RELIGIOUS TEST? // Bernie Sanders attacked Ross Vought, who is a Christian, during Senate hearings because he had written that Muslims were ‘condemned’ for having rejected Jesus. Sanders called it ‘Islamophobic’ in a line of questioning that sounds like he’s trying to impose an unconstitutional religious test for public office. Vought is up for deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. http://cvote.it/2rD0IbI
FBI // President Trump nominated Christopher Wray to become director of the FBI. Those who know him well call Wray ‘a fair guy’ who would be willing to stand up to Trump, if need be. http://cvote.it/2rDpckR
FBI // Former FBI Director testifies before the Senate today (sorry for the error in yesterday’s Loop). Ahead of his testimony, Comey issued a statement in which he admitted Trump wasn’t a target, that he told Trump this three times, and that he refused to inform the public of that. http://cvote.it/2rDdp6e
REGULATION // Under Trump, the number of significant regulations has plummeted. The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs approved just 15 regulations between Inauguration Day and May 31 — by far the fewest in any comparable period since recordkeeping began in 1994. http://cvote.it/2rDmZpu
JUDICIARY // President Trump nominates new slate of judges for the federal bench. Carrie Severino of the conservative Judicial Crisis Network called it a ‘fantastic’ list. “Many of the nominees are well known in the conservative legal movement,” she said. http://cvote.it/2rDc7s0
CULTURE // The Atlantic wrote a surprisingly fair profile of Roger Severino, a devout Catholic appointed to civil-rights enforcement at the Department of Health and Human Services. Severino is expected to re-open and rollback many of the Obama administration rules. http://cvote.it/2rDmJqR
CULTURE // This surely won’t end well. The creator of “Orange is the New Black” to launch Netflix series on Jesus as a teenager. http://cvote.it/2rDkGTt
CULTURE // Actress Gal Gadot was five months pregnant with her second child when she did reshoot scenes for Wonder Woman. Why does this matter? “With many millennial women delaying marriage and even having children, it is important they see successful peers not letting careers stop them from taking on one of the toughest jobs out there—the job of physically bearing a child and rearing it,” writes Marguerite Bowling. http://cvote.it/2rDe5ID
CULTURE // Upcoming Christmas movie tells story of the birth of Jesus from the perspective of the animals. http://cvote.it/2rDq1dr
CATHOLIC // Msgr. Charles Pope: Eight modern errors every Catholic should know and avoid. http://cvote.it/2rDocgw
CATHOLIC // Cardinal Sarah: Criticisms of Benedict XVI are ‘diabolical.’ http://cvote.it/2rDehI2
SAINT // Saint William of York – http://cvote.it/dailysaint
DAILY MASS // “Blessed are those who fear the Lord.” (Ps 128:1) – http://cvote.it/Daily-Readings
TRUTH // She’s the real superhero.