There is no homogenous “Catholic vote” in America. Members of the country’s single biggest religious group vote along social and demographic lines
big push to woo Catholics, who helped elect the president in 2016, did not get off to a great start in 2020. Even before the kick-off rally for “Catholics for Trump”, scheduled for mid-March, became one of the first political casualties of social distancing, a high-profile church leader in an important swing state had given the outfit a gentle kicking.
The president’s desire to appeal to white Catholics is especially pressing because they constitute a crucial constituency in the rustbelt states he won by a narrow margin in 2016. Nationally, Catholics constitute 22% of the population. In Wisconsin, which Mr Trump won by around 20,000 votes, 1.7m people—29% of the population—is Catholic. Pennsylvania, which Mr Trump won by fewer than 50,000 votes, has 3.6m Catholics.
The president’s courtship of Catholics is made more urgent by the fact that he will face one in November. Joe Biden makes frequent allusions to his Catholicism on the trail—especially when he is in areas with significant Catholic populations—including to his Catholic schooling, his fondness for nuns, and the succour his faith has given him in personal tragedy. That could play well with both devout and non-observant cultural Catholics.
Another high-profile anti-abortion crusader in Catholics for Trump is Frank Pavone, a priest and national director of Priests for Life, who in 2016 posted a video on social media in which he asked for votes for Mr Trump while standing behind an altar on which he had claimed to have placed the body of an aborted fetus. Mr Biden, by contrast, has a nuanced view of abortion: he dislikes it but does not want to make it illegal. This has earned him criticism on both sides of the abortion debate.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Trump donor paid Trump fundraisers to lobby for biggest Trump bailout - Business InsiderA Trump mega-donor who hired Trump fundraisers to lobby the Trump Administration got the biggest payout from the Trump Paycheck Protection Program
Read more »
Melania Trump Tweets 'Be Best' Word Puzzle and High-Profile Trump Critics Have a Field DaySocial media users and celebrities were quick to make fun of First Lady Melania Trump's latest at-home coronavirus activity
Read more »
Biden makes end run around Trump as the president dominates the national stageThe former vice president has been chatting up local television anchors and late-night comedians as he tries to break through a near-blackout of campaign news.
Read more »
With coronavirus raging, are Trump and Iran moving toward confrontation again?Trump grappling with how to rein in Iran's latest provocations.
Read more »
Use of drug boosted by Trump, Fox News not borne out by scienceRachel Maddow reports on a nationwide study finding that hydroxychloroquine, the drug persistently promoted by Fox News and Donald Trump, not only did not show benefits compared to standard care but saw more deaths, as well as other experts emphasizing insufficient clinical data and a lack of scientific merit to support the drug's use, and admonishes the media for continuing to air Trump's misinformation about the deadly coronavirus.
Read more »