During the last week, Vice President Kamala Harris displayed antipathy toward devout Catholics on several occasions. Sadly, her bigoted attitude regarding Catholics is nothing new.
In 2018, as a U.S. Senator representing California, Harris questioned Brian Buescher, a nominee for U.S. District Court in Nebraska. According to Harris, Buescher was not qualified to serve on the court because he was a member of the Knights of Columbus. Harris blasted the group for holding “extremist positions,” such as opposing “a woman’s right to choose.”
Of course, there is nothing “extremist” about supporting the “right-to-life” for unborn babies. In fact, millions of Americans of all religious faiths share this position. Instead of being an “extremist” organization, the Knights of Columbus were founded in 1882 on the principles of “charity, unity and fraternity” to “bring financial aid and assistance to the sick, disabled and needy” parishioners.
Today, the Knights of Columbus can boast of 1.9 million members throughout the world, who have contributed $1.55 billion and 691 million volunteer hours “to charitable projects over the past decade.”
Why would Vice President Harris hold such negative views about a charitable Catholic organization doing such valuable work? This leads to another question, why did she refuse to attend a major Catholic fundraising event last Thursday night, the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York City?
Since 1960, both Republican and Democratic presidential candidates have attended the event. The only exception occurred in 1984, when Democratic presidential candidate Walter Mondale did not attend.
While Harris sent a poorly received pre-recorded video instead of participating, President Donald Trump attended the event. Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, admitted he was “disappointed” that Harris skipped the dinner and claimed she received “bad advice.” President Trump said her absence was “disrespectful to Catholics.”
During his satirical remarks at the dinner, Trump often aimed his jokes at Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. He said that Harris “would have been here guaranteed” if she would have been told “the funds were going to bail out the looters and rioters in Minneapolis.”
Trump also joked about a bizarre video that was posted by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. He said Harris did not attend because she was “out receiving communion from Gretchen Whitmer.”
In the video, Whitmer, wearing a Harris-Walz hat, is shown feeding a Dorito chip to a liberal podcaster who is on her knees. It shockingly mocked Holy Communion, when Catholics receive the “body and blood of Jesus Christ” signifying “deep union” with Him. This is the most important part of any Catholic mass and is considered “the source and summit of Christian life.”
Why would Whitmer, a top surrogate for Harris, insult millions of Catholic Americans with such an outlandish video? It is just another question that must be asked of the Harris campaign in the final days of this close election.
Devout Christian voters are a key constituency in this election. A 2024 Gallup poll identified 68% of Americans as Christians and 45% claimed that religion was a “very important” part of their life.
Thus, millions of Americans are Christian voters of strong faith. Incredibly, last Thursday at a rally in La Crosse, Wisconsin, Harris sent all these voters a loud message that they are not welcome in her campaign.
At the event, the Vice President criticized Trump for “hand-selecting” Supreme Court Judges who overturned Roe v. Wade. Harris said that abortions should be available to women nationwide and vowed, “When Congress passes a bill to restore reproductive freedom nationwide, as President of the United States, I will proudly, proudly sign it into law.”
As she was talking, two pro-life protesters yelled, “Christ is King!” and “Jesus is Lord!” In response, instead of welcoming dialogue with the protesters, Harris said “Oh, you guys are at the wrong rally” and told them to “go to the smaller one down the street.”
The young protesters, Luke Polaske and Grant Beth, are students at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Beth told Fox News that they received “backlash” for their comments. He said, “I was pushed by an elderly woman. We were heckled…We were cursed…we were mocked, and that's the biggest thing for me personally. In reflection of the event, Jesus was mocked. You know, his disciples were mocked, and that's okay…we did God's work, and we were there for the right reasons, and God is watching us (at) this moment.”
Polaske said Harris was “waving” to him as they were “asked to leave.” In response, he said he “took this cross off my neck that I wear” and “held it up in the air and waved at her and pointed at her.” As they were leaving, Polaske said Harris “looked” at him “directly in the eye,” and “kind of gave me an evil smirk.”
If elected, Beth believes that Harris will be the type of President who “alienates over 50% of the U.S. population that is Christian.” Congratulations to these young men for having more courage to confront Harris than 99% of the news reporters who refuse to hold her accountable.
One media outlet that would ask her tough questions is Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN). This is considered the “world’s largest Catholic media network.”
EWTN invited both Trump and Harris to participate in interviews. Not surprisingly, Trump accepted their invitation, while Harris did not respond to the network despite “multiple requests” for an interview.
All her actions are making an impact, especially with Catholic voters. In a recent Pew Research poll, Trump leads Harris 52-47% among Catholics. While this is not a large lead for Trump, it is a turnaround from 2020 when Washington Post exit polls showed Biden defeated Trump among Catholic voters by a 52-47% margin.
As the Vice President’s Anti-Catholic actions continue, Trump’s margin among this crucial bloc of voters is surely to grow. Harris is sending a clear message to Catholics that there is no room in the inn.
Jeff Crouere is a native New Orleanian and his award-winning program, “Ringside Politics,” airs Saturdays from Noon until 1 p.m. CT nationally on Real America's Voice TV Network & AmericasVoice.News and weekdays from 7-9 a.m. & 6-7 p.m. CT on WGSO 990-AM & Wgso.com. He is a political columnist, the author of America's Last Chance and provides regular commentaries on the Jeff Crouere YouTube channel and on Crouere.net. For more information, email him at jcrouere@gmail.com
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