Vatican official accuses Sanders of 'monumental discourtesy'



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A senior Vatican official said Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders showed "monumental discourtesy" in reaching out to obtain an invitation to a church-sponsored conference.
“Sanders made the first move, for the obvious reasons,” Margaret Archer, president of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, told Bloomberg on Friday, suggesting the Independent Vermont senator pushed for the invite for political reasons.
“I think in a sense he may be going for the Catholic vote but this is not the Catholic vote and he should remember that and act accordingly — not that he will," she added.
The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences is hosting the conference on social and economic issues that Sanders's campaign said he was slated to attend April 15, four days before the New York primary.
Sanders earlier in the day Friday said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" that "it was an invitation from the Vatican," adding, "I was very moved by the invitation."
"I am a big, big fan of the Pope. Obviously there are areas where we disagree on women’s rights or gay rights. But he has played an unbelievable role ... injecting a moral consequence into the economy," Sanders said.
His campaign had released a statement from academy saying it was "delighted" to host the conference and mentioning Sanders by name along with the presidents of Ecuador and Bolivia, among others.