As Medicaid faces severe cuts in the federal budget that will take health care away from millions of people, Laura Peralta-Schulte, head of NETWORK’s government relations team, discusses the life-saving importance of the program for its 60th anniversary. The program, which emerged as part of President Lyndon Johnson’s efforts to help people in the United States not just survive but thrive and which expanded greatly under the health care reforms under President Barack Obama, is now under serious threat.

Peralta-Schulte discusses why this is not just a matter of policy for Catholics, but a human right under Catholic teaching, as well as an echo of Jesus’ healing mission. By this standard, cuts that will take away health care from over 10 million people over the next decade are a moral failure of a very high degree. She calls on all justice-seekers of all background to join NETWORK in the legislative push to roll back these immoral tax cuts and restore health coverage to millions of people who rely on the saving care made available to them by Medicaid.

Join in the work of promoting Catholic Social Justice in federal policy by becoming a member of NETWORK.

This week on Just Politics, hosts Eilis and Colin welcome Laurie Carafone, NETWORK’s new executive director. She comes to the world of Catholic social justice advocacy from Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), where she worked to protect unaccompanied children and advocate for their asylum.

Carafone’s path began with a formative year working with an asylum attorney, where she witnessed the life-and-death stakes facing asylum seekers. After law school at the University of Michigan and a masters degree in theological studies from Harvard Divinity School, she spent over a decade at KIND, ultimately leading their U.S. legal programs.

She was drawn to NETWORK, she says, by the organization's origin story of 47 sisters recognizing that federal policy could create a scaled positive impact, as well as NETWORK's commitment to coalition building.

She takes on the role of executive director at a perilous time in U.S. politics, especially regarding the treatment of immigrants. Recorded during just her second week on the job, this conversation offers insights into NETWORK's new leadership as we enter an exciting new chapter of advocacy work.

LINKS: NETWORK welcomes Laurie Carafone as new executive director https://networklobby.org/news/7725-carafone-ed/

This week on Just Politics, host Joan Neal returns to the interview chair for something that is becoming less and less common: an honest political conversation with someone who has strongly different views. Joan interviews prominent political figure and former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, who currently serves as an MSNBC political analyst.

This episode highlights the diversity within the Catholic world on political issues: Both Neal and Steele are Black Catholics with similar backgrounds who have nevertheless arrived at vastly different perspectives on government, economics, and Catholic social teaching.

Steele shares his personal journey navigating the often tumultuous landscape, where belief systems and political ideologies collide, and explains how his Catholic faith has shaped his political career, influenced his decisions, and guided him through challenges.

Despite stark differences, both engage in constructive dialogue, demonstrating that meaningful conversation across political divides remains possible. As Joan notes, “We will never move forward on our vision of establishing a more perfect union until we can move past this extreme division.”

Join us for this insightful conversation that explores the power of conviction and the role of faith in shaping political landscapes, offering practical wisdom for navigating our polarized moment.

LINKS:

https://networklobby.org/economy-for-all-agenda/

This week on Just Politics, Giovana Oaxaca, the senior government relations advocate for immigration with NETWORK, joins hosts Colin and Eilis to discuss the escalating immigration crisis facing communities nationwide.

This episode was recorded in the immediate aftermath of the budget reconciliation bill's passage, which Oaxaca calls a “deportation bill,” one that will also decimate the social safety net programs many people rely on.

The conversation tackles harsh realities, from detention camps in the Florida Everglades to terrorizing enforcement raids in Los Angeles. But Oaxaca also highlights stories of hope: organizers building solidarity in unlikely places, pastors providing sanctuary, and transformative conversations across political divides.

Inspired by Pope Leo XIV's call to be “leaven of unity in a fractured world,” Oaxaca challenges us to move beyond fear toward authentic engagement, emphasizing finding common ground through shared values of human dignity.

LINKS:

https://networklobby.org/issues/immigration/

https://networklobby.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/An-Economy-for-All-One-pager.pdf

This week on Just Politics, Rev. Dr. Cassandra Gould—political director at Faith in Action—joins us to talk about her journey from corporate America to the front lines of faith-based justice work.

Rooted in her family’s legacy of civil rights activism, Gould reflects on how her childhood in Alabama and Missouri shaped her understanding of racial injustice, poverty, and power. She shares how her experience in finance led her to see the devastating impact of deregulation and predatory lending on working-class communities and why she couldn’t stay silent.

In this conversation, she challenges faith leaders to “come off mute” and speak truth to power, moving beyond charity to working for real structural change. The hosts and Gould talk about grassroots organizing, how policy decisions affect people’s daily lives, and what it means to build spiritual practices that sustain long-term activism. The discussion concludes with a call to action for individuals disrupt the silence surrounding social injustices.

LINKS:

https://faithinaction.org/

https://www.networkadvocates.org/#!

This week on Just Politics, the hosts revisit a powerful conversation from last season that feels more urgent than ever. Kristen Whitney Daniels—a disability advocate, diabetes educator, and associate director of the U.S. Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph—joins us to talk about the moral and social consequences of stripping people of access to health care.

As budget negotiations in Washington put Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act on the chopping block, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that, by 2034, millions of people across the country risk losing the coverage that keeps them and their families secure. In this episode, Whitney Daniels shares her personal experience navigating a complicated health care system with chronic illness and reflects on why Catholics and other people of faith must demand a system rooted in dignity, justice, and the common good.

LINKS:

Report on how many people risk losing their health insurance under the budget reconciliation bill: https://ccf.georgetown.edu/2025/06/29/congressional-budget-office-confirms-senate-republican-reconciliation-bills-medicaid-cuts-are-more-draconian-than-the-house-passed-bill/

More on Kristen Whitney Daniels: https://cssjfed.org/about-us/staff-and-leadership/

NETWORK’s issue page on health care advocacy: https://www.networkadvocates.org/issues/health-care/

This episode of Just Politics sounds a little different—and that’s the point.

Rather than diving into our usual policy discussion, hosts Colin and Eilis pass the mic to a group of young men wrestling with one of the most pervasive forces shaping our political and cultural moment: toxic masculinity. These college students are all part of NETWORK’s Carroll Coston Fellowship, a leadership program named after Sister Carol Coston, one of NETWORK’s founding sisters and its first executive director.

Together, they explore what it means to be a man in 2025, especially in the wake of the 2024 election, where the “manosphere” made headlines and MAGA bravado showed up in force on college campuses. These young leaders speak candidly about gender norms they’ve inherited, what they’ve had to unlearn, and how they’re trying to show up differently not just for themselves, but for the people around them.

You’ll hear from:

• Steven, a student at Barry University in South Florida, reflecting on faith and masculinity in a culturally complex environment

• JC, a student from Atlanta studying in rural Pennsylvania, who talks about online influence and its impact on young Black men

• Ben, who grew up in Kentucky and shares his evolving understanding of privilege, power, and accountability

• Jack, a social work student and trans man offering a powerful reflection on “collectivist masculinity”

• Jonathan, a business student at Marquette learning to speak up as one of the only students of color in the room

• Aaron, an international student athlete from Canada who reflects on masculinity in immigrant households and team culture

The conversation closes with where they’re finding hope and what examples of healthy, authentic masculinity they’re carrying with them into the future.

Whether you’re a parent, teacher, organizer, or someone thinking about how culture is shaping politics, this is a conversation you won’t want to miss.

LINKS:

https://uscatholic.org/articles/202505/how-a-faulty-vision-of-christian-masculinity-harms-us-all/

https://uscatholic.org/articles/202505/toxic-masculinity-clashes-with-actual-catholic-teaching/

https://www.networkadvocates.org/vote-our-future/yall/

What does it mean to belong to a church—and a country—that doesn’t always welcome you?

In this episode, Colin Martinez Longmore sits down with Yunuen Trujillo for an open conversation about identity, faith, fear, and belonging. Trujillo is an immigration attorney, LGBTQ+ Catholic advocate, and lay minister. As an immigrant and a queer person who is both a practicing immigration lawyer and faithful Catholic, she shares her perspective on the emotional toll our current political moment takes on communities and individuals and what it takes to create spaces of healing and justice when institutions are often part of the harm.

Trujillo speaks to the fear that is often manufactured and weaponized by political leaders and the way that fear can infiltrate even faith communities, turning people against one another rather than toward solidarity. But she also shares her commitment to a hope rooted in community, resistance, and a belief that change is possible, even within institutions that feel resistant to it.

This episode explores her involvement with LGBTQ+ Catholic ministry, including her work in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and her founding of @lgbtcatholics Instagram page, a grassroots effort to build inclusive Catholic communities. She also highlights the essential role of allies, especially parents and grandparents, in shifting the church from within.

Whether you're navigating your own place within religious or political systems or simply seeking to be a better ally and community builder, this episode offers clarity, strength, and the reminder that hope is not naive—it’s necessary.

For more on supporting immigrant communities and LGBTQ+ Catholics:

An immigration attorney on the Los Angeles protests
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202506/immigration-attorney-los-angeles-protests/

Yes, pride is a sin. But it's also a virtue.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202408/yes-pride-is-a-sin-but-its-also-a-virtue/

All love enriches our church
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202403/all-love-enriches-our-church/

Solidarity with immigrants: How Catholics can stand up
https://uscatholic.org/articles/2023/solidarity-with-immigrants-how-catholics-can-stand-up/

LGBTQ+ Catholics: A Guide to Inclusive Ministry
https://www.paulistpress.com/Products/5577-4/lgbtq-catholics.aspx

@lgbtcatholics on Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/lgbtcatholics/?hl=en