This election has taken a few surprising twists and turns, especially among Catholic voters. Let me list the most notable ones.

1. The Iraq War is not playing the major role I thought it would. References to the war by Obama Catholics such as Kmiec and Korzen have become more like throw-away lines rather than part of a serious argument to discredit McCain.

2. The economic meltdown has -- for the present -- overshadowed consideration of the social issues. This is great news for Obama whose greatest vulnerabilities among Catholic voters are presently being overlooked as they watch their assets shrink and financial future put under a question mark.

3. The Catholic bishops are playing an even larger role in this election than in 2004. I was convinced the Obama campaign and its Democratic consultants would make this the number one priority, but both Obama and Biden, aided by Speaker Pelosi, made it impossible for the bishops to stay on the sidelines.

4. Archbishop Chaput's well-timed book, Render Unto Caesar, has become a major factor in the election. Books by bishops -- especially those considered "conservative" -- usually don't recieve much notice, but this one has made the bestseller lists, very deservedly.

5. Carl Anderson, the head of the Knights of Columbus, has made a concerted effort to protect Catholic teaching from the spin of Obama Catholics and their associated "non-partisan" organizations such as Catholics United for the Common Good. Activating the network of the KOC is no small matter in its potential impact on the Catholic voter.

6. Doug Kmiec has become the Catholic outreach for the Obama campaign. He has effectively replaced the better known political surrogates such as Tim Roemer, Katherine Kennedy Townsend, and Sen. Ted Kennedy, now seriously ill.

7. The second quessing about the choice of Sarah Palin, driven by interview missteps, will not have any appreciable effect on the support she brought to the McCain campaign among religious voters. They expected the media attacks and awkward moments with the likes of Katie Couric, and will shrug it off as part of a learning curve.

Unless the economic unrest is settled in the next week to ten days, the issues specifically related to Catholic voters as Catholic will be relegated to the background of the campaign. That's a pity. Those are the issues that best expose the reasons Obama should not become the President of the United States.