Gingrich: John Bolton will be my secretary of state

[_Abyssinia]

As one of the great GOP presidents used to say, “there you go again.” I never said that the GOP is the Catholic party! I merely believe that we have to vote for the candidate that comes the closest to Catholic teaching in these matters. If that means voting for the candidate who is 50% close to Catholic teaching over the candidate who is 5% close to Catholic teaching, then so be it. Not the best scenario, but this side of paradise, it is the reality.

I’m not sure that I’d say the GOP is largely in sync with CAtholic priniciples. Some are on some issues- but then they probably fall short on other issues. I think, on balance, right now, the GOP has more candidates and politicians whose positions on the non-negotiable issues come much closer to Catholic moral teaching than that of Democrats. When I say “non-negotiables” I mean mainly the social/life issues. Issues such as how much to tax, how much to regulate, etc. are ones that honest people can disagree on and still call themselves good Catholics. I would agree with you that war/foreign policy is a life issue and one that we need to look at from a catholic perspective rather than a GOP or typical American conservative perspective. I don’t know if John Bolton’s rather brash, blunt style would be good or bad. In any event, I don’t think he’ll be the next secretary of state because I don’t think Gingrich will become the nominee.

Ishii

The non negotiables when it comes to voting states by Pope Benedict are;

• protection of life in all its stages, from the first moment of conception until natural death;
• recognition and promotion of the natural structure of the family - as a union between a man and a woman based on marriage - and its defence from attempts to make it juridically equivalent to radically different forms of union which in reality harm it and contribute to its destabilization, obscuring its particular character and its irreplaceable social role;
• the protection of the right of parents to educate their children.

Abortion:

2008 GOP Platform:

Page 7: “We assert the rights of families in all international programs and will not fund organizations involved in abortion. We strongly support the long-held policy of the Republican Party known as the Mexico City policy, which prohibits federal monies from being given to non-governmental organizations that provide abortions or actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in other countries. We reject any treaty or agreement that would violate those values.”

Euthanasia:

2008 GOP Platform:

Page 52: “Respect for life requires efforts to include persons with disabilities in education, employment, the justice system, and civic participation. In keeping with that commitment, we oppose the nonconsensual withholding of care or treatment from people with disabilities, as well as the elderly and infirm, just as we oppose euthanasia and assisted suicide, which endanger especially those on the margins of society.”

Embryonic stem cell research:

2008 GOP Platform:

Page 40: “Taxpayer-funded medical research must be based on sound science, with a focus on both prevention and treatment, and in accordance with the humane ethics of the Hippocratic Oath. In that regard, we call for a major expansion of support for the stem-cell research that now shows amazing promise and offers the greatest hope for scores of diseases with adult stem cells, umbilical cord blood, and cells reprogrammed into pluripotent stem cells without the destruction of embryonic human life. We call for a ban on human cloning and a ban on the creation of or experimentation on human embryos for research purposes.”

Human Cloning:

2008 GOP Platform:

Page 40: We call for a ban on human cloning and a ban on the creation of or experimentation on human embryos for research purposes.”

Homosexual ‘marriage:’

2008 GOP Platform:

Page 53: “Preserving Traditional Marriage

“Because our children’s future is best preserved within the traditional understanding of marriage, we call for a constitutional amendment that fully protects marriage as a union of a man and a woman, so that judges cannot make other arrangements equivalent to it. In the absence of a national amendment, we support the right of the people of the various states to affirm traditional marriage through state initiatives.

Democrat platform in comparison is silent on the issue of human cloning and euthanasia, but opposes the Republican and Catholic positions on the other non negotiables.

 

[ishii]

The non negotiables when it comes to voting states by Pope Benedict are;

Democrat platform in comparison is silent on the issue of human cloning and euthanasia, but opposes the Republican and Catholic positions on the other non negotiables.

Thanks for that useful post, Abyssinia. I would hope that anyone thinking of voting for the Democrat party because they think it is more in line with Catholic teaching would read that post and have second thoughts. There are catholics who say the Democrat party is closer to catholic teaching on economic matters and so they vote for them. What they don’t realize is that the Democrat party is diametrically oppsed to the Catholic church on the issues that matter most. They need to open their eyes.

Ishii

 

[Yerusalyim]

John Bolton is a zealous neocon who seems eager for more war. How a Christian can be supportive of him is difficult to understand. What a disaster that would be! Besides, aren’t two wars enough?

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God."

 This announcement is just one more reason to oppose Gingrich. Add it to his ethical problems when he was Speaker in Congress (he was ousted by his own party), his unbridled vanity, his careless tongue, his lobbyist activities for Freddie Mac, his flip-flop on critical issues, his mistaken priorities (e. g., $500,000 credit line at Tiffany's!), opposition from many responsible GOPers such as Christie, Rove, Scarborough and others, his questionable personal life. etc. His nomination will be cheered loudly by Obama and the Democrats. There will be considerably more dirt than has come to public attention already, and women, family-values folks, and millions of other voters will sit on their hands, vote third party, or reluctantly support the reelection of Obama. .

Actually, I see this as one more reason to SUPPORT Gingrich. There are things worse than war…let Iran get a nuke and you’ll soon see what one of those things can be.