As noted, much of what Pope Leo does is an article of "Vatican" faith. His opposition to abortion, gay rights etc. is based on that article of faith. So how to address his egregious damage to our democracy? To date very little has been offered to solve the Leo problem other than expand the SCOTUS. That won't end Leo's interference in our political/cultural future even if it might mitigate the harm being done by the Vatican's Extreme Court. After all, as you note he will still have a billion plus to play with in order to continue his evil.
I've noted here before that until Leo's puppetmasters in the Vatican are held to account for Leo's activities he will continue doing what he does. If the Vatican nation were to directly address if not confront Leo he could be reined in. One way to pressure the Vatican to rein in Leo is to start naming names beginning with the Vatican. Many of those you've named in your article who are empowering Leo is a beginning but you're leaving out the primary enabler which is the Vatican nation.
This might address your concern re: " "Let me reiterate: this is not mainstream Catholicism. The perverse strain of radical Catholicism Leo practices doesn’t have a convenient label." My view is that by holding the Vatican nation accountable one can make obvious the dichotomy between mainstream Catholic Laity and the political power of the Vatican being wielded around the world including the U.S.. A convenient label might be the "Vatican's Leo" or some derivation thereof. Over time this might get the Vatican's attention.
I speak here as someone who, like you, was raised Catholic. For 11 years I attended classes in Catholic theology 5 days a week in parochial schools. I studied to be a priest for 3 yrs in a Benedictine monastery. In the early 60's I was one of the first to begin to point out the Vatican's institutionalized pedophilia running rampant in parishes around the world for which I paid heavily. I know how the Vatican works from both the inside and out. Moreover, I'm still in touch with many of my Catholic friends, the Laity, and many if not most of them do not hold the Vatican nation in high regard. Even among Catholics there is a distinction between the Vatican and themselves.
For the Vatican, money talks more than theology. "Saint" Theresa might not have been declared a saint by the Vatican if she hadn't left the Vatican bank $30 million when she died. The billions of dollars that Leo controls could be a powerful incentive for the Vatican's money changers to begin to ask Leo to share the wealth aka the parable of the rich man. After all, as you point out, he's already doing such with various Vatican organizations. This might create a conflict between Vatican/Leo that could be the beginning of the end of Leo. Maybe a promise of future sainthood for Leo would be the carrot. I suspect "Saint" Leo would be music to his ears.
Leonard Leo belongs in jail. I have written to Joe Biden about this guy several times. His Federalist Society needs to be shuttered, and Leo needs to be in prison for his illegal take-over of the US Court system. Period.
Thank you again for bringing Leo's modern crusade to light.
A person like Leo does not care who they hurt.
The kid with the nickname Moneybags isn't motivated by greed? Maybe his Federalist Society pal Steven Calabresi meant to clarify it's greed AND power AND control.
Dear Greg..Hope you and your wife are ENJOYING a lovely Break,and beautiful Relaxing vacation 💕 Thank you for your Indefatigable efforts to EXPOSE these Hideous Creepy guys that Nobody would dance with at Highschool Get togethers..Their vibes emitted were always WEIRDO BEWARE 💃🕺🤯🤯🤯👿
This is some seriously grim shit, Greg. Thank you for slogging through it, I hope with a high-end gas mask and hazmat suit. It must be giving your optimistic bent a run for its money.
You'd think some decent billionaire - a Tom Steyer or even Warren Buffett - would dig between the couch cushions for $1.6B and at least match the Seid buy, on the side of the angels.
“White Christian nationalists who want to take us back to the 19th century have captured the court, which is now running roughshod over our democracy. Part of the court message should also be ethics reforms and term limits. If we want a modern, prosperous and inclusive country, these justices need to go.” - Jennifer Rubin, WAPO ⚖️
Good fiction writers can easily dream up characters as devious as Leo Leo and plots the likes of which SCOTUS-land is stranger than. It’d make a good movie. As real life it sucks!
There’s nothing worse or more dangerous than a rich, religious zealot. These a-holes think nothing of setting the world afire just for the joy of watching it burn. Bibi Netanyahu is similar and is working his crooked magic with his court system in Israel; his peoples’ protests be damned. He’s nuked to the nines and surrounded by those who he has treated like subhumans but who have ties to countries who cannot abide him or the state he represents. All this money floating around in a few peoples’ hands can’t be good for this world so I’m thinking that’s why the big push to rocket themselves off ASAP.
My jaw dropped about a dozen times, Greg! Really insightful pieces of information your revealed with both Part 1 and 2. The collusion between Leo and McConnell about not permitting Merrick Garland to be a justice really irked the shit out of me. Probably, as you alluded to, because he’s Jewish. It makes me ill just think about Seid’s contribution to Leo. That bastard! You are right about connections with religious fanatics such as the Lubavitcher’s connection. They are the ultra-Orthodox Jews who are responsible for illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank and for what is currently happening in Netanyahu’s Likud Party. My father was raised a Lubavitcher in Poland, back in the early 1900’s. I thank him everyday for not following that path when he came to America.
Your writing sorta takes the edge of this otherwise razor sharp a-hole: Leonard Leo's rotten-ness.... The opera wording, the this, 'Jesus liked wine, yes, and Jesus hung out with fishermen, sure, but I’m not sure the Son of God would approve of Leo’s stockpile of dirty loot' Comparison to his more-than-a-mortgage payment bottles of wine. Love your writing.
Use this interactive relationship map to FOLLOW THE MONEY and see how Leonard Leo has captured the Supreme Court. https://thedemlabs.org/2023/06/27/follow-the-money-behind-supreme-court-corruption-alito-barrett-clarence-thomas/
As noted, much of what Pope Leo does is an article of "Vatican" faith. His opposition to abortion, gay rights etc. is based on that article of faith. So how to address his egregious damage to our democracy? To date very little has been offered to solve the Leo problem other than expand the SCOTUS. That won't end Leo's interference in our political/cultural future even if it might mitigate the harm being done by the Vatican's Extreme Court. After all, as you note he will still have a billion plus to play with in order to continue his evil.
I've noted here before that until Leo's puppetmasters in the Vatican are held to account for Leo's activities he will continue doing what he does. If the Vatican nation were to directly address if not confront Leo he could be reined in. One way to pressure the Vatican to rein in Leo is to start naming names beginning with the Vatican. Many of those you've named in your article who are empowering Leo is a beginning but you're leaving out the primary enabler which is the Vatican nation.
This might address your concern re: " "Let me reiterate: this is not mainstream Catholicism. The perverse strain of radical Catholicism Leo practices doesn’t have a convenient label." My view is that by holding the Vatican nation accountable one can make obvious the dichotomy between mainstream Catholic Laity and the political power of the Vatican being wielded around the world including the U.S.. A convenient label might be the "Vatican's Leo" or some derivation thereof. Over time this might get the Vatican's attention.
I speak here as someone who, like you, was raised Catholic. For 11 years I attended classes in Catholic theology 5 days a week in parochial schools. I studied to be a priest for 3 yrs in a Benedictine monastery. In the early 60's I was one of the first to begin to point out the Vatican's institutionalized pedophilia running rampant in parishes around the world for which I paid heavily. I know how the Vatican works from both the inside and out. Moreover, I'm still in touch with many of my Catholic friends, the Laity, and many if not most of them do not hold the Vatican nation in high regard. Even among Catholics there is a distinction between the Vatican and themselves.
For the Vatican, money talks more than theology. "Saint" Theresa might not have been declared a saint by the Vatican if she hadn't left the Vatican bank $30 million when she died. The billions of dollars that Leo controls could be a powerful incentive for the Vatican's money changers to begin to ask Leo to share the wealth aka the parable of the rich man. After all, as you point out, he's already doing such with various Vatican organizations. This might create a conflict between Vatican/Leo that could be the beginning of the end of Leo. Maybe a promise of future sainthood for Leo would be the carrot. I suspect "Saint" Leo would be music to his ears.
Leonard Leo belongs in jail. I have written to Joe Biden about this guy several times. His Federalist Society needs to be shuttered, and Leo needs to be in prison for his illegal take-over of the US Court system. Period.
Thank you again for bringing Leo's modern crusade to light.
A person like Leo does not care who they hurt.
The kid with the nickname Moneybags isn't motivated by greed? Maybe his Federalist Society pal Steven Calabresi meant to clarify it's greed AND power AND control.
Dear Greg..Hope you and your wife are ENJOYING a lovely Break,and beautiful Relaxing vacation 💕 Thank you for your Indefatigable efforts to EXPOSE these Hideous Creepy guys that Nobody would dance with at Highschool Get togethers..Their vibes emitted were always WEIRDO BEWARE 💃🕺🤯🤯🤯👿
Some more context for the Leonard Leo faction:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2023/07/20/leonard-leo-clarence-thomas-paoletta/?itid=sr_2
https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/execution-stoning-christian-nationalism-1234797127/amp/
I just found the second one this morning, and like I said, "Catholic Iran."
God, guns & Trump 🥷🏻#ChristianNationalism
Or the American Taliban. I’m just waiting for the morality police to start walking the streets.
This is some seriously grim shit, Greg. Thank you for slogging through it, I hope with a high-end gas mask and hazmat suit. It must be giving your optimistic bent a run for its money.
You'd think some decent billionaire - a Tom Steyer or even Warren Buffett - would dig between the couch cushions for $1.6B and at least match the Seid buy, on the side of the angels.
“White Christian nationalists who want to take us back to the 19th century have captured the court, which is now running roughshod over our democracy. Part of the court message should also be ethics reforms and term limits. If we want a modern, prosperous and inclusive country, these justices need to go.” - Jennifer Rubin, WAPO ⚖️
Good fiction writers can easily dream up characters as devious as Leo Leo and plots the likes of which SCOTUS-land is stranger than. It’d make a good movie. As real life it sucks!
There’s nothing worse or more dangerous than a rich, religious zealot. These a-holes think nothing of setting the world afire just for the joy of watching it burn. Bibi Netanyahu is similar and is working his crooked magic with his court system in Israel; his peoples’ protests be damned. He’s nuked to the nines and surrounded by those who he has treated like subhumans but who have ties to countries who cannot abide him or the state he represents. All this money floating around in a few peoples’ hands can’t be good for this world so I’m thinking that’s why the big push to rocket themselves off ASAP.
My jaw dropped about a dozen times, Greg! Really insightful pieces of information your revealed with both Part 1 and 2. The collusion between Leo and McConnell about not permitting Merrick Garland to be a justice really irked the shit out of me. Probably, as you alluded to, because he’s Jewish. It makes me ill just think about Seid’s contribution to Leo. That bastard! You are right about connections with religious fanatics such as the Lubavitcher’s connection. They are the ultra-Orthodox Jews who are responsible for illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank and for what is currently happening in Netanyahu’s Likud Party. My father was raised a Lubavitcher in Poland, back in the early 1900’s. I thank him everyday for not following that path when he came to America.
Things will change grasshopper. Maybe for the better. 🤞
Wow. Just Wow. Sharing.
'A dandier George Constanza, or if The Penguin worked at Jones Day.' LOL — GREAT visual.
Your writing sorta takes the edge of this otherwise razor sharp a-hole: Leonard Leo's rotten-ness.... The opera wording, the this, 'Jesus liked wine, yes, and Jesus hung out with fishermen, sure, but I’m not sure the Son of God would approve of Leo’s stockpile of dirty loot' Comparison to his more-than-a-mortgage payment bottles of wine. Love your writing.