Michael Sean Winters

Distinctly Catholic: The Holy See's decision to laicize Theodore McCarrick, the former cardinal, only partially closes a sad and ugly chapter in the history of the Catholic Church in the United States.

Distinctly Catholic: All of the promise, and many of the problems, that the feisty freshmen Democratic members of Congress represent are on full display in the Green New Deal and its roll out. 

Distinctly Catholic: Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has been making public appearances lately, telling his success story and complaining about the government's lack of a similar one.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: Faggioli covers money's sinister influence on the church; Rep. Ilhan Omar apologizes; Warren is Trump's opponent of choice, per Fox News

Distinctly Catholic: I hope that, whatever happens next week in Rome at the meeting to discuss the church's response to sex abuse, every country is able to take a giant step forward from where it is now in its commitment to confronting this sin and crime.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: Sex abuse among Southern Baptist clergy; essay calls Trump 'least pro-life president ever'; Warren profiled; AOC explains democratic socialism

Distinctly Catholic: Elites want to redefine what it means to be a moderate and a liberal in 2020, but polling confirms the fact that the only way for Democrats to win is to avoid extremism on social issues and run to the left on economic ones.

Distinctly Catholic: Despite what the influential Federalist Society would have you believe, the founding fathers may not have been neatly aligned with contemporary conservative political objectives.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: A must-read for liberals and presidential candidates; voter fraud in the name of preventing voter fraud in Texas, but nothing from DiNardo

Distinctly Catholic: A balancing act has characterized this presidency: taking credit for anything good that happens, whether or not his policies are the reason, while stoking the kind of fear that makes the electorate seek a strongman. 

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary:At World Economic Forum, historian speaks on tax evasion; Jeffress talks Heaven's wall; Abortion laws betray our 'weird, wicked world'

Distinctly Catholic: That Julián Castro was mayor of a fast-growing, racially diverse city in Texas, San Antonio, is all to the good, and the strongest part of his speech announcing he would run for president drew on that experience.

Distinctly Catholic: The Democratic Party has become more extreme on the issue of abortion, adopting the positions of special interest groups, positions that do not reflect the views of many people.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: Confronting myths about undocumented workers; billionaire attacks a tax on wealth; remembering a 1917 deportation.

Distinctly Catholic: The California senator can't authentically claim the mantle of economic populist, so she will make her appeal on cultural terms. That is how Democrats lose elections.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: Impeachment literature review; aristocratic removal; Sen. Warren embraces nerdhood; Bishop John Stowe goes wide with MAGA-hat opinion; labor movement moving forward

Distinctly Catholic: A new report from Boston College about the priesthood is a useful roadmap for the church to encourage, nourish and shape vocations.

Distinctly Catholic: Joe Biden has evolved in his political career and he is not entirely out of place in today's Democratic Party in which a focus on culture-war issues is often as important as a focus on those "lunch-bucket," economic issues.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: A Little Rock Nine remembrance of MLK; videos illustrate precarious labor conditions; Knights in the political spotlight

Distinctly Catholic: No Catholic can be a Humean, but the book Prius or Pickup? is nonetheless an important read for anyone who cares about the country and is willing to be bracingly candid about the challenges we face on account of people's prejudices and passions.