Newly elected USCCB president Archbishop Timothy Dolan gave an interview with the New York Times where he spoke about his surprise election, the pope’s recent comments on condoms, and what he sees as the biggest obstacles facing the Church: He said the bishops would not stop speaking out on political issues like abortion, same-sex marriage and immigration. … Read more
Brian Saint-Paul, in posting about Dan Burke’s piece at Religion News Service, alerted me to the following quote from Sister Simone Campbell, who is apparently one of those “progressive” Catholics I hear about: “Those [pro-choice, anti-limited-government, leftist legislators who culturally identify as Catholic] are folks who are really committed to the common good, with a … Read more
Pundits are still analyzing the outcome of last night’s elections, and it will take months to figure out what Americans’ votes will mean in terms of policy. Myself, I’m actually relieved that Republicans didn’t win both houses of Congress; since the economy (corrupted by bad investments encouraged by cheap money from the Fed) isn’t likely … Read more
In a must-read morning Wall Street Journal op-ed, Senator Jim DeMint offers some advice to the incoming Tea Party candidates: The battle with your Democratic opponents is over; your war with Republican insiders is about to begin. Many of the people who will be welcoming the new class of Senate conservatives to Washington never wanted you … Read more
As expected, Republicans fared well in last night’s elections — regaining control of the House, picking up at least six Senate seats, and adding several more governors to their ranks. I’m sure there will be plenty of feedback and analysis throughout the day, as well as much rejoicing from the GOP, but Ross Douthat cautions … Read more
Over the past two weeks, I’ve had extensive discussions with a wide group of Catholic leaders about the state of the Church in the United States. The frustration and impatience among Catholics, which I discussed last February in “Is It Time for a Catholic Tea Party?,” continue to grow. The occasions for this discussion were … Read more
Christine O’Donnell’s surprise victory in Delaware has stunned the pundits. It’s called a Tea Party victory, but in fact it was something a bit different. O’Donnell’s message was consistently grounded in the social conservatism of her Catholic faith, with a strong emphasis on the sanctity of life and the defense of marriage. The role of … Read more
Yesterday’s Las Vegas Review-Journal featured an unusual obituary for Mrs. Charlotte M. Tidwell McCourt, a long-time Nevada resident who passed away at the age of 84 following a long illness. The obituary itself is fairly pro forma, describing Mrs. McCourt’s life in terms that reveal her time here to have been both full and happy. But the … Read more
As a deeply worried citizen of a country that justly deserves my love, I watched last night’s election results with a savage, manic glee. How satisfying it was to see the principled patriot Rand Paul crush the monied, establishment hacks, and to throw peanuts at the screen as the pro-abortion, warmongering lech Arlen Specter slinked … Read more
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is becoming quite a political star, and for good reason: He’s facing down a terrible state financial crisis and he’s doing it with courage and principle. Happily, some in the mainstream press are noticing: Christie is tackling the nation’s worst state deficit — $10.7 billion of a $29.3 billion budget. … Read more
Sr. Anita Baird is the founder of the Office of Racial Justice at the Archdiocese of Chicago. Sr. Baird was interviewed yesterday by Kathleen Gilbert for LifeSiteNews about the upcoming event honoring Fr. Michael Pfleger, a diocesan priest in Chicago who worked for the Obama campaign. Fr. Pfleger became infamous outside of Chicago for saying publicly … Read more
According to the New York Times, ACORN is close to bankruptcy. The organization’s leadership are teleconferencing this weekend to work out the details. A network that once included more than 1,000 grass-roots groups, Acorn, which stands for Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, was created in 1970 and has fought for liberal causes like … Read more
A special election will be held on November 3 in upstate New York that may send a much-needed message to the GOP. New York Congressional District 23 was put up for grabs when nine-term Rep. John McHugh, a Republican, resigned to become Secretary of the Army. The eleven Republican chairs of the district nominated Dede … Read more
 A popular pastime among Catholic commentators lately could be called “counting the bishops.” In the last election, we counted the bishops who spoke out regarding their document on voting, “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship,” or on the qualifications of Barack Obama as a Catholic candidate. With the latest controversy over the upcoming Notre Dame … Read more
As Washington D.C. geared up (or in my case, hunkered down) in preparation for the unprecedented influx of people expected to attend the inauguration of President Barack Obama today, a telling paradox came to light. Officials estimate at least 1.5 million people are in town for the historic swearing-in of our nation’s first black president. … Read more
As Republicans regroup in the days and months following the November election, some new faces have begun to emerge in the GOP. Among them is Rob Wasinger, a staffer for Sen. Sam Brownback for more than twelve years, the last four of them spent as Brownback’s chief of staff. A Catholic convert since his sophomore … Read more
In an op-ed published after the election, former Governor of New Jersey Christine Todd Whitman wrote, “Unless the Republican Party ends its self-imposed captivity to social fundamentalists, it will spend a long time in the political wilderness.” And who are these “social fundamentalists?” In Whitman’s political lexicon, they are “the people who base their … Read more
Anne is still tired from her recent trip to China, but she wants to talk about Barack Obama. The explosive growth of her apostolate, Direction for Our Times, has left her exhausted and half-sick, but she is alarmed about Catholics who are describing Obama as the anti-Christ. She asks me if I have heard those … Read more
On Saturday, I headed off to the early absentee voting booth, where, for the first time in my life, I voted third party. Though I don’t need to explain myself, I will anyway: I’m a former Republican who voted third party because I’m tired of the issues I care about — all of them — … Read more
My support this election for John McCain has been no secret, as regular readers know. But while I’ve offered my reasons here and there, I’ve never put them all together in a single piece. I try to do that now. Some of my case for McCain comes from agreeing with positions he holds, and some … Read more