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Another inside-the-Vatican account of the history of the Sanders "invitation"
Note that this was published yesterday, before Sanders arrived in Rome, and before The Letter that confirmed that Pope Francis would not be meeting with him.
https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/blog/what-does-sanders-invitation-say-about-vatican-and-sanders
It’s clear by now that the invitation, word of which emerged April 8, didn’t come from Pope Francis, or from the Secretariat of State, or from anyone who usually invites political leaders or accepts requests for audiences. It came instead from Bishop Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo (originally from Argentina), chancellor of PASS. He bypassed Margaret Archer, its president, who was not shy in making public her surprise, saying it was a “monumental discourtesy” for Sanders to ask for an invitation without going through her office. Bishop Sorondo responded that Archer was aware of the invitation, in effect accusing her of lying. . .
What is not unimaginable is that the Vatican did its best to dissuade Sanders from coming by scheduling him to speak at 4 p.m. Rome time (10 a.m. Eastern) on Friday, which would be just hours after the end of his Thursday night debate in Brooklyn. If it was meant as a signal—“please don’t come”—it either wasn’t received by the Sanders team, or wasn’t interpreted as such. Next, the Vatican tried to ignore Sanders and downplayed the pending visit; over the course of several press conferences, Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See Press Office, never once mentioned Sanders. Only today (April 14) did he do so, officially announcing that Francis would not be meeting with the candidate.
. . .
Francis and politics. This “invitation” broke not only an unwritten rule of wise diplomacy—do not interfere with an electoral campaign and do not risk disappointing or antagonizing the eventual winner—but also a pattern typical of Francis’s relationship with politics and politicians, from whom he tends to keep a healthy distance, despite his engagement in political and social issues. He interacts with them as presidents, chancellors, ministers, and so on (Vice President Joseph Biden will be at the Vatican on April 29 for a conference on cancer, but he is a sitting official, not a candidate in the middle of a campaign). Francis does not like to push them, and he does not like at all to be pushed.
The social justice agenda of Francis and conflicts of interest. One of the least explored elements of this flap is the role of those who likely pushed for the invitation with Bishop Sorondo. There are indications that Jeffrey Sachs, a Sanders consultant, and Michael Shank, a communications consultant who has worked with Sachs, were involved. Both also have done work for the Vatican. The Sanders campaign has even, remarkably, referred Politico to Shank; Politico quotes him as having said he “occasionally” handles press relations for the Vatican. Shank himself has tried to characterize the invitation as an official one: “The PASS is part of the Vatican. So the senator is right when he says the Vatican invited him.”
What is not unimaginable is that the Vatican did its best to dissuade Sanders from coming by scheduling him to speak at 4 p.m. Rome time (10 a.m. Eastern) on Friday, which would be just hours after the end of his Thursday night debate in Brooklyn. If it was meant as a signal—“please don’t come”—it either wasn’t received by the Sanders team, or wasn’t interpreted as such. Next, the Vatican tried to ignore Sanders and downplayed the pending visit; over the course of several press conferences, Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See Press Office, never once mentioned Sanders. Only today (April 14) did he do so, officially announcing that Francis would not be meeting with the candidate.
. . .
Francis and politics. This “invitation” broke not only an unwritten rule of wise diplomacy—do not interfere with an electoral campaign and do not risk disappointing or antagonizing the eventual winner—but also a pattern typical of Francis’s relationship with politics and politicians, from whom he tends to keep a healthy distance, despite his engagement in political and social issues. He interacts with them as presidents, chancellors, ministers, and so on (Vice President Joseph Biden will be at the Vatican on April 29 for a conference on cancer, but he is a sitting official, not a candidate in the middle of a campaign). Francis does not like to push them, and he does not like at all to be pushed.
The social justice agenda of Francis and conflicts of interest. One of the least explored elements of this flap is the role of those who likely pushed for the invitation with Bishop Sorondo. There are indications that Jeffrey Sachs, a Sanders consultant, and Michael Shank, a communications consultant who has worked with Sachs, were involved. Both also have done work for the Vatican. The Sanders campaign has even, remarkably, referred Politico to Shank; Politico quotes him as having said he “occasionally” handles press relations for the Vatican. Shank himself has tried to characterize the invitation as an official one: “The PASS is part of the Vatican. So the senator is right when he says the Vatican invited him.”
This paragraph is especially spot-on:
Sanders and global politics. How Sanders has handled the matter of the “invitation” casts doubt on his judgment as a potential head of state (while revealing cynicism of those behind the scenes who pushed for it). A presidential candidate should exhibit greater knowledge about how the Vatican views its role in the world, not only as the center of the Catholic Church but also as a state involved in global diplomacy (and on which many other nations, including the United States, quietly rely for help in delicate situations around the world). Though Sanders among all candidates may seem closest to Francis on social justice issues, he was unwise to say this of the invitation: “I would be kicking myself forever if I did not seize the opportunity.” A scientist, a tourist, a celebrity, or an ordinary citizen can say this, not a candidate for president.
--
Then,exposing the conflicts of interest of Sachs and Shank even more, here is the first online comment on the above article (April 14, 3:32 pm) by religion reporter Peter Steinfels (he used to write a religion column, "On Belief", for the New York Times), reporting an account by another Vatican reporter, Robert Moynihan:
Here is an emailed newsletter that I just opened from Robert Moynihan, publisher and editor of Inside the Vatican magazine . Besides reporting that Shank had been in Rome to speak at the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences on March 18 and quoting another source on Shank's being "quite transparent about his antipathy toward Hillary Clinton and his lack of respect for Obama’s presidency," Moynihan recounts his own effort to clear this matter up:
"I phoned over to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, which has its offices in the Vatican Gardens. . . and asked for Archbishop Sanchez Sorondo, in order to try to see to what extent any of this corresponded to the facts."The secretary who answered, a woman, said that Sanchez Sorondo was not immediately available and that she would find someone else for me to speak to.
"A man came to the phone. He spoke in English. He told me his name was... Michael Shank. "'Thank you for taking my call,' I said. 'I've just been reading about you. I'm calling about the Bernie Sanders visit. I'm wondering how it all came about, and whether you think there is a chance Bernie may actually meet the Pope. And if I might have a chance tomorrow to meet with Bernie Sanders and have a brief interview with him. Do you know if that could be arranged?' "'I'm not handling any of those details,' Shank said. 'That's a matter for the press office.'
"He said he didn't have much time. We exchanged emails. He said he had to go to attend another meeting."That was the extent of our conversation."
What fun. Except that it isn't funny.
"I phoned over to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, which has its offices in the Vatican Gardens. . . and asked for Archbishop Sanchez Sorondo, in order to try to see to what extent any of this corresponded to the facts."The secretary who answered, a woman, said that Sanchez Sorondo was not immediately available and that she would find someone else for me to speak to.
"A man came to the phone. He spoke in English. He told me his name was... Michael Shank. "'Thank you for taking my call,' I said. 'I've just been reading about you. I'm calling about the Bernie Sanders visit. I'm wondering how it all came about, and whether you think there is a chance Bernie may actually meet the Pope. And if I might have a chance tomorrow to meet with Bernie Sanders and have a brief interview with him. Do you know if that could be arranged?' "'I'm not handling any of those details,' Shank said. 'That's a matter for the press office.'
"He said he didn't have much time. We exchanged emails. He said he had to go to attend another meeting."That was the extent of our conversation."
What fun. Except that it isn't funny.
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