What an appalling speech the Mayor of New York delivered for the 250th anniversary of the nation. Sadly, it reflects the view of America propagated for years by Howard Zinn and his like-minded colleagues in the universities and believed by armies of the young: a dark, oppressive country where common people are denigrated by tyrants and oligarchs, where immigrants are treated with contempt, where those with “soft hands” hold the wealth created by those with dirty hands. No sensible person would claim that our country is without flaws, but the relentlessly negative picture painted by Mayor Mamdani is just absurd. And it is the fruit of the Marxism that, sadly, is all the rage today.

I am grateful to President Trump for appointing me to serve on the Commission on Religious Liberty. Freedom of religion in our country has been a central concern of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops for decades, and I see my task as bringing the perspective of Catholic social teaching to bear as the Commission endeavors to shape public policy in this matter. In assuming this responsibility, I take as my model Fr. Theodore Hesburgh, the legendary president of the University of Notre Dame from 1952 to 1987. In the course of his career, Hesburgh served on sixteen separate presidential commissions over several decades in both Republican and Democrat administrations. I ask you to pray for me as I commence this important work.

My thanks to @DrPhil for the opportunity to join him on his show. We discussed the persecution of Christians, the importance of religious liberty, and more.