Pope Mania is sweeping the U.S. Not since the Beatles invaded America has the nation gone so bonkers. From Pope Francis Bobble Head Dolls to cookies with his face in the icing (do you really want to bite the Pope’s head?), Americans just can’t get enough of the holy Pontiff.

I find it interesting to watch politicians walk that tight rope between using the Pope to further their agendas, while trying to ignore the issues in which they differ.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz released a statement on how Pope Francis leads on abortion, marriage and religious liberty.

Cruz (or someone in his office) wrote:

Pope Francis has spoken to the world, proclaiming the inherent truth and goodness of life, marriage and religious liberty.

In the first-ever papal address to Congress, Pope Francis continues to blaze a trail by going where no predecessor has been. The media will cover that extensively, but will they cover his trip to feed the homeless in DC, or to meet with students in East Harlem, or to shake hands with prison inmates in Philadelphia? That’s the true heart of the church — beyond any four walls in Congress.

I guess Cruz doesn’t watch much news. If he did, he would see that the Pope is dominating both national and local newscasts that would even make a Kardashian blush.

What Cruz doesn’t mention is the Pope’s view on areas like immigration, the death penalty and global warming and there-in lies the problem. This is not your usual Pope. He has surprised many people with his views on a variety of issues (hey, if a gay person has God in his heart, who am I to judge?) and does not fit into a neat box.

Now to be fair, this tricky balancing act isn’t unique to Cruz. The silence is deafening from Democrats who will tout his holiness’s position on immigration, but fall quiet when he reminds them about the church’s opposition to abortion and gay marriage.

So can the Pope be right on some issues and wrong on others? And, how would we know?

The war on religion continues. By now, I’m sure you are familiar with the story surrounding Kim Davis, the clerk in Kentucky who was jailed for failing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Her plight has garnered international attention and prompted Republican presidential hopefuls Mike Huckabee and Ted Cruz to meet with her, pledging their support.

What you may not be aware of is Davis is not alone in having to decide between her duties and her faith. Meet Charee Stanley, a recently converted member of the Muslim faith and flight attendant for Express Jet. She has been suspended for refusing to serve alcohol which goes against her Islamic faith. Stanley has filed a discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission claiming the airline refused to make a reasonable accommodation.

What is interesting is that both women are basically making the same claim that religion trumps law. It was not too long ago when a boxer named Muhammad Ali refused to be inducted into the armed forces during the Vietnam War. The U.S. Supreme Court eventually overturned his conviction. That defiance did not make him very popular during that time, but he some how overcame it to become “The Greatest” (even if it was self proclaimed).

So where does all of this leave us? The argument of religious freedom versus government will no doubt continue to be a moving target that will never be totally resolved. I just wonder if Huckabee and Cruz will fight as hard for Stanley’s religious freedom as they have for Davis.