PDP blasts Rivera Schatz for comparing Sen. González to biblical figure Mary Magdalene

Daily Sun/Miguel Rios: PDP Rep. Carmen Yulín Cruz Soto Puerto Rico Daily Sun - November 11, 2009: Popular Democratic Party lawmakers criticized Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz Tuesday for publicly calling PDP Sen. Sila Mari González a prostitute as he compared her to Mary Magdalene. Rivera Schatz said he was standing by his remarks, arguing that he merely used the comparison to talk about the ability to forgive, but PDP Rep. Carmen Yulín Cruz Soto said the Senate leader knew what he was doing. “He is now trying to confuse the meaning of his words but he knew exactly what he was saying,” Cruz Soto said. During a morning news conference, Rivera Schatz was asked about remarks that González told a radio station to the effect that she would be willing to testify against NPP Sen. Héctor Martínez if she were asked. González, who used to date Martínez, signed a sworn statement a few years ago linking him to a drug trafficker. On Tuesday, she said she was not surprised by reports that Martínez is the target of a federal probe for allegedly taking bribes in exchange for legislation that benefited private insurance companies. Rivera Schatz said that “Sila Mari reminds me of Mary Magdalene,” referring to a reformed prostitute mentioned in the Bible. “If in the Bible, Mary Magdalene was forgiven, one should forgive everyone,” he said. [Open link for full story and related stories. See earlier posting on Topix of Rivera Schatz's press conference.]