{"id":3761,"date":"2006-12-28T15:39:32","date_gmt":"2006-12-28T15:39:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/viamedia\/2006\/12\/nancy-palooza.html"},"modified":"2006-12-28T15:39:32","modified_gmt":"2006-12-28T15:39:32","slug":"nancy-palooza","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/viamedia\/2006\/12\/nancy-palooza.html","title":{"rendered":"Nancy-Palooza"},"content":{"rendered":"

Can you feel the excitement? In a few days, Nancy Pelosi will seize the reins as Speaker of the House, and boy, does she want you to know it:<\/a><\/p>\n

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On a scale associated with presidential inaugurations, Nancy Pelosi<\/a> is planning four days of celebration surrounding her Jan. 4 swearing-in as the first female speaker of the House. She will return to the blue-collar Baltimore neighborhood where she grew up, attend Mass at the women’s college where she studied political science, and dine at the Italian Embassy as Tony Bennett sings "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."<\/p>\n

But the hoopla is more than just a party.<\/p>\n

Pelosi is grabbing the moment to present herself as the new face of the Democratic Party and to restore the party’s image as one hospitable to ethnic minorities, families, religion, the working class and women.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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On Jan. 3, Pelosi will attend morning Mass at Trinity University, her alma mater in Washington, and then attend a tea in the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium for about 400 female politicians, supporters and activists. In the evening, she will be honored at a dinner at the Italian Embassy, where Bennett will perform.<\/p>\n

The next day, Pelosi will participate in a nondenominational service at St. Peter’s Catholic Church on Capitol Hill and then eat brunch with hundreds of supporters at the Cannon House Office Building and the Library of Congress. At noon, the House will convene to elect Pelosi speaker. That night, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee will hold a fundraiser at the Building Museum, where 1,200 partygoers will pay $1,000 each to applaud Pelosi between performances by Jimmy Buffett, Carole King and Mickey Hart, among others.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Trinity is understandably excited about the achievement of its alumna<\/a>, but the burning question is, what will the Archbishop of Washington do?<\/a> <\/p>\n

One could say…ah, well it’s a function in a university chapel. It’s not directly <\/em>associated with the Archdiocese. In fact it’s a couple or three steps removed from the Archdiocese. One could say that and a lot more. And I’m fairly ignorant about what an Archbishop’s options are in a situation like this. I am fairly sure, however, that one of his options would be to open his mouth and say something.<\/p>\n

Ah, but what of the agony<\/em> of the Catholic politician…struggling<\/em> to serve her conscience even as she serves her constituents in a way that is consistent with both her faith and the Constitution! What a dilemma! What valiant creatures these Catholic pols are, attempting to live out their faith in the public square!<\/p>\n

Here is a summary of Pelosi’s record on abortion and similar issues in the House.<\/a><\/p>\n