"Catholic debate" draws faithful viewers

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Vice Presidential candidates Paul Ryan and Joe Biden face off tonight in what some media are calling the "Catholic debate." Both men are members of the Catholic Church. But University of New Hampshire sociologist Michele Dillon says the two men define their faith very differently.

"The side that Joe Biden represents is that we have to pay attention to the common good of the individual, and the community is important, in terms of looking out for the poor," Dillon said. "And when Paul Ryan and the Republicans published their budget back in April, it was widely condemned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. And the other side of it, of course, are the issues of abortion and same-sex marriage."

Pew Research Center data released yesterday say about 25 percent of Americans identify as Catholics. But they've never been a monolithic voting bloc.

"There's no Catholic vote itself; there's no bloc of Catholic voters. Liberal Catholics are more likely to be pro-choice and anti-death penalty and pro-minimum wage and welfare for the poor, whereas Catholics who identify as Republicans are more likely to disagree with those items and, at the same time, to oppose abortion," Dillon said.

The vice presidential debate airs tonight at 6:00.