It’s probably because the American Republic was traditionally anti monarchist and anti Europe. Catholics follow an earthly monarchy in Rome, and come from the operating system that created European oppression. Bad optics add they say.
Wrong. Catholics follow Christ and the successors that are appointed righteously.
Catholics created European oppression? — darn it, somebody should have told those Pilgrims to stay put. If only they had realized that England was a Protestant country and European oppression only went on in Catholic countries.
Oh no, you've done it now. Just because he has a headpiece, scepter, throne and a palace . . don't start drawing any comparisons. I almost forgot the "Pope speaks infallibly" part when the moon is in the right phase or something like that.
No, probably not, actually. The nativist "Know-nothing" anti-Catholicism was animated by anti-Irish and anti-immigrant prejudice. There were plenty of anti-Catholic roots stretching back into the English Reformation and post-Reformation era, all of which has a very monarchist and non-republican origin.
I don't know what you mean by "Catholics follow an earthly monarchy in Rome". The temporal power of the Pope as an earthly monarch stretches over a territory slightly smaller than that of Central Park in New York City. I'll wager that you've never actually personally met a citizen of the Vatican City state. The Pope's authority as a temporal ruler has no more authority over me as an American Catholic than Queen Elizabeth's authority as a temporal ruler has over American Episcopalians.
His spiritual authority is something else, of course.
If you're trying to resurrect the old canard that Catholics can't be good Americans, I'll be sure to let the two members of my immediate Catholic family who are currently active duty members of the American military know how you feel. In the eyes of some, Catholics have apparently always been "American enough" to fight and die for this country, just not "American enough".
Catholics ... come from the operating system that created European oppression
Excuse me? What exactly are you trying to say?