November 20, 2009
 
|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| The Jesuits Produce A Great Political Candidate |
| by Deal W. Hudson |
| 11/19/08 |
|
Joseph Cao is a Catholic lawyer and former Jesuit scholastic from New Orleans. He is running as a Republican for the Congressional 2nd district seat in Louisiana presently held by Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA), who is best known for the $90,000 found in his freezer. The election will be held December 6.
Few candidates for public office are as forthright as Cao when asked about their position on abortion. “I am very anti-abortion,” he told me without hesitation. Cao would like to overturn Roe, but in the meantime, “We have to find a way to defeat Roe without having to overturn it.”
His solid pro-life credentials are attested to by the endorsement of the FRC Action PAC, among others.
At age 41, Cao has been married for seven years to Hieu, also called “Kate,” and has two children, Sophia 5 and Betsy 4. Kate is a pharmacist who works to “pay the bills while I play politician,” Joseph told me. They met at a Marian festival at Our Lady La Vang Parish, a Vietnamese Catholic congregation in New Orleans.
Cao was born in Vietnam but immigrated to the United States at age 8 with his older sister and younger brother. The Communists had jailed his father after the fall of Saigon in 1975, and Joseph was raised by an uncle in Houston where he attended middle and high school and was eventually reunited with his parents. Joseph attended Baylor University in pre-med, where he met a Catholic chaplain who introduced him to the Society of Jesus.
He entered the Jesuits in 1990, spending two years in the novitiate in Grand Coteau, Louisiana. While working as a Jesuit in Mexico he had an experience that led him out of the Order and into the world of politics.
“I went all over the world to work with the poor and experienced a crisis of faith in Mexico over human suffering and God. I asked my spiritual director, ‘What is God doing about all this suffering?’ He told me that ‘God sends people to help.’ That was when I began to realize my calling was politics.”
Cao earned his M.A., in philosophy at Fordham University and spent a year teaching ethics at Loyola University, but left the Jesuits in May 1996. He earned a law degree and continued teaching at Loyola before he began his legal career as an associate at the Waltzer Law Firm. Cao left Waltzer to become in-house counsel for Boat People SOS.
Cao lost his bid in 2007 to become a state representative in his home state, but he wasn’t discouraged. “I have a deep faith, and I believe that I am called to public service.”
Running against an entrenched incumbent doesn’t faze Cao. “The election of Barack Obama suggests that people are willing to cross party and racial lines to vote for the person they think is best for the country and will bring accountability back into politics.”
Cao admits that his personality is not ideally suited for campaigning: “I have a personality that is the antithesis to political life -- I am a rather private person.” There’s something else about Cao that is unlike most politicians. When I asked him about his personal philosophy, he spoke expansively about Dostoevsky.
“I read a lot of Dostoevsky who wrote works of literature but really was addressing philosophical questions.” His favorite is Brothers Karamazov with its story of the “good man [Alexei] who lives in a conflicted existence but holds on to his goodness.”
His attraction to Dostoevsky is mirrored by Cao’s commitment to uphold his Catholic faith in politics: “I hold on to my Catholic values, the good of the family, of faith, of social justice in various forms, including the defense of unborn life.”
Joseph Cao represents a new generation of Catholics in politics -- a generation with the courage of Dostoevsky’s Alexei who will not follow in the way of the majority of Catholics presently serving in the U. S. Congress.
♦ ♦ ♦
This column's readers will be pleased to learn, if they have not already, that another pro-life Catholic profiled on InsideCatholic.com won his election to the House of Representatives. Tom Rooney will be representing the 16th Congressional District of Florida in the next Congress.
Deal W. Hudson is the director of InsideCatholic.com and the author of Onward, Christian Soldiers: The Growing Political Power of Catholics and Evangelicals in the United States (Simon and Schuster). Readers have left 13 comments. ...And gives those of us considering running for office in the future encouragement. Written by Wonderful As Jesuit run Universities take the lead in presenting pro-abortion and anti-Magisterium speakers and guests (And often granting them honors), it would appear that Mr. Cao is what he is in spite of a "Jebbie" education. Conclusion: As Mr. Cao has the intellectual strength to resist such propaganda as in presented in such schools, he is a most excellent addition to any organization---Especially the Congress.  Written by James Pawlak I'm not sure what Joseph Cao means by this statement: “We have to find a way to defeat Roe without having to overturn it.” Seems like a line Joe Biden could use. Written by Colleen Baker I'm not sure what Joseph Cao means by this statement: “We have to find a way to defeat Roe without having to overturn it.” — SomeoneSeems like a line Joe Biden could use. Huh? Did you read the entire sentence? [quote=Someone]Cao would like to overturn Roe, but in the meantime, “We have to find a way to defeat Roe without having to overturn it.”[/Cao] All he's saying is that until Roe is overturned, pro-lifers need to find alternative ways of defeating it. Biden, on the other hand, has never stated a desire to overturn Roe or to defeat it in any other way. Honestly, only a complete cynic could find Cao's statement objectionable. Written by Jay Anderson As Jesuit run Universities take the lead in presenting pro-abortion and anti-Magisterium speakers and guests (And often granting them honors), it would appear that Mr. Cao is what he is in spite of a "Jebbie" education. Conclusion: As Mr. Cao has the intellectual strength to resist such propaganda as in presented in such schools, he is a most excellent addition to any organization---Especially the Congress. — James PawlakAs someone currently attending Loyola University Chicago, I echo your sentiments wholeheartedly. If Joseph Cao had to endure the Feminist propoganda campaign I endure everytime I take a philosophy or English class, he's gotta be one heckuva intellectual and spiritual heavyweight. I'll be praying for his victory! Is he likely to win, or is he a longshot, pragmatically speaking? Written by Andy K. As a resident of the New Orleans area, I am so excited that Mr. Cao is in this race. From what I've seen, he's smart, decicated, and has all the same problems as many, many other residents in our area. He can win because people in the area are fed up and embarassed with Mr. Jefferson's antics and the marked FBI money in his freezer. All people need to do is just remember that Saturday Dec 6th is election day, and that they need to vote. Written by Uncle Gus I hope you are not racist. We need more Catholic politicians like Cao. Who cares if he is of Vietnamese origin? Written by jcc Good to see someone serious stepping up instead of doing the popular "Catholic" thing re: politics, i.e., moaning and complaining. ![[smiley=wink]](http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/components/com_jreactions/custom/templates/blog/smileys/smiley_wink.gif) Written by Pauli It is time for the people of Lousiana to realize that they need to have a stateman like Mr. Cao. Mr. Cao has overcome many obstacles to accomplish what he has today that proves to us that he can set his goals and work his way to achieve them. Mr. Cao has the strength, capability, commitment and perseverance to be a great congressman. Lets all vote for Mr. Joseph Cao. Written by Tom I find it interesting how many Cao supporters here are already "cannonizing" him without fully vetting him, something Americans are slowly beginning to see wasn't done with the current President-elect. Wouldn't you want to know where he stands on issues other than abortion? How about the hot-button issue facing LA and the rest of the U.S.--illegal immigration? Being an immigrant himself and with his studies in Mexico, wouldn't his views on this very important subject--the Invasion of the United States by (principally) Mexico be important for his supporters and future supporters to know? For instance, what are his positions on Amnesty for illegal aliens, birthright citizenship (IE the misinterpretation by an earlier SCOTUS of the 14th Amendment), anchor babies and attrition thru enforcement, just to name a few? If I lived in LA, as an informed Independent conservative, I'd surely want to know where Mr. Cao stands on this issue. I've been taken to the cleaners too many times by politicians who were purported to be "conservatives" and turned out to be RINOs. Written by levotb Having lived for 5 years amongst the poorest families in several different parts of Mexico I question the wisdom and intelligence of anyone who thinks there is much suffering there. I gather that Mr. Cao was raised in well-to-do families in Vietnam and the United States. There are more serious spiritual and social problems for the poor in the U.S.A. For someone to have a crisis about God and Faith over this is for me ludicrous. Written by james You're right. He must have been spiritudally 'produced' by the Jesuits, but is he supported by them? I wonder if they like their name associated with a Republican candidated what with the likes of Drinian and Kennedy and the hordes of pro-aborts and homosexuals typically supported by the modern Society. Written by Richard |
|
 |
