Religion & Law

More from Prof. Kmiec

By Rick Garnett

Professor Doug Kmiec expands on his recent Slate piece, "Reaganites for Obama?" (in which he wrote, among other things, "Sorry, McCain, Barack Obama is a natural for the Catholic vote") in this guest commentary, "The Moral Duty to Inquire."  Although I think the original piece was off-base in a few respects, I also think that much of what he says in this second piece -- e.g., the Faith and Catholic Social Teaching are not the property of one party, Catholic voters have a range of issues to consider, Barack Obama's record on abortion is really bad, etc. -- is sensible.

My own sense, for what it's worth, of some conservatives' reaction to Prof. Kmiec's original piece was not so much that they thought (certainly, I didn't) that it is wrong to "inquire", from a Catholic perspective, into the merits of the Obama candidacy, but that Kmiec's original piece mis-framed the debate, while the second piece, for the most part, does not.  (I say "for the most part" because the second piece still appears to regard the Catholic position on immigration as weighing against McCain and for Obama, which is not how I see the matter.  McCain, not Obama, has taken political risks for immigrants, and has actually developed -- much to the chagrin of some conservatives -- an actual record of bi-partisan cooperation.)

In any event, check it out.  Prof. Kmiec, as everyone knows, has been a stalwart defender of religious freedom and the sanctity of life, in the academy, in law, and in policy, for decades.  I do not believe that Sen. Obama -- his attractive personality notwithstanding -- is, in fact, a "Catholic natural", but certainly, as Prof. Kmiec contends, it is entirely appropriate to ask whether Obama might be, all things considered, the better choice for a Catholic.  I am pretty sure he is not, but I understand that others will disagree.

Full post as published by Mirror of Justice on February 20, 2008 (boomark / email).