Why Rick Santorum lost Catholic vote in both Michigan and Arizona to Romney

Mitt Romney and his wife Ann

What to make of the fact that Rick Santorum lost the Catholic vote in both Michigan and Arizona to Romney?

Quite a lot really. Two immediate things, Catholics are clearly more moderate than Rick and secondly, many were scared off by the militant rhetoric Santorum let loose with during the past week.

Amazingly, it wasn't even close.

CBS's exit polls showed that 37 percent of Catholic voters in Michigan supported Santorum while 43 per cent were behind Romney.

CNN exit polls in Arizona showed Romney beat Santorum among Catholic voters by a margin of 41 percent to 35 percent.

Flip that number and Santorum wins Michigan and probably ends Romney's hopes.

Santorum was his own worst enemy with Catholics, scaring the bejabbers out of many of them, especially women with his hostile rhetoric about birth control and no exception for abortion even rape, incest and the life of the mother.


When white middle class Catholics are voting for a Mormon not a fellow religionist it shows things have changed since 1960.

Back then Kennedy got almost every Catholic vote because they were a beleaguered minority.

Nowadays Catholics are utterly mainstream (six Supreme Court Judges) and have no fear of voting across religious lines.

That's good news for Romney.

One could hardly imagine Mormons voting for Catholics against one of their own just yet at least but that day may come.

In the meantime Rick Santorum must be left scratching his head wondering where his Catholic vote went.

Contraception controversy overshadows amazing work of Catholic hospitals --- Vital part of US healthcare in every state

The Catholic Church is going through very tough times with issues such as lack of vocations and abusive priests.

Catholic hospitals have been dragged into the discussion over contraception in recent weeks, making them also a target for criticism

But it is time Catholic healthcare systems and the incredible work that Catholic hospitals do for the ill and needy in this country is recognized.

I have always stated that the church in America needs to rewrite their priorities, less of the harsh social teaching and more of the focus on the amazing work they do in education and health care.
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That is where the success of their mission is clear.

There are Catholic Hospital facilities present in all 50 states providing acute care, skilled nursing, and other services including hospice, home health, assisted living, and senior housing.

Here are some amazing facts:

* There are 624 Catholic hospitals.

* There are 60 Catholic health care systems.

* 1 in 6 patients in the United States are cared for in a Catholic acute-care facility each year.

* More than 5.5 million patients were admitted to Catholic hospitals during a one-year period.

* There were more than 92 million outpatient visits in Catholic hospitals during a one-year period.

* Catholic hospitals account for more than one fifth, or 20 percent, of admissions in 21 states and the District of Columbia.

* Catholic hospitals employ more than 525,193 full-time employees and 233,394 part-time workers.

Margaret Thatcher movie 'The Iron Lady' for Best Movie pick at the Oscars - VIDEO

Meryl Streep in a scene from The Iron Lady.

It is Academy Award weekend coming up, time to sit back and enjoy the best that Hollywood had to offer last year.

The Irish as always will be well represented with Glenn Close nominated for the film Albert Nobbs, set in Dublin.

I found the film slow moving and pretty predictable and will be surprised if Close manages to finally win the most coveted award in the business, the Best Actress Oscar.

My personal favorite is Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady.

Streep gives a riveting performance, the best she has ever given, and that is truly saying something. She IS Thatcher in the movie, capturing the imperious persona who ruled Britain for over a decade.

The callousness of her decision to attack the Belgrano during the Falklands War is wonderfully portrayed by Streep, as is her utter indifference to the IRA hunger strikes which, ironically, was the spark that led to the resurgence of Sinn Fein in electoral politics after Bobby Sands starved to death.

We hear these days that Thatcher, now 86, has become feeble minded and indeed the film portrays her as such, imagining conversations with her late husband, Denis.

The opening scene in the film has her sneaking out and ordering a bottle of milk at the local store, a tired and run down old lady far removed from her imperial power days.

Streep succeeds in making her both sympathetic and repelling in almost equal measure.

Thatcher did what no woman before her ever did, climbing to power in a country where a grocer’s daughter from Grantham had no right to run a kingdom.

She has had no equal since. Hillary Clinton would, perhaps, be the closest in terms of making it in a man’s world, and Thatcher’s achievement in obtaining power is all the more remarkable as a result.

Sarah Palin would doubtless imagine herself in such a role someday, but she has none of Thatcher’s intellect. (Indeed, The Daily Telegraph reported that Palin, when briefed as the 2008 vice presidential candidate on the possibility of Britain pulling its troops out of Iraq, said she would personally pressure the Queen not to do it – a clear indication of how little she knew about the workings of British parliamentary democracy.)

Thatcher’s Falklands/Malvinas victory was her major military “triumph.”

I remember one of the finest pieces of ironic writing I’ve ever read being about her and Ronald Reagan walking on the beach at Normandy on the 50th anniversary of that incredible World War II landing – hallowed ground indeed.

“There they strolled, the conquerors of the Falklands and Grenada respectively,” wrote a writer for The Guardian, tongue firmly planted in cheek.

Yet Thatcher got it dead right on Europe, and her insistence on retaining British independence and its currency looks positively inspired these days.

She will always remain a hate figure to many, a heroine to others, but the reality is that she remains a major figure of the 20th century, especially in the ranks of British prime ministers

If you haven’t seen Streep portray her you should do yourself a favor. Rarely has art imitated life so well.

Here, view the trailer for 'The Iron Lady':

Emigrants give far more to America than they take --Time to stop racist anti-emigrant sentiment

Immigrant children arriving to a new land

If there is one sentiment that bothers me at present it is the oft repeated lie that emigrants always take American jobs.

It has been my experience that emigrants far from taking jobs, create them.

Let's take an incredible example, Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google.

Here is an emigrant from Russia who started one of the world's greatest companies.

No doubt there are many America Firsters out there who would prefer he never came to these shores because he would 'take' an American job.'

He now employs close to 10,000 Americans and gets 1,300 resumes a day from people seeking to work at Google.

Over half the start-ups in Silicon Valley are by emigrants, yes, that despised class that many America Firsters seem to believe belong in the nearest jail.

In my own experience as an emigrant, I never worked for an American company in my life.

I came to the US as a school teacher. After a brief period as a house painter I stated my own newspapers and have been working for myself ever since -- and employing many Americans along the way.

I love what this country has given me and hope I have given back -- partly by providing jobs for some Americans.

So when anti-immigrant groups such as Numbers USA start their usual rant that America is full up of foreigners and doesn't need any others I ask you to think of Sergey Brin, Albert Einstein, Nobel winner Eli Wiesel and many other magnificent emigrants to this country who have made such a profound difference

Only that way will we have any understanding of the massive up-side of emigration.

Graeme McDowell an inspirational figure and not just for his golf game

Graeme McDowell is the kind of sports hero that Tiger Woods would like to be.

Affable, approachable, a dedicated worker for charities, US Open winner McDowell made it look easy at the Dublin Children's Hospital fundraiser in New York on Wednesday night.

McDowell's charity the GMAC foundation is a major underwriter of the hospital, which desperately needs funds at a time of harsh economic pressures in Ireland.

Gmac is so popular that a round of golf with him in Florida went for a whopping $100,000 on the night, all proceeds to the hospital.

Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny was on hand to praise McDowell and his charitable work.

In a land that desperately needs heroes Ireland has one in McDowell.


Clearly this is a special guy, and his relaxed banter with the crowd showed that McDowell is a golfer who does not take himself too seriously, even though he takes his career very seriously.

He will always be a US Open winner after his heart stopping victory in 2010 in California.

He had a disappointing year last year but he says he is back on form this year again.

He was introduced by Eamon Coghlan, Chairman of the Boards, one of Ireland's finest athletes, who held the world indoor mile record and still holds the fastest mile ever by a person over forty.

Coghlan was an Irish hero back in the 1980s when the country had almost none.

Like McDowell he’s self effacing, funny, does incredible charity work, and late in life has entered politics where I predict he will have a bright future.

The evening hosted by Teneo Holdings raised an estimated $500,000 for the hospital, a major sum given the fact that it was the first time that such a fundraiser for the hospital had been held.

But McDowell was the star. Rory McIlroy may have more pizzazz, Padraig Harrington more majors, Darren Clarke a better back-story but I'll bet McDowell is the most grounded of them all, a man who knows what life’s priorities should be.

He certainly proved that on Wednesday night at the New York Athletic Club.

Catholic vote is key to 2012 presidential election -- Barack Obama controversy on contraception a huge issue

President Barack Obama shakes hands with Pope Benedict XVI

In nine of the past ten US presidential elections the majority of the Catholic vote has gone to the person who won the election.

Little wonder then that the furor over the Bishop’s attacks on President Obama’s contraception plan created such waves.

In five of those elections, the Catholic vote was within a point of the overall margin of victory, a clear indicator of how vital the vote is.

There is a massive push on for the Catholic vote in both political parties this election season.

As the critical swing vote in key states, they will sway the election.
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The Reagan Democrats, the Irish, Italian, Polish, Catholic blue collar vote, so prominent in Ohio, Pennsylvania and key Midwest states, has chosen the winner a stunning 90 per cent of the time.

Little wonder that in 2008, Barack Obama trumpeted the support of now US Ambassador to Ireland Dan Rooney, Chairman of the Pittsburgh Steelers and as Irish Catholic as you can get.

Rooney campaigned widely for the president and was seen as a vital factor in Obama’s victory in Pennsylvania.

Obama won the Catholic vote by 54 per cent to 46 per cent nationally against John McCain though it must be noted that number includes Hispanic Catholics.

Catholic voter make up a quarter of the electorate and as Gerald Seib wrote in The Wall Street Journal this week “They rank right up there with Ohio as a bellwether of presidential-election outcomes.”

It is not surprising then that the furor over the Obama contraception debate has become so heated. There is a huge amount on the line.

The Catholic Bishops have vehemently opposed his plan but the key question is whether their flock is behind them?

Opinion polls of Catholics indicate they are not.

Several polls show Catholics, by a wide margin, feel that contraceptive care should be covered in any health care plan regardless of where that plan is for.

That would hardly be surprising Bishops oppose contraception but 98 per cent of Catholics use them, likewise the bishop’s stances on gays and abortion are supported far less by the ordinary rank and file Catholics.

That fundamental disconnect has only grown larger since the church sex scandals has removed much of the authority of the bishops.

Parishioners now feel less inclined than ever to take their cue from Rome, especially when it involves matters of sexuality.

At the same time there is hardly overwhelming support for the Obama position either, and it begs the question of who will eventually end up winning out on this debate?

Will the contraceptive issue hurt Obama in November or will the Church leaders once again prove they are out of touch with many ordinary Catholics and how they live their lives?

It may not matter much if the latest opinion poll from The New York Times showing Rick Santorum ahead of Mitt Romney in a national poll of Republican voters is to be believed.

Santorum, a deeply conservative Catholic, is simply too extreme and would prove a disaster for the Republican Party.

Ironically, with a Catholic candidate running, it may be the one time their vote is not critical.

John F. Kennedy the lecherous lover at odds with Camelot image -- New book destroys the Camelot fantasy for me

The latest memoir by a former lover makes me think twice about John F.Kennedy.

Mimi Alford’s account of her sexual dalliance with President Kennedy when she was a White House intern cannot be refuted by the late president but I have to say it rings true.

She was just 19-years-old when Kennedy, then 45, took her aside and to his wife’s bedroom where he ended her virginity.

There was worse to come. Perhaps the most damning part of the book is when Kennedy gets the very young woman to ‘service’ his White House aide Dave Powers while Kennedy looks on.

It is pretty disgusting stuff and while we all knew Kennedy was a roué, the direct evidence like this makes it a lot less appealing than the glamorous Marilyn Monroe alleged affair.

Kennedy it appears was a lech if Mimi Allford is to be believed and he practiced his lechery right under the nose of his beautiful wife Jackie.

That does not necessarily reflect on him as a president; as the frequency of sexual liaisons among presidents is pretty extensive to say the least, both Republican and Democrat.

But it does say a lot about him as a man, even allowing for the fact that it was a different era.

The sordid events that Allford relates certainly take the sheen off the Kennedy presidency, so magnificently polished by generations of pro-Kennedy writers.

I am disappointed but perhaps should not be by the overwhelming evidence about Kennedy’s crass acts while in office.

Mimi Allford seems a credible witness, she never put herself forward but was tracked down and now she is giving her long ago affair with the president a public voice.

Not all our heroes have feet of clay but many do unfortunately. It is the human condition and certainly men in powerful positions have long abused that position for sex and favors.

But Kennedy somehow, in my mind seemed above that – living in a Camelot where bravery and brilliance abounded.

Instead we have a sordid scenario indeed. It will be interesting to see what impact it has on his legacy but it certainly has shaken my personal belief in the man so many of my generation worshipped.

The Celtic Comeback begins as President Clinton leads an Irish charge --Powerful Fortune 500 leaders show way forward for Irish economy

Bill Clinton pictured alongside Irish leaders yesterday in New York

Mark February 9th as the day the Celtic Comeback began.

That was the day in New York that former President Bill Clinton gathered the rich and powerful in American business and delivered them on a silver platter for the Irish government leaders including Prime Minister Enda Kenny and Foreign Minster Eamon Gilmore as well as Jobs Minister Richard Bruton.

Clinton was delivering on a commitment made in September when he attended the Irish Diaspora Economic Forum in Dublin and promised to pull out the stops in an effort to help out Ireland's foundering economy.

On Thursday he delivered, filling a meeting hall at New York University with 25 top executives eager to hear about investing in Ireland .

The president was eager to share his insights that Ireland, like the US, has one of the youngest demographics in the western world and that the educational level is among the highest. People are investing not just for the present but for the future he stated. Many companies were now looking overseas again and Ireland had to get on their radar.

Robert Rubin, his former Treasury Secretary, was there and made a valuable contribution.

Rubin stated he had not really studied the Irish situation until a few weeks ago but he believed the country was dealing with its problems in an admirable manner.

Also there were top executives from Merck, Dow Chemical, Bank of America.

The morning meeting on the 8th floor at NYU university bore the hallmarks of a well-rehearsed sales job.

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First up were CEO's from companies with operations in Ireland telling those thinking of investing there how well they had done.

Leading that charge was Donald Keough, the legendary former president of Coca Cola, who pioneered the multinational invasion in Ireland back in the 1970s.

When Keough talks people listen. These days he is Chairman of Allen and Company, the powerful investment bank, and no one does more to promote his beloved Ireland.

Wilbur Ross the billionaire investor and turnaround specialist seemingly believes in the Irish mission also, as he was vocal in his support of what the Irish government has done to combat the tide of negative news.

After the meeting the three Irish government leaders repaired down one flight of stairs to address 100 leaders in the Irish American community on the Irish economy.

There were joined by Clinton who offered a reprise of the remarks he had made upstairs.

Loretta Brennan Glucksman of the American Ireland Fund praised the IDA, the Irish industrial development agency for the amazing work they continued to do attracting jobs and also the government's emphasis on the importance of philanthropy.

Not coincidentally, IDA news of 485 new jobs in various parts of Ireland was made public on Thursday.

I asked the Irish leader and his colleagues what was the best advice they had heard and the most common criticism at their meeting.

Enda Kenny stated that telling the truth about the financial morass, not gilding the lily and telling it straight was the best advice and one he was adhering to.

Foreign Minister Gilmore stated that the most common criticism was not focusing enough on the skill of the workers themselves who got very high marks from the multinational leaders for their commitment to the job.

Kieran McLaughlin, CEO of the Ireland Funds, summed it up when he stated that what he was hearing was the beginning of what he called the "Celtic Comeback."

And not before time we all thought. Enough of the doom and gloom and more of the American can-do.

British take over Obama White House on St.Patrick's week -- Irish celebration pushed back to after St.Patrick's Day

British Prime Minister David Cameron and President Barack Obama

Begorrah, the Brits are stealing St.Patrick’s week 2012 at the White House from under us.

President Obama just announced an official visit and a state dinner for British Prime Minister David Cameron and wife Samantha on March 13th and 14th on St.Patrick’s week this year.

This might explain how the annual Irish St Pat’s celebration at the White House got bumped to after St.Patrick’s day, on the 20th of March to be precise, when the green bunting has long been taken down.

We were told originally it was because St.Patrick’s Day was on a Saturday and the Congress would not be in session etc. so the event at the White House was moved to Tuesday with the American Ireland Fund Gala Washington dinner set for Monday the 19th.

We thought it was a little strange, but being the compliant Paddies we are, we accepted the somewhat strange arrangements at face value.
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We all know it is stale beer celebrating St.Patrick’s Day after the fact, but we just went with the flow.

But this freshly arrived press release shows the Brits moved right in on our celebrated week.

"President Obama and the First Lady will welcome Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and his wife, Samantha Cameron, to the White House for an Official Visit with a State Dinner on March 13-14, 2012. The visit will highlight the fundamental importance of the U.S.-UK special relationship and the depth of the friendship between the American people and the people of the United Kingdom, as well as the strong personal bond that has developed between the two leaders and their families.

"It will also be an opportunity to recall the valor and sacrifice of the U.S. and British armed forces and their long tradition of standing shoulder-to-shoulder beside each other in defense of our liberties and shared values.

"The visit will underscore the strength of our economic links, which contribute to millions of jobs on both sides of the Atlantic. The Prime Minister’s visit will reciprocate the gracious hospitality shown to the President and Mrs. Obama by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Mr. and Mrs. Cameron, and the British people during the State Visit that was hosted by Queen Elizabeth II in May 2011.”

A state visit no less and bumping the Irish from the White House St. Patrick’s Week -- score one for Davy Cameron and the boys.

How many British voters are there in American elections again? Oh never mind-- the 40 million Irish Americans know their place-- and it is not at the top table on St.Patrick’s week at the White House when the Brits come calling.

Shure we know our place now indeed.

The vital role of the United Irish Counties

Gael of the Year Niall O'Dowd, New York City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn,
and Rose Cosgrove Distinguished Service Award recipient Gerry O’Shea.
(Photo by Margaret Purcell Roddy)

I was guest of honor at the United Irish Counties dinner in New York last Friday night.

It was the 108th annual banquet of the organization, comprised of members from county associations all over Ireland.

Close to 500 attended and there was every accent in Ireland on display which made 32 in all, as well as some American ones.

The United Irish Counties is a backbone of the Irish-born community in New York. It began in a slightly different form back at the time of the famine to help those desperately in need who came flooding off the ships seeking a new life.
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There is no equivalent in America of county loyalty. It is a deeply ingrained sense of belonging that permeates every Irish person from the time they are born.

Counties are given certain characteristics. Cork people are said to be rebellious, Cavan people tight with money, Kerry people great at sport and so on.

The engine of Irish sport, the GAA, is driven by county loyalty. When you watch, as I did, Dublin play Kerry before 80,000 at last year’s All-Ireland football final you are watching the very essence of the county identity, the city versus the countryside, the metropolis versus the rural.

That county identity is fiercer even than national identity for many. Playing Gaelic games for the honor and glory of the county and village you come from is considered a massive honor.

The United Irish Counties organization has done herculean work to help hundreds of thousands of Irish over the century and a half since it was founded.

It has prevailed, despite massive ebbs and flows in Irish emigration, regular predictions of its demise and, nowadays, the new era of Facebook, Skype and the Internet which make it that much easier for people to stay in touch.

The organization’s members are ordinary Irish from all over Ireland, and many Irish Americans too. There are no millionaires here, no LinkedIn type deal to keep in contact for business reasons.

Instead there is an honesty, a decency and an old fashioned sense of the Irish experience and hospitality that seems timeless.

The biggest joy is when the announcement is made at the dance about which county organization will be the first to march up Fifth Avenue on St. Patrick’s Day, a huge honor that is regularly rotated.
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The announcement was made on Friday night which counties would lead the way this year. It was as eagerly anticipated as a lottery win.

There was a wonderful family sense to the occasion I found. Alana, my 12-year-old utterly Americanized daughter, found herself doing the old country dances like the siege of Ennis and the walls of Limerick and said she had never enjoyed herself more.

Neighbors from long ago in Ireland met and chatted about the changes back home and the latest gossip, the McLean Avenue Band played all the old tunes, the night grew longer and the crowd had a ball. A wonderful Irish ritual was underway.

New York Senator Charles Schumer dropped in, as did City Council Speaker and future mayoral candidate Christine Quinn as well as City Comptroller John Liu. Irish Consul General Noel Kilkenny was in attendance. The political clout is understated but very real.

There is a wonderful history of the organization on their website, click here for more details.

Any Irish person in the New York area looking for a friendly, family type organization that does a lot of good should consider joining. It is truly a home from home.