North Carolina Republican booted from new House chaplain search over anti-Catholic comments

A conservative Republican who had been tapped to help House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI)  clean up his mess after he fired House chaplain, Rev. Pat Conroy -- reportedly over a politicized sermon -- has stepped down over anti-Catholic comments he made.

According to USA Today, Rep. Mark Walker (R-NC) will no longer assist in the search.

In an interview, Walker indicated that he would be searching for someone who had a family -- including children -- because many lawmakers have to deal with being separated from their own families as part of their job. That presumably would exclude priests who take a vow of chastity.

In a statement, Walker’s spokesperson, Jack Minor, said Ryan did not pressure the North Carolina lawmaker to step aside from the search process.

In defense of Walker, Minor added, "In laying out these recommendations, Walker made clear that he was not excluding any faith or denomination and that these traits were not qualifications."