It is amazing how the forces of reaction tried to control things and the reformers were able to out-flank them, including in Amiercain government with Msgr. Ryan helping draft Social Security. After the war, America had a Catholic moment where the Church enjoyed a great deal of cultural power, usually on the reactionary-side. It could not withstand the radicalism of the late fifties and after. While Cardinals may have led reactionaries in the past, there now seems to be a more even split. This year’s elections will be a classic example of this.