We need a president who truly cares for the poor

Four years ago, a majority of American voters made history by electing the first African-American president of the United States. I predict that today, a majority of American voters will further make history by re-electing the first African-American president, Barack Obama.

I may be wrong, but my own political sense is that the momentum is now with the president. Despite a bad first debate and the millions of dollars attacking him from the campaign and PACs of Gov. Mitt Romney, the president has gotten his stride back and has launched an aggressive campaign of his own that has clearly presented to the public the fundamental choices in this election.

The election of Romney would be a retreat to the traditional policies of the Republican Party that is centered on supporting the very wealthy, both personal and corporate, and minimizing support for the middle classes, the working poor and the very poor.

The Democrats, while certainly not anti-capitalist or anti-rich, nevertheless believe the country's wealth has to be more evenly distributed if we are to have a sound economy. I believe most conscientious Americans prefer the latter and will vote this way.

We must have a country that truly cares for all of its people and that the best sign of a good society is how we care for each other rather than how we exploit each other. This is a very Catholic perspective and one I believe will win this election.

I have been disappointed in how some Catholic clergy have from the pulpit attempted to suggest that Catholics should vote Republican because of the church's unfortunate opposition to the Obama's health care policies with respect to birth control and abortion. In my opinion, some clergy have crossed the line in doing so and have violated the constitutional division of church and state in this country.

Nevertheless, many Catholics and many Latino Catholics, who may well prove to be the decisive factor in the election, don't vote that way. They will not allow these social issues to get in the way of their recognition that voting Democratic will advance their interests and economic democracy than voting for the Republicans.