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Three USCCB departments and their staffers have assumed the major responsibility for this: Kathy Saile (Domestic Social Development), Richard Doerflinger (Pro-Life Activities), and Kevin Appleby (Migration and Refugee Policy).

That's why everything out of the USCCB offices on "Health" (cough) "Care" (cough) "Reform" (cough) has this triploid, written-by-a-committee look.

They have very much absorbed the Washington DC assumption that "every problem has a government solution" --- which is quite un-called-for in terms of Catholic doctrine.

I have a basic objection to the whole USCCB lobbying effort. They use our resources (I'm speaking of Catholic pew-sitters in general) with no input, indeed no possibility of input from us; and they "borrow" a kind of spurious authority from the Bishops.

Canonically, Bishops' role as teachers consists of defining the moral principles, and according to Catholic doctrine itself, the political nuts-and-bolts of that is supposed to entirely under the control of us, the laity.

IT'S OUR JOB.

It is scandalous in principle, and quite harmful in practice, for them to usurp our role like this.

I just wrote another frankly irate letter about it to Mr. Doerflinger, and also to by bishop. It is no small matter. The consequences of this are grave.