precarious role of the Catholic Church

There was a supplement in the local newspapers, a ten page insert sponsored by the Roman Catholic Church. Local bishops such as Franco here in Acapulco, and Cardinal Norberto in DF, and even Pope Benedict have spoken to the Mexican people with a cautiously worded message: go to the polls and vote your values. Under the Constitution of this country, clerics are severely limited in the political roles they may take. So, the church and bishops cannot say directly and clearly, Calderon SI, AMLO NO, but that is the gist of its efforts. Calderon is the clearest pro life candidate, and the rest waffle, except Mercado who is clearly pro-choice.

If the church succeeds in getting a fraction of the 80 percent of Mexicans who are Catholics to vote church endorsed positions, this could be a victory for Calderon.