Los Angeles Mormon Bishop Mark Paredes apologized Sunday for calling Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) an “embarrassment” to the Mormon church, saying that his blogpost's tone and the impression he gave of representing the church was inappropriate. "However,” Parades wrote to AP in an email, “I can't apologize for criticizing his advocacy of certain issues and on behalf of certain interests...”
Wednesday, Paredes wrote in a blog titled “Good Riddance to Harry Reid” that the soon-to-be former Senate Majority Leader was an “embarrassment” to the LDS church and blasted him for his support of abortion, same-sex marriage, and gambling. After pushback from the church, Paredes issued a partial apology via AP:
I do apologize for the tone of the article, for giving the impression that I was criticizing Sen. Reid in my role as an LDS bishop, and for implying that I am in a position to judge the senator's temple worthiness.
However, I can't apologize for criticizing his advocacy of certain issues and on behalf of certain interests ... Any criticism I had of Senator Reid was based on his actions (e.g., defense of the gaming industry, advocacy of a certain social agenda), not his political affiliation.