't seem to have much trouble finding him or the other gay priests quoted in her article.

Click here to revisit the essay "Homosexuality and the Church Crisis."

© Matt C. Abbott