Thursday, November 13, 2008
BISHOPS HAVE DEFUNDED ACORN
I thought it was in a previous blog, but I can't find it in a hasty search, so I'll put it here just in case. The bishops have defunded ACORN.
Catholic News Agency reports:
Baltimore, Nov 11, 2008 / 10:37 pm (CNA).- The Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) has not yet been able to determine if grants made to ACORN were used for fraudulent voter registration, but has cut off all funding to the community organizing group, Bishop Roger Morin announced on Tuesday.
Shortly after addressing the full assembly of U.S. Catholic bishops, Bishop Morin spoke to reporters about what the bishops had learned concerning the use of grants from the CCHD to the group Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), which is currently under investigation in 13 states for voter fraud.
CCHD originally announced in July 2008 that it was suspending funding to ACORN because of the embezzlement of 1 million dollars by the brother of ACORN founder Wade Rathke. Today, however, the Bishop Morin went one step further and announced the cancelation of all funding to the group.
When Bishop Morin was asked by the press why CCHD didn’t cancel funding earlier, given the nearly decade-old accusations of voter fraud, he responded that “there are hundreds of local ACORN affiliates” and then made reference to his estimate that CCHD only had a relationship with 40 to 45 of them.
That does not, however, excempt CCHD from critical scrutiny. ACORN is not the only organization they fund. There are a number of others, including the Industrial Areas Foundation and Gamaliel. The Industrial Areas Foundation had a major voter registration drive here in Ohio prior to the election. Was there voter fraud in this drive given that it also uses Alinsky-style methodology? I don't know, but it's a question that deserves asking.
Is the bulk of CCHD money used to fund Alinskian organizations? That is a question even more deserving of an answer. It seems clear to me that whatever they are about, CCHD is in the business of supporting organizations that are not Catholic. Therein lies the greater problem. Do we want our Catholic charity dollars to go to support secular organizations when we think we are contributing to Catholic causes? Some rock bottom honesty is badly needed and sadly lacking in the ranks of CCHD.
Perhaps another question that deserves asking--what are the morals of the man chosen as our president-elect given the fraud that was taking place in an organization he was involved with? Remember, his only claim to experience is his background in community organizing. ACORN, IAF, Gamaliel, are all part of the network which shaped Obama, and that network began in Chicago within Catholicism.
Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us!
