Recap: Catholics Joe Biden, Paul Ryan Talk Abortion at VP Debate 2012

Vice-president Joe Biden and GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan met this evening for the first time in a debate that covered both foreign and domestic topics. The debate was held at Centre College in Danville, KY and was moderated by ABC News' Senior Foreign Affairs Correspondent Martha Raddatz.

Biden and Ryan went back and forth on the war in Afghanistan, abortion and several other attacks.

Abortion has been a hot topic this week. GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney appears to be flip-flopping on the issue.

On Tuesday, Romney spoke with The Des Moines Register's editorial board and said there's no legislation with regards to abortion that he is familiar with that would become part of his agenda.

Romney told the paper that he would reinstate the Mexico City policy, which is that foreign aid dollars from the United States would not be used to carry out abortion in other countries.

Raddatz asked the candidates to explain the role their religion has played in their own personal views on abortion.

"I believe that life begins at conception," Ryan said. "The policy of a Romney administration will be to oppose abortions with the exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother.

Ryan bashed President Obama's administration saying that "through Obamacare, the government is infringing upon our first freedom, the freedom of religion, by infringing on Catholic charities, Catholic churches, Catholic hospitals."

"Our church should not have to sue our federal government to maintain their religious liberties," Ryan said. "And with respect to abortion, the Democratic Party used to say they wanted it to be safe, legal and rare. Now they support it without restriction and with taxpayer funding. Taxpayer funding in Obamacare, taxpayer funding with foreign aid. The vice president himself went to China and said that he sympathized and wouldn't second guess their one child policy of forced abortions and sterilizations. That to me is pretty extreme."

Biden agreed with Ryan that life begins at conception in the church's judgment and said that he accepts it in his personal life.

However, he said he refuses to "impose" it on other religions.

"But I refuse to impose it on equally devout Christians and Muslims and Jews, and I just refuse to impose that on others, unlike my friend here, the -- the congressman. I -- I do not believe that we have a right to tell other people that -- women they can't control their body," Biden said. "It's a decision between them and their doctor. In my view and the Supreme Court, I'm not going to interfere with that."