Reaching Catholics: Obama Catholics # 1 of 2

Reaching Catholics: Obama Catholics # 1 of 2

In pursuit of the truth - www.cinopsbegone.blogspot.com - Wed. May 23, 2012

Preface: Reaching Catholics - NYTimes.com - by Jim Arkedis, May 18/12 - explains how Obama will win a majority of the Catholic vote in 2012. The need to stop this.

“In 2012, once again, Catholics should be the swing voters of a presidential race. They’re on of the country’s most divided and complex voting blocs, too. One third of Catholics are staunch social conservatives who view abortion as a litmus test when choosing a candidate. But Gallup polling finds the rest of Catholics slightly to the left of the country on most “values’ issues.

“Recent events have highlighted these divisions. After Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. a Catholic said he was “entirely comfortable” with same-sex marriage in early May, President Obama reportedly accelerated his announcement endorsing it. Church leaders condemned Obama, while 68% of Catholics - five points higher than the country as a whole - support legal & lesbian relationships, & 51 percent support same-sex marriage. [Shame]

“In February, the Obama administration thought it had come to an understanding with the United States Council of Catholic Bishops over a federal mandate compelling Catholic institutions to pay for health care plans that cover birth control. But in the end the bishops rejected an “unjust and unlawful” deal, which Mitt Romney called an “attack on religious tolerance.” Fifty-eight percent of Catholics - including 62 percent of Catholic women - sided with the Obama administration, three points more than the rest of the country.

“Then there is the Hispanic vote. At 50 million, Hispanics are the fasted growing bloc in the country, solidly Catholic,, and focused on the politics of immigration. In 2001, Karl Rove said that increasing the Republican share of the Hispanic vote was his mission, but the Republican Party doesn’t seem to paying attention to that line of thinking. Mitt Romney promised to veto the Dream Act, a proposed law that would provide a pathway to legal status for children of illegal immigrants, provide they serve in the military or attend college.

“Catholics are up for grabs this year, A Gallup poll from April has President Obama and Mitt Romney tied among Catholics, 46% each. At nearly 20 percent of the population, Catholic have roughly mirrored the popular vote in the last eight elections. They voted for Ronald Reagan and George Bush, but switched to Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996. In 2000, Catholics, like the country, went under 50 percent for George W. Bush; but against John Kerry, Bush took 52 percent; by 2008, they’d flipped to Barack Obama, 54-45.

“It’s unclear whether the Obama campaign will specifically organize Catholic supporters or try to persuade moderate ones. This Monday, the campaign hired Michael Wear as its faith vote director. That’s an excellent first step, and Wear’s experience organizing faith-based outreach for Obama in 2008 and in the White House indicates that the Obama campaign is taking people who make their faith a priority seriously. Wear might have too much on his plate, however - the campaign Web site groups Catholics, Protestants, Jews, Southern Baptists and Muslims under one-size-fits-all “Voters of Faith” outreach program. It is a mistake to treat the Catholic vote just like the rest.

“Who Votes? A Series about the complexities of voters and voting. Perhaps no presidential candidate since John F. Kennedy has been able to unite this disparate flock. But President Obama’s task isn’t that tough. The key to winning the Catholic vote is to understand its composition - litmus-test abortion voters, moderates, women and Hispanics - and to aim to carry persuadable Catholics by healthy margins in crucial swing states. Failure to deliver them could cost the president re-election… G. H. Kubeck - Sadly, yesterday’s TV news did not report Catholic suit against the HHS Mandate.