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Home Page > Blogs > News blogs > Periscope > Catholics are now the new Protestants in American presidential politics -- Paul Ryan and Joe Biden symbolize a new era for Catholic politicians

Periscope by Niall O'Dowd

Catholics are now the new Protestants in American presidential politics -- Paul Ryan and Joe Biden symbolize a new era for Catholic politicians

Posted on Wednesday, August 15, 2012 at 08:16 AM

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Paul Ryan & Joe Biden (Credit: Policymic)

Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan represent the first time ever an American presidential ticket that does not feature a Protestant of some denomination.

Get used to it.

There are instead, two Catholics on the tickets, Joe Biden and Paul Ryan -- get used to that too.

Despite the fact that Biden is only the second Catholic to be part of an elected presidential team -- John F Kennedy was the other -- the future looks bright for Catholic presidents.

Consider in 2016 if Romney fails but Ryan acquits himself well, he will be the obvious frontrunner.

On the other side there will be several Catholics vying, Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York, Governor Martin O’Malley of Maryland are among the frontrunners, perhaps even Biden himself.

It looks like Catholic is the new Protestant.

Look at the US Supreme Court for a clear indication of how Catholics are replacing the once ever-present Protestants in the top echelons.

Once a Catholic on the Supreme Court was an anomaly, now there are six. Count’em - Kennedy, Scalia, Roberts, Thomas, Sotomayor, Alito.

Certainly the era of anti-Catholicism seems truly dead and buried but it was very real.

In 1960 Dr Norman Vincent Peale, the Billy Graham of his day, when explained the consequences for America if John F.Kennedy was elected, stated:

"Our American culture is at stake," said Peale.

"I don't say it won't survive, but it won't be what it was."

Political strategy is at the heart of the resurgence too. Most presidential elections are settled in the swing states, with Ohio and Pennsylvania chief among them.

Working class Catholics provide the margin of victory in those states and they have gone back and forth between the two parties since Ronald Reagan claimed them as his Reagan Democrats.

Obama handily wins the Catholic vote when it includes Hispanics, but without Hispanics they are the great swing vote.

Protestants on the other hand are all over the shop from Tea Party born-agains to liberal North Easterners.

If you want to win a focused, vital slice of the American electorate, then a Catholic on your ticket is good news as Biden proved in 2008.

Romney is hoping to repeat that magic this time around. It will be interesting to see if he succeeds.

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62 comments

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BrianO | Aug 20, 2012, 10:56 PM EDT

He had a fine tone, I have to confess only knowing two of his songs but was pleased to see he co-wrote kokomo for the Beach boys, he must have known how to have some fun.

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seanomelb | Aug 20, 2012, 07:20 PM EDT

Briano RIP Scott McKenzie who died today,I hope they placed a flower in his hair,end of an era a sad day for us old liberal hippies.

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BrianO | Aug 20, 2012, 03:52 PM EDT

Janis Joplin a classic, being a hell raiser a drinker and a heroin user not a good combination. That era of hard driving rockers had a lot of casualties, But even a drug dependent hell raiser could accumulate wealth which she willed to her parents and siblings, only described online as considerable.

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seanomelb | Aug 19, 2012, 07:26 PM EDT

Gearoid!! Wise counseling from whom??

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eiriamach | Aug 19, 2012, 04:04 PM EDT

Thanks, Briano and Seano, for reminding me of that great Janis Joplin classic, "Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz? / My friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends. / Worked hard all my lifetime, no help from my friends, / So Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz?" Her caustic satire is even more on target now that the cult of prosperity threatens to take over the federal government itself.

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BrianO | Aug 19, 2012, 02:37 PM EDT

seano, I'll take a 2012 ford mustang thank you, though the model T was mass produced and marketed to the working man, a real success story as is modern day Ford.

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Gearoid4 | Aug 19, 2012, 12:23 PM EDT

@Eiriamach, The vast majority of abortions are not done for emergency medical reasons, and this is the crux to the whole point that I'm making. One can argue over the individual reason why women take this drastic decision. But wise counselling and alternative advice to the default pro-abortion position, should be provided upfront in respect of abortion centres and medical clinics.

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seanomelb | Aug 19, 2012, 05:15 AM EDT

eiriamach ! To quote Augustine in old age "lately have I loved thee Lord" just hedging my bets. As the say in AUS haveagoodweegend

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seanomelb | Aug 19, 2012, 05:11 AM EDT

What would you like Briano. You need a car to suit your right wing politics how about a model T FORD LOL Brian.

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BrianO | Aug 18, 2012, 07:22 PM EDT

Eiria and seano, could you ask God to send me a new car, since you have a direct line.

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eiriamach | Aug 18, 2012, 06:40 PM EDT

seanomelb, God is furious with GOP ideologues like Paul Ryan, but not with you because God knows your heart is in the right place and you don't work to oppress any part of humanity. (Don't ask how I know this; just trust.)

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seanomelb | Aug 18, 2012, 06:09 PM EDT

I must admit that God is furious with me because I deny his existence. Nice piece below eiriamach.

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eiriamach | Aug 18, 2012, 01:39 PM EDT

Well, Sean, God has no physical, material body. Personhood in a completely spiritual being is a whole different can of beans and is rightly termed a mystery. I think that we know little more than that God condescends to become a "person" for us so that we persons can relate to God. We nature-bound beings, however, have limits, and one of them, I believe, is that one physical body hosts not more than one soul or spirit. Siamese twins have two bodies, more or less complete, though they are joined, and become separate persons. Only a pregnant women's body, according to Ryan and the other sponsors of the personhood legislation, hosts two persons. I find it interesting that psychiatrists categorize two persons in one body as a serious mental illness, schizophrenia. Anselm, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, William of Ockham, and Duns Scotus are having a hearty laugh together over the "two persons" idea, when they're not weeping over the degeneration of theology into gross, oppressive po;litical silliness at the hands of today's official Catholic "theologians." ~~~~~ Gearoid4, it's true of any pregnancy, by medical definition, that "the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk greater than if the pregnancy were terminated." This tautology tells you precisely NOTHING about the moral considerations that bear on a decision to terminate a pregnancy. I conclude again that you know NOTHING about why some women choose to terminate early pregnancies and therefore you are in NO POSITION to make any moral judgment about them.

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seanomelb | Aug 17, 2012, 11:42 PM EDT

Eiriamach how about three divine persons in the one body. The whole concept is bordering on the theatre of the absurd.Diderot would have had fun with the concept of two bodies inhabiting one body.

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Gearoid4 | Aug 16, 2012, 07:03 PM EDT

@Eiriamach, To demonstrate my point, here are some enlightening statistics from 2010 regarding the numbers in the UK, who have chosen to abort for essentially non-medical reasons and really for convenience. In 2010, the vast majority (97.7% or 185,291) of abortions were undertaken under Category C(the pregnancy has not exceeded its twenty-fourth week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated). One can interpret this in a very liberal way and it does leave open the scenario of abortion being performed for non-emergency situations, where counselling would be a far more healthy and moral option. I am not judging any individual person but rather commenting on a general trend that cannot really be disputed, as it has replicated itself so many times in western societies. As for your comments on Ryan's bill concerning two persons occupying a pregnant woman's body. It is an indisputable biological fact that two humans lives are intertwined here, i.e the pregnant woman and the baby growing inside her.

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