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President Donald Trump. | Tony Dejak/AP Photo

American Catholics supported the Democratic nominee in all but four presidential cycles since 1952. Trump is looking to secure a 2020 repeat of their support for him three years ago, but he could face some roadblocks.

Three years ago, Catholic voters helped carry Donald Trump into the White House. Then they hardly heard from him.

Until Trump carried 52 percent of their votes in 2016, American Catholics supported the Democratic nominee in all but four presidential cycles since 1952. But after betting it all on the thrice-married Manhattan businessman — Trump won white Catholics by a 23-point margin, compared with Mitt Romney’s 19-point victory in 2012 — they never received so much as a “thank you” from the 45th president.

Rather than enjoying the same VIP treatment white evangelicals have received since the earliest days of his administration, conservative Catholics’ connection to Trump has rarely extended beyond his own staff. The president is surrounded by self-identified Catholics — including Attorney General William Barr, acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and White House counsel Pat Cipollone — but rarely does he engage with outside Catholics in the same way he does with evangelical leaders. Some evangelical figures have dined with the president in his private residence, while others were spotted mingling with Cabinet officials at a midterm elections watch party he hosted in November 2018. Yet it wasn’t until last month that public liaison officials inside the White House held their first briefing exclusively for Catholic stakeholders.  ….

Read more here  https://www.politico.com/news/2020/01/14/trump-catholics-reelection-098518