[Alex Murphy]

On another thread, someone asked me how the Catholic vote in 2006 might have varied between white Catholics and Hispanic Catholics. While the aboe article doesn't deal with the 2006 vote itself, such a breakdown was studied in the 2004 elections.

I have reformatted the article for better reading (the original didn't even have paragraph breaks!).

[lastchance]

There is a big difference between cultural Catholic and cafeteria Catholics and those who are loyal to the teachings of the Church.

I think a lot of these polls focus on the former and not the latter. I am sure that Catholics who understand the importance of pro life issues did not compromise their beliefs on election day.

For a Catholic to vote for a pro abortion candidate is inexcusable. There may be cases where one candidate favors unrestricted access to abortion and another favors restrictions but opposes and outright ban. I believe in that situation it is ok to vote for the candidate who is likely to do the least harm.

But protection of life must be foremost in our minds when we vote for those who will set legislative priority and who will be asked to consent to Supreme Court appointments.