He was raised Catholic and denied that he was atheist. And I'm a conservative atheist btw. No, those aren't mutually exclusive. Woke liberalism has co-opted atheism as much as religious fundamentalism has co-opted conservatism.
So what IS a “conservative atheist?”
It’s someone who pisses off virtually everyone. Leftist woke types, fundamentalist right types, the climate alarmists, the abortion crowd (pro and anti), the climate crazies too.
It’s someone who thinks for themselves, doesn’t believe or base his life or decisions on Jewish myths and fairy tales but still holds to the traditional values of hard work, small unobtrusive government, low taxes, MERIT, a strong national defense, strong borders, transparency in government / medicine / legislation, and the US Constitution …so in the eyes of the Left Leaning and Corruption loving folks with Trump Derangement Syndrome, I am a "right wing extremist." In their eyes, anyone who doesn’t toe the woke liberal line is extreme. But my atheism confuses them.
I am anti war, pro peace, anti-corruption, pro Constitution, pro government audits, anti censorship, pro free speech, pro tax cuts, pro second Amendment as well as the rest of the Bill of Rights, anti-illegal aliens, pro LEGAL immigration, anti “convenience” abortions (so was Christopher Hitchens), anti-men in women’s sports, anti-chemicals in our food, pro-secure borders, anti climate hysteria, and anti-voter fraud. Like Dr. Richard Dawkins, I don't believe in the trans movement or that someone can be "born in the wrong body". So yeah, looks I’m a right wing extremist. A few years ago many of these items were considered normal for even Democrats. But they've moved so far toward a fascist communism that now they can't even think correctly.
For the “atheism” part of the label, I don’t believe in anything supernatural. I don’t believe there are angels, demons, a devil, or any gods. I don’t believe the world started 6,000 to 10,000 years ago in a pristine garden without thorns or weeds, but having two magic trees, one of which made you smart and the other made you live forever. I don’t believe in talking snakes, original sin, that a woman was made from the rib of a man, or that two teenagers paraded around naked and had no idea until they disobediently munched on one of those magic fruits. I don't believe disembodied hands can write prophecy on a wall for Daniel to read. I don't believe a man walked on water or healed blindness with mud made from his spit.