A prominent American priest in the Legionaries of Christ, a troubled Catholic order whose founder was denounced by the Vatican for sexual improprieties, has admitted having a sexual relationship with a woman and fathering her child.

Father Thomas Williams, who has appeared on CBS and NBC and was interviewed by ABC News for a 2010 report on the Legion, made the acknowledgement after an activist who had sought reform in the order contacted the Vatican with his suspicions.

One would say that “Hey, he made a mistake.  We are all humans and prone to mistakes.”  Fair enough.  However, it becomes a problem when the Order leaders knew about the affair and tried to cover it up.  Yes, make no mistake: they looked the other way around and ignored the problem hoping that it would just go away.  Guess what?  It did not.

The accusations against Father Williams do not stop there.

The activist who alleged that Williams had fathered a child also claimed that Williams had been involved in sexual relationships with female students while stationed in Rome. Williams did not comment on those charges.

The only reason the leaders acknowledged there was a problem with Father Williams was because “… an activist who had sought reform in the order contacted the Vatican with his suspicions.”

It is shameful that an Order that has been plagued with so many sex abuse cases, which have even involved its own founder, has refused to deal with these problems head on.

Walker blamed the state’s employment woes on the recalls, saying employers are hesitant to add jobs during times of political uncertainty but that there would be a “dramatic turnaround” after June 5.

“There is a tremendous enthusiasm built up for additional jobs,” he said. “I think you’re going to see a tremendous takeoff.”

This quote from Governor Scott Walker should raise a red flag and should make one wonder whether someone is cooking the books.

At the Iowa Faith & Freedom event, Paul mocked President Obama’s remark that his view on marriage was evolving.  “Call me cynical, but I didn’t think his views on marriage could get any gayer,” he said.

And people thought Senator Rand Paul was for personal liberty: Live and let live.  Well, it appears that it does not apply if you are gay or lesbian or woman or any other minorities.  Then again, not surprised one bit given Paul is from the South: the cradle of intolerance and bigotry.

Cynical applicable to you, Senator, is not one word that comes to mind.

So let me get this straight – it’s a problem if my mom listened too much to my dad, but it’s a heroic act if the President made a massive change in a policy position that could affect the entire nation after consulting with his teenage daughters?

While it’s great to listen to your kids’ ideas, there’s also a time when dads simply need to be dads. In this case, it would’ve been helpful for him to explain to Malia and Sasha that while her friends parents are no doubt lovely people, that’s not a reason to change thousands of years of thinking about marriage. Or that – as great as her friends may be – we know that in general kids do better growing up in a mother/father home. Ideally, fathers help shape their kids’ worldview.

In this situation, it was the other way around. I guess we can be glad that Malia and Sasha aren’t younger, or perhaps today’s press conference might have been about appointing Dora the Explorer as Attorney General because of her success in stopping Swiper the Fox.

Again, why does she even comment on current events?  She should be more concerned about– say– not getting pregnant again?  Like her mother– Sarah Palin– Bristol is not that smart or she would have used condoms.  And she does not add to the political discourse  anything that is worth noting.

The Republican-led House has agreed to replace deep budget cutsscheduled to hit the Pentagon in January with a series of reductions in funding for food stamps, Medicaid and regulation of the financial sector.

The House approved the package that would save $242.8 billion over 10 years on a party-line 218 to 199 vote. No Democrats supported the package; sixteen Republicans opposed it.

Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said national security would be harmed if the Pentagon lost $55 billion in funding in January. He told colleagues the House framework represented at attempt to deal with a looming problem through serious governing and would put only a small dent in the growth of rapidly expanding social programs.

It is time to throw these bums out of office.  They do not have the best interests of the American people at heart.  They have shown to treat the poor, senior citizens, students, those on welfare, women and minorities with such contempt.   And who is heading this contempt? None other than Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.

Mitt Romney today offered an apology after a Washington Post piece alleged pranks the candidate pulled during his years at an all-boys high school in Michigan targeted his gay peers.

Romney admitted during a radio interview that he did some “dumb things” but that “homosexuality was the furthest thing from his mind” when it came to the jokes he played on classmates.  He laughed off the 45 year-old anecdotes during the radio interview today.

“I’m not going to be too concerned about their piece they talk about the fact that I played a lot of pranks in high school and they describe some that well you just say to yourself, back in high school well I did some dumb things and if anybody was hurt by that or offended obviously I apologize but overall high school years were a long time ago,” said Romney in an interview on Kilmeade and Friends radio show about his years at the Cranbook School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Asked specifically as to whether he remembered an anecdote in the story that describes Romney cutting the hair of one of his classmates who was “presumed” to be gay because the candidate did not like his long hairstyle, Romney responded, “You know, I don’t.”

“I don’t remember that incident,” Romney said, laughing, before adding that whether someone was “homosexual, that was the furthest thing from my mind back in the 1960s, so that was not the case.”

The Washington Post report quotes four students who do recall the incident.

“As for pranks that were played back then, I don’t remember them all, but again you know, [in my] high school days I did of stupid things. I’m afraid I gotta say sorry for it,” Romney said.

Romney asserted several times during the radio interview that the Washington Post article noted that the students who reported having pranks played on them “didn’t come out of the closet until years later,” suggesting that the pranks could not have been targeted at gay students.

Regarding one story in the article that described Romney encouraging another student who was known for teasing another gay student by remarking, “Atta girl.”

“I can’t remember, you know my guess is a lot of time in my years in my boarding school where boys who do something and people say he say ‘atta girl,” said Romney.

“As for the teasing and the taunts that go on in high school, that’s a long time ago, for me that’s about what 48 years ago, if there’s anything I said that was offensive to somebody I’m certainly sorry about that, very deeply sorry about that,” Romney said.

The Washington Post story about Romney’s high school years posted just a day after the issue of same-sex marriage was catapulted to the forefront of the election, President Obama saying he now supports gay marriage while Romney reaffirmed that he does not.

Romney used the radio interview this morning to suggest that while some may want to talk about pranks he played in high school, he still believes the economy is the most important issue facing the nation.

ABC News

If things in America don’t work out for her, Michele Bachmann now has Switzerland to fall back on. The Minnesota congresswoman and former Republican presidential candidate became a Swiss citizen in March, and now holds dual nationality, Politico reports. Her husband is of Swiss descent, and when he claimed his right to citizenship, she automatically gained it as well, as did the couple’s three youngest children. “Some of their children wanted to exercise their eligibility for dual citizenship so they went through the process as a family,” a Bachmann spokeswoman explains.

Bachmann was interviewed by Swiss television while meeting a group of Swiss lawmakers in Washington yesterday. Asked if she would run for office in the Alpine nation, as she is now eligible to do, she joked that the competition “would be very stiff because they are very good,” referring to the Swiss delegation. But if Bachmann does decide to live in Switzerland, the fierce opponent of ObamaCare will discover that all Swiss citizens are required to purchase basic health insurance, notes theDaily Beast.

Newser

Eight months after the military allowed gays to serve openly _ and on the same day that President Barack Obama declared his support for same-sex marriage _ the House Armed Services Committee backed measures limiting the rights of gays and lesbians.

The panel stepped into the gays in the military issue as it considered a sweeping, $642 billion defense bill for next year that buys new weapons, ships and aircraft, increases military pay by 1.7 percent and sets policies for the Pentagon. The committee worked through the day Wednesday and into the early morning Thursday on the legislation that adds billions of dollars to the president’s budget request.

The committee fleshed out a blueprint for next year that calls for a base defense budget of $554 billion, including nuclear weapons spending, plus $88 billion for the war in Afghanistan and counterterrorism efforts. That compares with the administration’s proposal of $551 billion, plus $88 billion.

Conservative Republicans still angry with the end to the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on gays in the military pressed two measures.

“The president has repealed `don’t ask, don’t tell’ and is using the military as props to promote his gay agenda,” said Rep. Todd Akin, R-Mo., who is running for Senate.

The committee, on a vote of 37-24, backed an amendment that barred same-sex marriages or “marriage-like” ceremonies on military installations. The panel also endorsed an Akin amendment that said the services should accommodate the rights of conscience of members of the services and chaplains who are morally or religiously opposed to expressions of human sexuality.

In an odd exchange, Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Calif., questioned what would happen if a service member literally interpreted the Old Testament‘s Leviticus, which considers homosexuality an abomination. Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga., disputed her contention that was part of the Bible, saying it was the Old Testament.

“Members of this committee are looking to turn back the clock and find new ways to discriminate against gay and lesbian service members,” said Rep. Adam Smith of Washington state, the top Democrat on the committee. “These men and women serve with honor and distinction and this amendment sends a message that their service is not valued.”

Associated Press

We have to kill the Claire Bear, ladies and gentlemen.  She walks around like she’s some sort of Rainbow Brite Care Bear or something but really she’s an evil monster.

Boston claims that he did not intend to threaten the Senator and his comment should not be construed as threat.  Well, isn’t the Tea Party a group of wonderful and civilized people?

Note to Boston: We know it is hard for members of the Tea Party to really have any type of comprehension skills but it is common sense to know that one should never, ever use “US Senator” and “kill” in the same sentence.  Just a word of advice.

What does the Observer do about its candidate of choice? It issues a scathing piece taking away its support and endorsement from Perdergraph.

After winning the Observer’s endorsement in his bid for Congress, he has done nothing but embarrass us and himself.

By buddying up to one of America’s more hateful egomaniacs and then joining with fringe “birthers” to question President Obama’s citizenship, Pendergraph has contradicted much of what he told the Observer’s editorial board in his endorsement interview last month. As a result, we have lost faith in him, and urge voters to consider Edwin Peacock or Ric Killian in the 9th Congressional District race.

For what is worth, good for the Observer for having the guts to call out Pendergraph on his racist, extreme and birther views.