Mr. Trump’s Catholic Problem [View all]

By Martin O’Malley and Jim Rosapepe

'Donald Trump has a big problem with Catholics. And he’s earned it.

Hillary Clinton leads him by 19 points among weekly church-going Catholics and 16 points among other Catholics, according to the most recent Pew survey.

Not good for his prospects this Fall. Catholics are a quarter of the electorate and, four years ago, Mitt Romney split the Catholic vote almost 50/50 with Barack Obama — and lost the election.

Why are so many Catholics down on Donald Trump?

One clear reason is that many are Latinos. Trump has made Latinos the villains of his campaign, so no surprise there.

But most American Catholics aren’t Latino.

Most, like us, are descendants of immigrants from Ireland, Italy, Poland, Germany, or other European countries. We know our families’ immigration stories — which ancestors came to America and when, the stereotypes and discrimination they overcame, and the pride they took in their heritage and in America.

So, when Mr. Trump makes immigrants and immigration his enemy, he’s attacking us and the families of most American Catholics. When he says build a wall to keep out Latin Americans and ban Muslims, he sounds just like the bosses who said “No Irish need apply” and the nativist politicians in the 1920s who passed laws to stop Italian immigration.'>>>

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gov-martin-omalley/mr-trumps-catholic-proble_b_11569202.html