What you are seeing is a cultural Catholic and a cultural Democrat, and with some people, it goes back to their ancestors’ immigrant experience with the Know-nothings in Boston. “No Irish need apply” signs, and “Romanism and Rebellion”. All these rose up with an anit-Catholic immigrant attitude which was part of the northeastern GOP establishment in the past half of the the 19th century.
For some of these low information voters (and that is what they are), being a Catholic and being a Democrat is the same thing. It is because they have been frankly lazy in not becoming aware of the issues of the day and how each party is endorsing the various issues. They just drift along and when the election comes, & they ignorantly go and vote the same way their grandparents voted 60 years ago.
So it definitely is an ignorance factor here.
I can see that.
What’s totally idiotic, is that she honestly believes they can change the Democratic party from within. And I told her “good luck with that, it’s worked out well for you so far.”