Another day, another controversial statement from the Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano.
Earlier Monday, speaking to the host of “The Water Cooler” David Brody on The True Voice of Americathe Franklin County state senator said his Democratic opponent Josh Shapiro “has a real grudge against the Catholic Church.”
“Josh Shapiro has demonstrated over the past few years that he stands for tyranny,” Mastriano said. “He defends the masking of your children, he sued the Little Sisters of the Poor, he has a real grudge against the Catholic Church, in fact. He sued to keep business closed and so the only way to stop him is with a Republican governor in Pennsylvania and there is a lot I can do to curb this abuse of power.
The Washington Post called Mastriano’s claim worthy of three Pinocchios out of four.
“The Little Sisters have been a sympathetic and powerful face of opposition to the ACA’s contraceptive mandate. But by the time Shapiro filed his lawsuit against the broad exemptions ordered by the Trump administration, the group had essentially gotten what it wanted and was not subject to the warrant. Nonetheless, he sued to intervene, fearing that any backtracking from Trump’s rules could result in the loss of his exemption – even though Shapiro said that was not his intention.
The fact remains: the nuns sued to join in a case that targeted the federal government; Shapiro did not sue the nuns. Mastriano falsely claims otherwise.
In 2018, an investigation by Shapiro, Pennsylvania’s attorney general, found that bishops and other Roman Catholic Church leaders in the state had covered up sexual abuse of children by more than 300 priests over a period of 70 years, persuading victims not to report abuse and law enforcement not to investigate.
“They protected their institution at all costs,” Shapiro said. “As the grand jury found, the church showed complete disregard for the victims.”
He also said the cover-up by senior Church officials “extended in some cases as far as the Vatican.
Catholics make up about a quarter of Pennsylvania’s population and traditionally lean toward Democrats, so the line of attack could be aimed at undermining Shapiro’s standing among Catholics.
“Doug Mastriano is known for spending his time rejecting reality and spouting dangerous lies – and this is just the latest example on his track record,” campaign spokesman Shapiro said. Manuel Bonder. “Pennsylvania needs a governor who can focus on solving problems and making people’s lives better – not a governor who constantly puts conspiracy theories before facts.”
Mastriano, who did not speak to mainstream media such as newspapers and local TV stations, admitted that he “doesn’t have a lot of support from the national republican organization, so it’s up to the people to help me cross the line”.
It was reference to an article in Monday’s New York Times which said: ‘There’s no sign of cavalry coming to its aid either: the Republican Governors Association, which aids party candidates in Arizona, Michigan and six other States, currently has no plans to help Mr. Mastriano, according to people with knowledge of his deliberations.
According POLITICS, “Mastriano did not air a single television advertisement during the general election. Meanwhile, according to ad-tracking firm AdImpact, Shapiro has spent or booked nearly $26 million on TV ads, with much of it calling Mastriano incongruous.
AdImpact tweeted that with 47 days before Election Day, Shapiro and the PAC — Put PA First — had combined to allocate $36 million in television time, while Mastriano had reserved just $7.8 million, funded by the Commonwealth Leaders Fund.
