Vance has done what the U. I have not seen such a fortuitous political blunder since General Alexander Haig, the Catholic chief of staff to President Nixon, attacked the bishops for their pastoral letter on peace, which brought it to national attention.
Or are they actually worried about their bottom line? Within the day, the bishops released a statement saying that federal funds do not cover the full costs of their programs helping refugees, let alone show a profit. Thanks to the vice president, the national press may finally realize the Catholic bishops care about something other than abortion.
In the past, when Democrats were in the White House, a favorite religion story was the conflict over abortion between the U. Catholic bishops and the Democratic administration. Ignored were all the areas where the bishops agree with or are more liberal than Democratic politicians, such as on expanding health care, education, housing and social services to help the poor and marginalized. For example, the bishops support universal health care, even for migrants in the U.
No Democratic politician would say this. The fights over abortion led many Americans, including reporters, to see the Catholic bishops as partisan advocates for Republicans like so many evangelical ministers. But the Catholic bishops advocate on a wide range of public policies and do not endorse political candidates or parties. True, some bishops say abortion is the only issue that should guide Catholic voters, but that has never been the position of the Vatican or of the U.
Conference of Catholic Bishops. Most bishops avoid the appearance of endorsing parties or candidates. The next four years are going to be a rocky time between the Catholic bishops and the Trump administration. Now that Trump has made the Republican Party prochoice, there is no reason for the bishops not to take off the gloves in advocating for the poor and marginalized. In truth, the bishops were very critical of Trump on refugees and migrants during his first term in office.
