January 2024
HEROES
Governor Greg Abbott, R-TX
Amid an ongoing dispute with the Biden administration over his state’s enforcement of immigration laws, Gov. Greg Abbott had a Founding Fathers moment.
He issued a “statement on Texas’ constitutional right to self-defense,” arguing: “The federal government has broken the compact between the United States and the states.”
“The failure of the Biden Administration to fulfill the duties imposed by [Article IV, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution] has triggered [Article I, Section 10, Clause 3], which reserves to this state the right of self-defense,” Abbott wrote. “For these reasons, I have already declared an invasion … to invoke Texas’s constitutional authority to defend and protect itself.”
Don’t mess with Texas.
Jim Harbaugh, football coach and pro-life advocate
Michigan Wolverines Head Coach Jim Harbaugh spoke this month at the March for Life rally in Washington D.C. Harbaugh is an outspoken Catholic and pro-life advocate:
“The testimony of so many here, including yourself, just so thankful and grateful for that. This is a great day for a march, it’s a great day for the sanctity of life, and it’s football weather, so let’s go!”
But what makes him our hero this month is the personal risk he took in speaking. Harbaugh is currently negotiating his contract with Michigan as well as interviewing for coaching positions with the Chargers and the Falcons.
His message: This is who I am, and I have NO FEAR!
University of Dallas
The University of Dallas (UD) announced that it will be the first Catholic university to welcome a permanent convent for the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia from Nashville. The youthful order’s vocation explosion has been steady for over 40 years now – and UD’s leadership has demonstrated its top quality by welcoming the sisters to campus.
Definitely a selling point for Catholic parents and kids!
We can’t say it better than our friend Jeremy Wayne Tate:
There is a seismic shift happening in where Catholic families are sending their kids to college. Apart from a few Catholic elites (Georgetown, Boston College, etc.) most Catholic colleges that have abandoned Catholic identity are experiencing declining enrollment. Meanwhile the passionately Catholic colleges (Ave Maria, The University of Dallas, Benedictine, Franciscan, Belmont Abbey, Thomas Aquinas College, Christendom, etc.) have been breaking records for applications and new student enrollment.
Honorable Mention
The Catholic University of America
After news broke that an “abortion doula” had spoken to an undergraduate class at the behest of a psychology professor, many Catholics were skeptical that the Catholic University of America (CUA) would respond in a meaningful way.
Well, they were wrong. The university acted swiftly, not only decrying the speaker’s message of radical LGBTQ+ ideology but also firing the lecturer who had invited her in the first place. Go, Cardinals!
ZEROES
Governor Mike DeWine, R-OH
In December, Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed OH HB 68, which would have protected children from experimental puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones and banned male athletes from female sports. His lackluster “emergency executive order” this month – perhaps a flaccid attempt to placate his irate constituency – was merely a significantly weaker version of the bill he castrated.
DeWine got his just deserts. This month, the Ohio Senate overwhelmingly voted to override DeWine’s veto and allow the comprehensive HB 68 to become law. The state House had previously overridden the veto two weeks ago by a similarly wide margin.
America Magazine
America Magazine put on its best Church Lady impression to take aim at devout Catholics this month. Headline: “Illicit Latin Mass held in U.S. Capitol protesting FBI’s alleged ‘anti-Catholic’ bias.”
The Mass in question was held on the anniversary of the “Richmond memo,” which lifted the veil on the FBI’s targeting of Catholics for surveillance.
The author of the America piece, Michael J. O’Loughlin, a former writer for the LGBT Advocate, spends much of the article explaining that the FBI is not targeting Catholics. His main source? The Department of Justice.
CatholicVote Vice President Josh Mercer said it best:
Governor Katie Hobbs, D-AZ
Gov. Katie Hobbs announced she’s seeking to restrict the recently-passed school voucher program (ESA) that gives Arizona families the financial means to better their kids’ education.
How? She plans to extend the state’s control over private (read: Catholic) schools, requiring them to report on teacher certification, student test scores, and attendance and graduation rates of private schools. Going far beyond the terms of the program, her “reform” also requires that ESA recipients be enrolled in public school for at least 100 days before receiving any funds to attend elsewhere.
Executive-branch officers attempting to strong-arm in their own policy to override laws they don’t like at the expense of families? That’s a definite zero.
SUBZERO
President Joe Biden
“Devout Catholic” Joe Biden marked the anniversary of Roe v. Wade by holding a pro-abortion rally in Virginia and giving a speech urging Congress to codify the overturned case into law.
Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington blasted the president’s unbridled abortion extremism, saying that “it is incredibly devastating” that “Biden would place ‘choice’ over his sacred duty to protect life.”
“President Biden has made abortion the centerpiece of his campaign. At a rally in Manassas, VA, he advocated for codifying Roe v. Wade into law,” Burbidge said.
“Despite what this administration claims, taking the life of an innocent child is never a ‘choice,’” Burbidge added. “Women who are facing unexpected or difficult pregnancies deserve assistance that affirms and supports life – not destroy it.”
