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the full-court press, continued By Phil Lawler | November 04, 2009 3:12 PM

With Tuesday's electoral contests out of the way, politicians in Washington are now free to focus exclusively on the health-care reform proposal. The big vote is coming this week-- Saturday, according to the latest information. Legislators, lobbyists, and commentators are all fixated on that issue. The US bishops' conference has pulled out all the stops, with a mailing to every parish calling upon Catholics to get involved. 

So it's not surprising that this week, every member of the House of Representatives received a letter from the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. What's surprising is the topic of the letter: nuclear disarmament.

Yes, nuclear disarmament. Bishop Howard Hubbard, the chairman of the US bishops' committee for International Justice and Peace, has written to Congress about the Global Security Priorities Resolution. 

You hadn't heard of that resolution? Neither had I. Whatever its merits may be, it's not exactly a hot topic this week. The hot topic-- the topic-- is health-care reform. So this week of all weeks, why is the USCCB sending out a letter to Congress on an unrelated topic? A few possibilities:

1. USCCB officials don't realize that in politics as in most other pursuits, there are times when concentration is crucial and distractions are damaging.
2. The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing. The USCCB is so completely disorganized that the International Justice and Peace office is unaware of the all-out drive being organized by the Pro-Life office.
3. While the Pro-Life office wants to exert maximum pressure on lawmakers, some other folks at the USCCB would be happy to break the tension, helping the proposed legislation to slide through Congress. 
4. All of the above.

Phil Lawler - Director, CatholicCulture.org If you found this helpful, please support our work. Make a pledge or one-time donation now!

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• Posted by: John J Plick - Nov. 07, 2009 10:49 AM ET USA

  Simple answer..., They (the Bishops) "fear" "the Bomb" more than they fear God... JP

• Posted by: jjleventis7768 - Nov. 07, 2009 9:43 AM ET USA

  Time to dismantle USCCB, Inc., which has become a left wing PAC, and time for the bishops to move out of Sodom and return to their parishes and strengthen the brethren with the truth. The lay serpents control the message coming out of the USCCB.

• Posted by: paulmay6949 - Nov. 07, 2009 12:05 AM ET USA

  I am sorry to have to vote "All of the above." The power structure in place at the USCCB has for so long been totally absorbed in protecting their own individual power and individual comforts, and have turned their responsibilities over to a lay staff of increasingly dubious faith and direction.