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| TUESDAY, JULY 24 |
| NORTH KOREA Images show North Korea is dismantling parts of its main satellite launch station — a site believed to play an important role in North Korea’s development of a intercontinental ballistic missile program. READ |
| KAVANAUGH APPROVAL Judge Kavanaugh’s approval rating is high in four conservative states with Democratic senators. North Dakotans say Kavanaugh should be confirmed by 60% to 22%, compared to 55% to 30% in West Virginia, 54% to 30% in Alabama, and 52% to 34% in Indiana. Of those four states, only Alabama does not have a Senate election this year. READ |
| VETERANS AFFAIRS The Senate confirmed Robert Wilkie as the next Secretary for Veterans Affairs in a 86-9 vote. Wilkie vowed to “shake up complacency” at the government’s second-largest agency. Many veterans have faced long wait times for medical care. READ |
| SENATE 2018 Eccentric billionaire and ex-felon Don Blankenship plans to enter the U.S. Senate race in West Virginia as a member of the Constitution Party. If he gets on the ballot, it is expected to help Democrat Joe Manchin in his reelection bid. Republicans argue that West Virginia’s “sore loser law” prevents Blankenship from appearing on the November ballot. Blankenship lost the GOP primary to Patrick Morrisey in May. READ |
| DEBATE OVER “PRO-LIFE” We recently shared an article by Eric Sammons, in which he stated he would use the term “anti-abortion” instead of “pro-life.” But Carly Hoilman disagrees: “There is power behind the ‘pro-life’ name — power that enemies of life would eagerly usurp if given the chance.” READ |
| TRUE HEALTH CARE REFORM The Labor Department issued a new rule expanding association health plans, which allow small businesses to band together and negotiate lower health insurance prices without some of Obamacare’s strict requirements. For Kalena Bruce, an accountant in Missouri, this new rule is a godsend. READ |
| RELIGIOUS FREEDOM SUMMIT Victims of religious persecution tell their stories at an international conference in Washington, D.C. “We will use this [conference] to push religious freedom issues around the world … we will seek to find allies to push this topic forward,” said Sam Brownback, international ambassador at large for religious freedom. READ |
| McCARRICK SCANDAL J.D. Flynn writes: “From all corners of the Church, questions are being raised about those who might have known about McCarrick’s misconduct, about how the Church will now handle the allegations against McCarrick, and about what it means for the Church that a prominent, powerful, and reportedly predatory cleric was permitted to continue in ministry for decades without censure or intervention.” READ |
| RESPONSE TO SCANDAL “The idea that the Church’s sexual-abuse problem will dissipate as older generations of priests die off has always been an excuse to avoid reform,” says Michael Brandan Dougherty. READ |
| SAINT OF THE DAY Saint Sharbel Makhluf was a Lebanese monk who belonged to the Maronite Rite. The Maronites are one of the Eastern Catholic Churches who follow a slightly different liturgy and canon law. We in the Latin or Roman Rite often forget that we have sisters and brothers in the East. Saint Sharbel is a good reminder of the wider Church. READ |
| DAILY READINGS “Lord, show us your mercy and love.” (Ps 85:8) READ |
| WHAT ARE WE DEVOTED TO? A priest asks: “Can we please pursue spiritual excellence at least as hard as we do for sports and academics?” READ |