The U.S. bishops complaining about this are the same ones who continue to cover up for Theodore McCarrick and many others on the Vatican’s behalf. Bringing the full weight of the DOJ down on them under RICO would be a step in the right direction.
***One White House official told CNA that the president’s recent Catholic retweets fit Scavino’s approach.
“I totally get why people like Viganò and Marshall appeal to Scavino. Conspiracy theories, communists, freemasons, tons of retweets and YouTube followers? It’s right up his alley,” the official said.
“The problem is it has happened now, even if this isn’t the president’s idea, one thing you’re not going to do is change his mind – there is no reverse gear.”
“It drives the Catholics around here crazy because we are trying to do real work,” the first official said. “We take the faith seriously, we came here to serve.”***
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The anonymous administration source refers to so-called “Serious Catholics”. By this, the source seems to mean, Catholics in the administration who are either perfectly fine with U.S. Catholic Bishops who regularly say or do things that clearly conflict with what the Church has traditionally taught at all times and at all places (i.e., because they themselves similarly have hopelessly heterodox attitudes and beliefs), or who reflexively suppress any and all negative feelings or impressions they may develop or harbor about such behavior, either because they find that they are too far personally tied in with the skewed priorities Church’s hierarchy through their advanced involvement in the similarly skewed priorities of their local diocesan parish church (and thus fear the reputational damage of appearing to be recalcitrant) or because they have not yet come to appreciate their solemn obligation as a member of the faithful, not only to learn, but also to pitch in and support the truth when it is at risk or under attack, including, always respectfully, but if necessary, also forcefully, speaking such truth directly to wayward diocesan priests pastors, local ordinaries (i.e., bishops and cardinals in charge of dioceses and archdioceses and their priestly and lay staff), and popes, pursuant to their undeniable rights (see Section 212 of Canon Law) as ordinary lay Catholics.
Trump is MUCH more likely to find common cause with devout Catholics who are inclined to actively and directly remonstrate with doctrinally-deficient U.S. Catholic priests and prelates than he is with passive or actively obsequious supporters of same. As Vigano has clearly stated, the “Deep State” has as strong a hold on the Catholic Church as it does on the local, state and federal governing apparatus of the U.S., if not even stronger for lack of a counterweight of anything like the sigificance of Trump and his pre-eminent (albeit only temporary) position in the federal executive branch.
If Trump keeps up with his current course, including continuing to smoothly interact with Archbishop Vigano, it is well within the realm of possibility that he will convert and become a full-fledged member of the Roman Catholic faithful well before he completes his second term as POTUS.