Washington is worth a Mass

In the bizarre world of US politics, the Catholic candidate for President is under pressure to make his policy positions conform to Vatican doctrine, while the born-again Methodist incumbent -- who promoted a war condemned by the Vatican, favours the death penalty, and loaded his tax cuts towards the wealthy -- rushes to enlist the Pope to put pressure on US bishops to support his positions. And if it wasn't for bloggers, this state of affairs would not be attracting much comment.

Just how big a show of symbolism is Dubya prepared to make in the quest for the supposed "Catholic vote?" We couldn't help but notice this item from today's Washington Post:

The Associated Press reports: "Bodyguards for President Bush's daughter were entangled in a fist fight with two men trying to steal a cell phone in southern Spain, a U.S. Embassy official said Tuesday. "

AFP reports that Jenna Bush was in Spain to take part "in a religious pilgrimage in Spain, walking up to 30 kilometers (20 miles) a day on the way to Santiago de Compostela."

Leaving aside the fact that Jenna probably broke Texas law by not shooting the two miscreants on the spot, note that the daughter of the born-again Methodist is doing a very Catholic pilgrimage, one that honours St James the Apostle, as opposed to a direct focus on Dubya's favourite political philosopher, Jesus himself. is Dubya planning to have at least one family member flip-flop on their religious affiliation before November?