One of the wonderful things about the Internet is the way that it allows individuals and institutions new power to talk back to the press. Here is Cardinal Dolan of New York, blogging about a recent federal court decision in the legal challenge brought by the Archdiocese of New York against the ObamaCare free contraceptive coverage mandate:
Did you hear about the decision last week by U.S. District Court Judge Brian M. Cogan in the lawsuit brought by the Archdiocese of New York, ArchCare, (the agency coordinating our Catholic healthcare in the archdiocese) and three plaintiffs from the Diocese of Rockville Centre on Long Island, against the administration for the unconstitutional HHS mandate?
You probably did not, as there seems to have been virtually no mention of the decision – in favor of the archdiocese, by the way – in any local newspaper or on television. As far as I can tell, and I've looked rather carefully, there hasn't even been a story in the New York Times, which couldn't wait to publish an editorial this past October, admonishing the bishops, when a federal judge in Missouri found for the administration and dismissed a similar case brought by a private, for-profit, mining company. (The Times also didn't have much to say last week, when the appeals court temporarily blocked the bad Missouri decision the Times had gushed over.)
Judge Cogan's decision last week turned back a motion by the administration to have our lawsuit dismissed...The judge's decision doesn't settle the case, but allows the case to proceed so that it might be heard in court....
And what of the administration's contention that the suit should be dismissed because they were going to change the HHS mandate to address the concerns of religious employers? As Judge Cogan wrote, "…the First Amendment does not require citizens to accept assurances from the government that, if the government later determines it has made a misstep, it will take ameliorative action. There is no, 'Trust us, changes are coming' clause in the Constitution."
Bravo, Judge Cogan!
Well, no mention in the New York Times, in any local newspaper, or on television. But mentioned, now, here at FutureOfCapitalism. Bravo, Cardinal Dolan, for making an end run around the old-fashioned press and breaking the news on the blog of the archdiocese of New York.