Friday on Fox News Channel’s “The Daily Briefing,” American Conservative Union chairman Matt Schlapp and former Democratic National Committee chairwoman Donna Brazile got into a heated exchange over President Donald Trump’s comments that Democratic presidential nominee former Vice President Joe Biden was “against God.”
Brazile said, “The president said that, but I should not be surprised because after all, that is what happens, the president attacks. Let me just say this personally. I know Joe Biden. I know Joe Biden’s faith and his belief in God. I know he loves everyone. And oh so much about his faith and character that I can attest he is a fellow Catholic. He lives his faith. He believes in the Lord, and he can recite the Lord’s prayer. He knows with the people going down to used income, I’m not surprised that the president attacked Joe Biden’s faith, but I can tell you that Joe Biden belongs to St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Delaware, a man of faith.”
Schlapp said, “Donna said Joe Biden goes to St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. The problem Joe Biden has is he wants those parishioners to pay for the choice of killing an unborn child in abortion. The problem for Joe Biden is that he said he would reignite this war on the Little Sisters of the Poor in trying to impose this idea that they have to pay for abortion-inducing drugs for the employees that work with those Little Sisters. We ought to leave nuns alone. I don’t know his heart. It’s not my job to judge his heart, but you cannot be a Catholic in good standing and not care about unborn life, which is the most vulnerable life amongst us. You can’t not stand for our First Amendment rights to practice our religion.”
Brazile responded, “Matt, I recognize that some Catholics disagree on this issue. I am a woman of faith. There is not one child that has been in my life, or the life of Joe Biden, or anyone else that we did not try to lift up and pick up and help. For Republicans, it’s always a cultural war against my faith, my religion, my dedication, my devotion, my belief in God, my belief in the sanctity of all life from birth to death. You have to recognize that in attacking his faith and his character, which you do not know, you do not know his heart.”
Schlapp said, “I attacked his policies.”
Brazile said, “Jesus said attack the sin, not the sinner. You are doing exactly what Catholics should never be doing in the public square.”
She added, “Let’s talk about the policies of this president. All we have to look at is the 160,000 dead from COVID.”
Schlapp said, “That is not Donald Trump’s fault.”
He continued, “I can’t judge Joe Biden’s heart. That’s for our Lord and Savior to do. What Joe Biden has to do, according to the dictates and dogmas of our faith, Donna — which I know you believe deeply and I have deep respect for you — but when we talk about these policies, if the unborn life can’t have legal protection in our society, our church condemns that. If you can’t fully exercise your Catholic faith in the public square and in our society, including saying that I don’t want to fund abortion-causing drugs, you have the right to do that in this society. If you want to practice your faith by going to church in the middle of this Corona crisis, or have your kids like I’m going to do with my five kids and try to send them to school, I have the right to do that as a parent. It’s wrong for Joe Biden not to stand up for people of faith and all of these ways.”
Perino said, “I think this is what’s interesting about this conversation. This topic, there’s a reason it comes up in elections because people feel so strongly, and I respect the passion that you both have on this. I respect your faith. I think we can all respect each other’s faith, but we have to be able to talk about the policy differences. Now I will assign you to get onto Zoom and have a beer together tonight.”
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN
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