No doubt Obama had no particular brief for the Church, and no doubt he overrates his own ability to do something to change it. He may well imagine that imposing a pro-abortion so-called Catholic as the emissary of "the most powerful man on Earth" could give the Vatican something to think about. And Kmiec served as a very useful figleaf and needed to be rewarded. My point is: is the time of Obama's victory the right time to make things harder for ourselves?