President Joe Biden's actions regarding abortion are not aligned with Catholic teaching, according to Most Rev. Joseph Naumann, archbishop of Kansas City, Kan., on Newsmax TV.
Among Biden’s first executive orders as president was one to rescind the Mexico City policy, which prohibited U.S. foreign-aid money from funding groups that provided or promoted abortion in other countries.
"We've faced presidents before who were aggressive in their advocacy for abortion, but this is a unique situation for the church in the United States, the [Roman] Catholic Church, because we haven't had a Catholic in that office doing this," Naumann told host Chris Salcedo on The Chris Salcedo Show on Wednesday.
"So, he creates a real problem for the church in the United States because he's confusing people about what authentic Catholic teaching is."
The archbishop said Biden's promotion of abortion in the U.S. and abroad was "great evil," and authorizing money for abortion in other counties was "an action that goes very much against fundamental Catholic moral teaching."
The archbishop also criticized the president for using euphemisms such as “abortion healthcare.”
"I think that's particularly offensive in that healthcare doesn’t involve destroying life," Naumann said. "It's to help lives, heal lives, protect lives."
Naumann expressed concern about Biden’s aim to repeal the Hyde Amendment, which has blocked federal funding for abortion services since 1976. Since 1994, exceptions have included when the pregnancy endangers the patient's life, or when the pregnancy results from rape or incest.
"I'm very concerned about the Hyde Amendment," Naumann said. "It's a policy that's had broad support from both Democrats and Republicans for almost 50 years. And for a president who's saying he's working for unity, to make this a priority, and to try to shove this down the throats of the American people, I think is a very sad moment.
"And the fact this president continues to identify himself as devout Catholic makes that even more painful for those of us in the church."
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