The Democrat Party’s Noxious ‘God Problem’

Over the past several years — decades, actually — American Catholics have been drifting further and further away from the Democratic Party and, increasingly, coalescing around the GOP. One of the chief reasons for this, according to the co-founder of the pro-Democrat “Catholics for Harris” group, is the Democratic Party’s unwillingness to engage with and listen to Catholic voters, or any religious voters, really.

In a Newsweek op-ed published last week, self-described “political operative” Christopher Hale castigated Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party as a whole for failing to appeal to Catholic voters, crediting a “God Problem” within the party. “Harris’ failure to engage Catholic voters is symptomatic of a broader issue within the Democratic Party: a discomfort with engaging faith communities across the nation,” Hale wrote. (READ MORE from S.A. McCarthy: Hostility Toward Christians Skyrockets Across Europe)

He continued, “Over the years, the party has increasingly aligned itself with secular and progressive values, often sidelining religious voices in the process. This shift has alienated many religious voters, who feel their beliefs are not only unrepresented but actively dismissed. For Catholics, this alienation is particularly acute on issues like abortion.”

“The Democratic Party’s unwavering commitment to reproductive choice post-Dobbs is to be expected, but its unwillingness to engage with voters who disagree is political malpractice,” Hale observed. He added, “This inflexibility makes it difficult for pro-life or moderately pro-choice Catholics to feel at home within the party, despite aligning with its positions on other critical issues like poverty, health care, and immigration.”

Hale noted that Trump, who is not himself a Catholic, consistently appealed to Catholic voters, running targeted ad campaigns, attending Catholic events like the famous Al Smith Dinner, which Harris skipped, and making social media posts about Catholic Saints and holy days. Meanwhile, Harris’s “campaign displayed a noticeable aversion to engaging with Catholic voters,” Hale wrote. “The decision to skip the Al Smith Dinner epitomized this reluctance. It wasn’t just a missed opportunity; it was a clear signal of disengagement,” he continued.

Hale added, “For many Catholics, the absence reinforced the perception that their voices and values were unwelcome in the Democratic Party. In battleground states, where Catholic voters often swing elections, this oversight helped contribute to Harris’ defeat.”

Of course, the “Catholics for Harris” group itself often overlooked or excused Harris’s radical pro-abortion activism and ignored her vociferous promotion of transgender ideology, both of which were key sticking points for even politically-moderate Catholics.

The Democrats Since 1973

The Democratic Party once appealed to American Catholics as a home for blue collar workers who wanted to see their tax dollars spent doing some good. But the succeeding decades, especially since the U.S. Supreme Court’s disastrous Roe v. Wade decision was handed down in 1973, Democrats have increasingly seen faithful Catholics at odds with a political party obsessed with the slaughter of the unborn, the degradation of the institution of marriage, and the mutilation of even children in the name of gender ideology.

Some organizations calling themselves Catholic — such as the aforementioned “Catholics for Harris” or the blatantly dissident “Catholics for Choice” — tacitly or openly endorse the evils embraced by the Democratic Party. But Catholic voters have largely chosen to align themselves with the party that champions religious liberty, values Catholic contribution, and seeks to uphold (or, at the very least, doesn’t ridicule) Catholic moral standards.

In this month’s election, Catholic voters backed Trump over Harris by an 18-point margin, according to exit polling from The Washington Post and NBC News. In six out of seven swing states, Catholic voters tipped the election in favor of Trump, handing him a landslide victory comprising both the electoral college and the popular vote. (READ MORE: Catholic Bishops Stumble on Immigration)

As Hale concluded, “A Democratic Party that loses [58 to 40] percent among Catholics, like it did in this election, is a Democratic Party without a future in vast portions of this country.” But, as Hale does not state, the Democratic Party will have to choose between Catholic voters or its obsession with evils like abortion and transgenderism. The two have proven themselves incompatible.

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