The Catholic League's Bill Donohue blasted "sick man" David Letterman for his Wednesday night sketch making light about Pope Francis's recent remarks about priestly celibacy. The segment repeatedly featured a group of young women screaming ecstatically over the news that the Pope is "now thinking about lifting the celibacy requirements for priests." He also aired a fake CNN news report featuring the pontiff giving a sex ed lesson to bishops at the Vatican. [video below the jump]
Donohue's Thursday statement, titled "Letterman Should Avoid Sexual Jokes," underlined the CBS's host admission from nearly five years ago that he had sexual escapades with several of his female staffers (it should be pointed out that MRC President Brent Bozell serves on the board of advisors for the Catholic League):
...Bill Donohue responds as follows:
Letterman is a sick man who is constantly being treated for his afflictions, so he needs to be very careful about what he says.
Here is the leading sentence from a CBS News story on the married host dated October 2, 2009: "David Letterman admitting on his show Thursday night that he'd had sex with female staffers and revealing he was the subject of a related extortion try could help keep his image from being tarnished, experts agree."
Here is the leading sentence from an AP story dated January 7, 2013: "Three years after an extortion scandal that led him to bare his infidelities, David Letterman said he sees a psychiatrist once a week to try to be the person that he believed he was."
Back in February 2013, as Benedict XVI was stepping down from papacy, Letterman took a cheap shot at the Church:
DAVID LETTERMAN: ...Here's what they're looking for now to replace Pope Benedict. They're looking for a guy who's got to be at least 60 years old. You want a mature man, got to be at least 60 years old. Biblical scholar, hoping for a biblical scholar, and looking for a guy who is good at transferring creepy priests.
The relevant transcript from Wednesday's Late Show with David Letterman on CBS:
DAVE LETTERMAN: You know who turns out to be a happening guy is that new pope – Pope Francis. Wooo! Yeah. (audience cheers and applauds) He's now thinking about lifting the celibacy requirements for priests. (group of women scream and cheer) (audience applauds and laughs) That's right. The – the Pope is saying that priests can be in a marriage with a woman and have sex. (group of women scream and cheer)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN 1 (off-camera) Girls- (laughs)
LETTERMAN: (audience laughs) Here, take a look at this special report about that on CNN.
UNIDENTIFIED MAN 2 (voice-over, from fake news report): Pope Francis has proposed repealing clerical celibacy, a practice which dates back to the beginning of the Catholic Church. The Pope made the announcement to a group of bishops today at the Vatican; then, took several hours of questions.
POPE FRANCIS (through fake translation): When two people love each other very much, they become more than just good friends. Eventually, they might even get married and have a baby. The mommy and daddy make the baby together, but it grows inside the mommy. (audience laughs)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN 2: Jeff Carmichael, CNN.
LETTERMAN: (audience applauds) So, if a priest sees somebody out there in a crowd that he likes, he might send over some communion wine. (points off-camera) (audience laughs)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN 3 (off-camera): That little lady over there-
LETTERMAN: Priests having sex – can you believe that? (group of women scream and cheer) Oh, okay – all right.
UNIDENTIFIED MAN (off-camera): They promised.
LETTERMAN: Yeah.
