The archdiocese did not immediately respond to CNA’s request for clarification as to why Archbishop Schnurr would have refused approval of the event. Mount Saint Joseph University did not immediately respond to a request for comment by CNA on Tuesday afternoon.
Regarding the July 21 townhall, CNN.com reported that CNN anchor Don Lemon will moderate the one-hour event, which will cover “a wide range of issues facing the nation ranging from Covid-19 to the economy.”
President Biden is the second Catholic president in U.S. history. While the U.S. bishops’ conference has praised some of his administration’s policies on immigration and fighting poverty, conference president Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles stated in January his concern about Biden’s policies on abortion, gender issues, and religious freedom.
“I must point out that our new President has pledged to pursue certain policies that would advance moral evils and threaten human life and dignity, most seriously in the areas of abortion, contraception, marriage, and gender,” Gomez stated. “Of deep concern is the liberty of the Church and the freedom of believers to live according to their consciences.”
In January, Biden stated his support for Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court’s 1973 ruling that legalized abortion nationwide, on the 48th anniversary of the ruling.
Biden’s budget request for the 2022 fiscal year included taxpayer-funded abortion by excluding the Hyde Amendment. The amendment has been federal policy since 1976, and prohibits federal funding of abortions in Medicaid. Biden once supported the policy as a U.S. senator, but reversed his support in 2019 as a presidential candidate.
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