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Chris Matthews: 'This May Come To Civil Disobedience'

By Mark Finkelstein | February 10, 2012 | 09:21

A  A

If President Obama didn't already see a sea of red flags, a thunderbolt from Chris Matthews this morning should surely inform him that he has badly misstepped with his decision to force Catholic institutions to provide services that violate their religious principles

Appearing on Morning Joe, Matthews said that "even liberal Catholics are going to be proud" of Catholic leaders who stand up to Obama, and indeed that the Catholic response "may come to civil disobedience."  Video after the jump.



Watch Matthews make a statement that, instead of a thrill up the leg, should send a shiver up the Obama spine.

CHRIS MATTHEWS: We've all been trained for this since the time we were kids, with the stories of Thomas Beckett and Thomas More and even the Maccabees.  There will come a time when power will come to the Church and test us and say who are you with, your God, or the powers around you, the mundane powers of the earth? And whether it's King Henry VIII or King Henry II or the bad kings in the Old Testament who would force you to eat pork or you're going to be fried, or whatever.  You have to make that choice. 

We've all been trained for this and a lot of Catholics are going to rally to the Church and say good for those bishops; this is the first time I think they're standing up for something that I believe. That they have a right to tell us what's right and wrong.  Not that we have to do it.  We will disagree. We will practice our own American version of Catholicism, if you will. But we want them to have that right to say what they believe is right.  This issue of birth control, and abortion, which they see here is an abortion issue, with IUDs and morning-after pills, because it has to do with what happens after conception--they believe they have a right, and they do, to tell us what they believe. 

And the government is now saying you must put your imprimatur, you must take your hand to something you have told us forever is wrong. And they can't do it. And I tell you, as much strength as they show in this, the more I think even liberal Catholics are going to be proud of them. And this may come to civil disobedience. If they round up all the bishops and all the cardinals and put them in prison, I tell you, a lot of Catholics will say, you know what?  I  understand this issue. I get it why they're fighting.      

About the Author

Mark Finkelstein is a NewsBusters Senior Contributor. Click here to follow Mark Finkelstein on Twitter.
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Comments

My thoughts

Submitted by DontFeedTheTrolls on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 9:57am.

I understand the Catholic point of view on this, and applaud it, but am wondering why it appears most secular Americans don't seem to mind that the government is forcing the taxpayers to foot yet another bill and pay for providing every female in the country with birth control.
To me this is just more creeping socialism.

Americans keeping their own earnings is a Civil Right! Demand your Civil Rights!
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Because it's not "the

Submitted by motherbelt on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 10:01am.

Because it's not "the taxpayers" footing the bill; it's private enterprise (employers).  And too many think having a "right" to a thing means someone has to provide it to them.

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Good morning MB

Submitted by cocodrie on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 10:08am.

I agree and believe that part of the answer lies in the fact that we are not being educated to live in the real world anymore but are being socially engineered to accept liberal immorality.

 

Jesus Loves You so much He died for you

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It's the strategy of the Left

Submitted by Galvanic on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 12:42pm.

As we have witnessed during the Administration, the Left garners support for its agenda by convincing the average citizen that (a) he/she won't pay for it, and (b) the rich will pay for it because he's not paying enough now.

We have a nation where 47% of the tax filers pay no Federal income tax. That is no accident.

As someone once noted, "The government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always rely on the support from Paul."

Obamacare could only be sold by lying to the public. Even if employers are mandated to pay for health care, those costs get folded into the goods and services we buy. We all end up paying for it.

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You know, mother

Submitted by Tugboat Phil on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 2:16pm.

since most Americans think everything is a right nowadays, and someone else has to pay for it, we should try a counter-attack.

Most lawmakers are lawyers. We need to start a public outcry for FREE LEGAL CARE. Why should we have to pay for a lawyer when you hear on all the police shows, "If you can't afford a lawyer, one will be appointed to you by the court." Sure the lawmakers will fight it, but if we get the brain dead, daytime & reality TV crowd inspired enough to chant slogans, Katy bar the door!

Why should we have to settle for court appointed lawyers? We need an American Plaintiffs Bill of Rights. Quality legal care for all Americans! Let Big Legal pay for it!

President Obama is a Muslim (from his own lips), Kenyan (read it from his publicist) a homosexual (read it on a news magazine cover) and a Socialist (I'm alive and can see it for myself)
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Couldn't agree with you more on the issue

Submitted by WhoIsJohnGalt on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 12:31pm.

It's a lifestyle choice, not a health issue. And they try and frame it favorably to them by calling it "women's ACCESS to essential health services". Crap. Everyone already has ACCESS. It's just another treat that Democrats use to try and get more free stuff for people in order to buy votes.

Small correction...although it's forced on us by the government, it's not taxpayer money.

And by the way...I'd like to meet the nincompoop who thinks that future insurance rates won't be affected by more free stuff they're forced to pay for.

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Cardinal-designate Timothy

Submitted by motherbelt on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 10:09am.

Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan says Obama reneged on the deal they discussed.

Sources close to Dolan told Kramer that the archbishop felt betrayed after a November meeting with President Obama to discuss the contraception issue. Sources said the president promised Dolan that he would “get most of what he wanted.”

Instead, the administration issued a directive forcing Catholic institutions like schools and hospitals to pay for things like birth control and the morning after pill for their employees.

I wonder what comprises the "most of what [Dolan] wanted."

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Obama reneged? Say it ain't so!

Submitted by WhoIsJohnGalt on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 12:35pm.

I read about a congresswoman who lost her seat during the 2010 election primarily because of her support for ObamaCare. She said that she would not have voted for it had she known what Obama would do vis-à-vis; this contraception issue. Idiot...we told you. And has anyone recently asked Bart Stupak how he feels?

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Liberal Catholics?

Submitted by jon_torlin on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 10:14am.

Is there really such a thing?  Aside from San Fran Nan Pelousy?  Liberal Catholics??

Matthews has it backwards on this one, like he does on many other things, but I have to ask a question:  Is it really civil disobedience to someone who violates the Constitution frequently, if not more so especially in the last couple of months alone?(especially with his comments about not needing Congress and acting on that)

Call it what it really is, which is rebellion.  Rebellion against a petty dictator who thinks he's not answerable to anyone.  More and more people are going to start doing that.

It's not about the Catholic Church, Matthews, you outright moron.  Your favorite object of desire, you goofy leg-humper, violates so much more than just something one church believes in.  It's a violation of FREEDOM, and everyone knows that dictators, especially this one who's voiced it on more than one occation, hates freedom.

This is one more attempt by the bogus potus to paint a group as an enemy just like Hitler did with the Jews, except he's making multiple enemies through class warfare and etc.

And Matthews, you're not fooling anyone, you could care less while people are fighting against this, you will always be a shill for this bogus potus.  Quit trying to act like you sympathize.

-Jon

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The answer is no.

Submitted by pcnav on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 12:01pm.

Pelosi is a Catholic that 70 years ago would have been excommunicated for her evil views on everything.

Most don't seem to realize that the reason the Catholics oppose this mandate is because it promotes what they view as promiscuity. If abortion, contraception, IUDs, etc are readily available men and women will screw to their hearts content without any thought of pregnancy. The Catholics believe that sex should only come after marriage. I was raised a Catholic but currently am not a practicing one but I still remember the teachings. While I don't care about the sex before marriage thing I'm not fond of killing babies just because two people wanted to f---. Own up to your decisions democRATs.

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What would be great is if the POPE

Submitted by hbnolikeee on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 2:03pm.

made it known that anyone that votes this law into affect will be immediately excommunicated with no exceptions and that they voted themselves a nice toasty front row seat in hell.

hbnolikeee
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WH Compromise

Submitted by iamsaved on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 10:23am.

I just read where the White House is going to offer a compromise on the birth control mandate. I hope the Catholics and other denominations don't fall for anything but a total, permanent waiver that's given in writing which still could be reneged on.

If HHS declared a healthcare policy as controversial as this one once, they can do it again. All the Obama administration is doing is releasing its grip in order to get a better hold. This issue will not go away until Obamacare is repealed in its totality.

iamsaved "The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left," (Ecclesiastes 10:2) MSM Journalism - "a profession consisting of idealogues espousing their beliefs regardless of facts and/or truth."
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Obama sees this as a win -win situation

Submitted by c5then on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 10:27am.

If the Catholics give in, he wins. If they fight him and do not offer this group of "sevices" in their health insurance plans, they will be sued by HHS and it will take years to get through the courts. He wins. If they take the easy road out and just drop their health insurance plans completely, he wins because it is an argument for Obamacare.

 

Madison and Jefferson and Franklin built a Republic - Roberts killed it! 

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He's wrong.

Submitted by motherbelt on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 10:56am.

If they take the easy road out and just drop their health insurance plans completely, he wins because it is an argument for Obamacare.

I've been saying all along that this might be his real intention.  That's why I'm hoping if push comes to shove the Catholic institutions let themselves be shut down, rather than just drop medical insurance coverage.

How would Obama like to have, say, all those patients swamping other hospitals?

Not to mention the number of people going on the unemployment rolls.  That would push the number over 10% easily.

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You hit the nail on the head, MB

Submitted by Meredith1966 on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 11:30am.

The endgame with Obamacare, as you rightly point out, is and always has been single-payer, universal, taxpayer-funded, government run healthcare. It's been the goal of 'Progressives' since at least FDR, and we're closer to it than ever before under Obama. Actions like this are clues as to the direction we're going in with Obama and the Social Democrats in charge--per your suspicion, the design is to subvert the existing free-market healthcare solution to such a degree as to make the case for getting rid of it completely in favor of a government-managed and funded system, supposedly free for everyone and without the greedy, profit-driven insurance companies. Tom Harkin let the cat out of the bag during the Obamacare push back in 2009, that a single-payer system was the goal and that what they were forcing on us at that time was merely a step in that direction. They want people to lose their insurance, they need people to lose their insurance, and they will do what is necessary in order make that happen so as to bring about another brick in their Socialist, Utopian wall.

"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them." - Thomas Jefferson

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There're other factors

Submitted by Galvanic on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 4:11pm.

HHS is granting one year exemptions to 'adjust' to the mandates. If during that period, Obamacare is overturned in any of the several suits brought against the Federal government by the states, the RCC wins by default.

It's possible, too, that if the RCC sued HHS to avoid the mandate and the court ordered an injunction postponing compliance until the suit was tried or settled, Obama loses.

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I'm amazed.

Submitted by Newsbubba on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 11:33am.

We can get this sort of reaction over one issue in this total abortion called Obamacare, yet most of the sheeple seem resigned to all of the other crap coming down from the regime!

This RBFSOB is "totally transforming this country" before our very eyes and NOW we're upset?

Wake up.  PLEASE!

Your freedom, your wealth, your country is being dismantled as you watch.

"Then they came for me."  

http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007392

Comrade Bubba
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stupid people

Submitted by jon_torlin on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 11:53am.

That's what makes me mad about these stupid people or sheeple, like you say, NOW they are getting upset? 

Those F*ing idiots, people like us have been warning in the months, even the year BEFORE the election because we KNEW exactly what would happen.  We explained why with facts(but those get in the way) and even history(but it was a dark time!) but it was ignored.

At this point, the only thing we need to say is "I TOLD YOU SO!  LIVE WITH IT!  OWN UP TO IT!  DO SOMETHING TO FIX IT!"

God almighty!  That's what I tell my friends these days whent hey bitch and moan about it.

-Jon

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amen Jon, amen... it is so

Submitted by jkwtrading on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 1:25pm.

amen Jon, amen...

it is so hard to tell people what can occur if they are not vigilant.. We are at a point in history reminiscent of a combination of the revolution plus the reformation. here though god is the state and President and not the pope. we also have the presence of a president acting like a king. a real combination to say the least..

The more Obama evokes god the more he undoes himself..the more he provokes religion also undoes himself. i feel we are the on the verge now with all 10 amendments coming into question, all are god like and he will provoke all before he's through. that sets up a real classic fight.

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jon, I am right there with ya

Submitted by Dave. on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 3:30pm.

I lost all patience with those who couldn't see this coming back when I realized this aspiring Marxist dictator was going to get elected (and that was well before the election).

I have even less patience with those who, three-plus years into the screw, still cannot see what this fraud of a POTUS is very rapidly doing to our country - and that includes a lot of so-called conservatives.

And I'm guessing 96 - 98% of the Dear Ruler's congressional enablers who are up for reelection in November are going to be sent right back up there, and it is looking more and more like he will be, too.

As I have said before, thanks to ten decades of government "education," we have now reached the point where a majority of the American sheeple have been dumbed down to the point of rank stupidity.

There is no way this fraud of a POTUS should have anywhere near a 47% approval rating - even if the polls are being juiced.

-Dave

Vote for the American in November

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This illustrates the conundrum for liberals.

Submitted by KyWriter on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 11:41am.

How would Matthews and his ilk deal with Catholics in the street protesting The One? Some liberal Christians, like Chrissy professes to be, might join in, but today's Obamabots have already deified the President and that trumps any other god. This blind faith in a secular individual resembles very much the old controversy about the infallibility of the Pope. It's interesting to compare the ridicule once heaped on Catholics to the blatant propaganda and spin doctoring of Obama's every word and act.

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Irony

Submitted by Galvanic on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 12:04pm.

When Roman Catholic JFK ran for President in 1960, he had to dispel fears among some that he would take orders from the Pope, essentially surrendering our sovereignty. This he did.

Now we have JFK-worshipper Chris Matthews predicting that many Catholics will take to the streets in support of the RCC's position and against Obamacare.

Obama -- who Matthews likened to his hero JFK back in '08 -- can raise that 1960 specter again: Will you support the doctrine of the Pope, or the law of the United States? Ow-ee.

But I think the WH has gotten enough hate mail and hate calls at this point, and it appears that they are going to backdown somewhat rather than fuel a confrontation.

I couldn't avoid the irony, though.

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good analogy..

Submitted by jkwtrading on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 1:18pm.

good analogy..

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ObamAA+ has to worry about

Submitted by Free Stinker on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 12:00pm.

ObamAA+ has to worry about civil disobedience.

Conservatives have to worry about actual violence from the Neo-Sturmabtelung (Occupy)

 

   /// Sarah Palin Fan since July 11, 2007 ///    خال

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The White House has to

Submitted by Soldat44 on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 12:18pm.

The White House has to rescind this mandate completely or we are right back to square one. I do not trust the evil Sebilius They may have a trick up their bloody sleeves.

'One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church'
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There are two cycles of

Submitted by jkwtrading on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 1:15pm.

There are two cycles of justice, civil justice and justice by the sword...the civil justice ends come October of 2012.

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This Stupidity

Submitted by John21 on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 1:37pm.

This stupidity will go beyond "civil" disobedience.

The start of this insult to American freedoms will make the riot of the 60's look like a Joan Biaz concert. This is an insult not only to the Catholic Church but to all religions and to every patriot and libertarian in the country. There will be serious repercussions to not only the Administration but to Congress and the Senate and the rest of the corruptocrats.

They say a revolution every couple of hundred years is good for a society, at least it will clean the deadwood and deadheads out of our government.

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The first revolution

Submitted by jkwtrading on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 2:29pm.

The first revolution "cleansed" the Tories from society.

Unfortunately a batch was left untouched in New York City and they have grown immensely since 1783.

New York City never got touched in the revolution and those Tories stayed.

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"We've all been trained for this"

Submitted by Radical1979 on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 1:57pm.

Really? Did his parish have Alinskite handouts in the parish bulletins explaining how to occupy parks to get their way?

I think Matthews is continuing on his mission of helping Obama succeed. This time by giving Big Sis a reason to now "monitor" the Catholic church.

Proud member of the 53%!
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How many more illegal actions is this "POTUS" going to carry out

Submitted by Dave. on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 2:21pm.

...before this congress finally moves to stop him?

Waiting until he has nullified the Constitution (which is what he is rapidly doing) is going to be too damned late.

Not only do we need to get rid of the current occupant of the Oval Office, but we need to get rid of his spineless congressional enablers, too - and that includes those we sent to congress last year who said they were going to work to stop Obama.

Bullsh*t - they haven's even slowed him down.

We are within months (not years) of losing this country for good.

-Dave

Vote for the American in November

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Dave,

Submitted by Agnostic on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 2:31pm.

Outside of a couple of ill conceived compromises most of the people elected to stop Obama have done all they can legitimately do.  That is, unless you want them to start violating the Constitution as well.

. . Socialist = Modern Liberal = Parasitoid
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Agnostic, they could turn off the cash valve

Submitted by Dave. on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 2:54pm.

And they could have done it back in January.

Tyranny costs money to bring about, and even though it wouldn't exactly stop the progression of Obamunism, it would at least seriously impair it.

-Dave

Vote for the American in November

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Dave, no they can't -

Submitted by Agnostic on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 2:59pm.

not without support from the Senate. Hence the fact that numerous bill sit in the Senate without debate, including bills that defund many projects, programs and regulatory expansions.

. . Socialist = Modern Liberal = Parasitoid
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Ruse

Submitted by djwolf12 on Fri, 02/10/2012 - 7:47pm.

This issue is a ruse. It won't matter come election day because Tingles is getting that warm feeling running down his leg.The way he runs his 5pm show, he is still carrying his almighty master's water and will fight for him every step of the way and slander anyone that dares disagree with King Hussein.

"Someday a real rain will come and wash all this scum off the streets". - Robert DeNiro, Taxi Driver (1976).
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