Pope John Paul II
papacy 1978–2005

John Paul II's 'consistent ethic of life' included strong opposition to abortion and traditional marriage AND strong opposition to the death penalty, the Iraq War, anti-immigrant nativism, and exploitation of labor (his encyclical Laborem Exercens grounded modern Catholic labor theology). Cornyn lines up firmly on abortion (NRLC 100% lifetime), traditional family values, religious liberty, and the strong Catholic-influenced framework against communist authoritarianism (his Russia-China hawkishness is a direct line). He loses points on the death penalty (Cornyn-era Texas led the nation in executions and he has defended that record), on labor protections, and on his block-grant Medicaid framework. Talarico lines up on immigration, anti-death-penalty, labor protections, healthcare as right, and care for the poor. He loses on abortion, traditional marriage, and IVF — JPII's red-line issues. This is the closest religious-figure grade in the table, because JPII's distinctive both/and theology splits both candidates more evenly than any of the other religious graders.