Far too many of the already-declared and yet-to-declare candidates for President invoke G-d or Christianity -- both as way of ingratiating themselves directly to (Christian) voters as well as a way to justify their positions. Rather than waste time fighting the "what did the Bible really say about the poor" this diary presents a different perspective. Namely, I am going to examine the issues as presented by one candidate -- Bernie Sanders. You can find these on his the issues page on his website. Next, I searched through the document "Economic Justice for All" published by the US Council of Catholic Bishops to see where the Bishops stand on each of these issues. As we will see, for every single one of his positions on his issues page, Bernie and the Bishops completely agree on the problem and the solution. (In one or two places I also included statements by the Bishop of Rome aka the Pope.) (Now of course we can argue about the good or bad of Catholic Bishops as a source of policy, but they do represent at least one group that is much more learned in the Christian faith than most others -- notably more than any of the candidates.)
Why should you read the rest of this? For one, this is clear evidence of where the Church, Bernie, and other candidates stand relative to these important issues. Hopefully it can be yet another tool in shining a light on the evil platform of the Rs. Second, perhaps it will also help many people to see that the scary socialist is not really so scary and that the Church does explicitly see a role for the government in providing a social safety net. Third, for all of the (inexcplicably) Catholic candidates and Supreme Court justices -- one can simply ask "why do you disagree with the Church that you claim to be part of and why do you enact policies that are counter to its exhortations?"
Or in simpler terms -- "Who's the Christian candidate now?"
For those of you on the site who are not Christians -- this is not an attempt to get you to buy into Christianity in any way. Rather, just a note that there is an ally on these issues -- and an ally for Bernie. If people are going to invoke G-d and Christianity then they need to be challenged on their own terms -- not on whether the terms are true or not (whether there is a G-d or whether or not Jesus was His Son, e.g.).
Oh and one more thing. There actually is a church that espouses the objectivist garbage of the right wing and considers Ayn Rand to be a prophet. That would be the church of satan (I am not making this up).
Let's get started.
In general.
Bernie Sanders says: Do we continue the 40-year decline of our middle class and the growing gap between the very rich and everyone else, or do we fight for a progressive economic agenda that creates jobs, raises wages, protects the environment and provides health care for all? Are we prepared to take on the enormous economic and political power of the billionaire class, or do we continue to slide into economic and political oligarchy?
The Bishops say: Government has a moral function: protecting human rights and securing basic justice for all members of the commonwealth. Society as a whole and in all its diversity is responsible for building up the common good. But it is government's role to guarantee the minimum conditions that make this rich social activity possible, namely, human rights and justice.
About voting
The Bishops say that "it is government's role to guarantee the minimum conditions that make this rich social activity possible, namely, human rights and justice. This obligation also falls on individual citizens as they choose their representatives and participate in shaping public opinion."
In other words, if you care about these issues, and you call yourself a Christian (or a Catholic), you have a responsibility to vote, being informed, while you vote, of the needs of the poor, the sick, the workers, etc.
The particular issues are below the fold.
Rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure
The Bishops say: "[Government should guarantee] the provision and maintenance of the economy's infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, harbors, public means of communication, and transport."
Addressing climate change
The Pope says: "Climate change, the loss of bio-diversity, deforestation are already showing their devastating effects in the great cataclysms we witness."
Real tax reform
The Bishops say: "A system of taxation based on assessment according to ability to pay is a prime necessity for the fulfillment of these social obligations."
Protecting the most vulnerable Americans
The Bishops say: "It is the responsibility of all citizens, acting through their government, to assist and empower the poor, the disadvantaged, the handicapped, and the unemployed."
Health care as a right for all
The Bishops say: "The dignity of workers also requires adequate health care, security for old age or disability, unemployment compensation, healthful working conditions, weekly rest, periodic holidays for recreation and leisure, and reasonable security against arbitrary dismissal."
The Pope says: "Education, work and access to health care for all are key elements for development and the just distribution of goods, for the attainment of social justice, for membership in society, and for free and responsible participation in political life."
Taking on wall street
The Bishops say: "The concentration of privilege that exists today results far more from institutional relationships that distribute power and wealth inequitably than from differences in talent or lack of desire to work. These institutional patterns must be examined and revised if we are to meet the demands of basic justice."
The Pope says: "In this context, some people continue to defend trickle-down theories which assume that economic growth, encouraged by a free market, will inevitably succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness in the world. This opinion, which has never been confirmed by the facts, expresses a crude and naïve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacralized workings of the prevailing economic system. Meanwhile, the excluded are still waiting."
Making college affordable for all
The Pope says: "Education, work and access to health care for all are key elements for development and the just distribution of goods, for the attainment of social justice, for membership in society, and for free and responsible participation in political life."
Trade policies that benefit American workers
The Bishops say: "[Government] should regulate trade and commerce in the interest of fairness."
Pay equity for women workers
The Bishops say: Work with adequate pay for all who seek it is the primary means for achieving basic justice in our society. Discrimination in job opportunities or income levels on the basis of race, sex, or other arbitrary standards can never be justified.
Raising the minimum wage
The Bishops say: "Basic justice calls for the establishment of a floor of material well-being on which all can stand. This is a duty of the whole of society and it creates particular obligations for those with greater resources."
Growing the trade union movement
The Bishops say: "The Church fully supports the right of workers to form unions or other associations to secure their rights to fair wages and working conditions."
Creating worker co ops
The Bishops say: "Labor unions themselves are challenged by the present economic environment to seek new ways of doing business. The purpose of unions is not simply to defend the existing wages and prerogatives of the fraction of workers who belong to them, but also to enable workers to make positive and creative contributions to the firm, the community, and the larger society in an organized and cooperative way. Such contributions call for experiments with new directions in the U.S. labor movement."
