The Pope has arrived
by Lori Barrett | April 16, 2008 at 5:59 am
Posted in baltimore news
President Bush greeted Pope Benedict on his arrival at Andrews AFB yesterday afternoon — the first time Bush has ever met a visiting dignitary at the airport. The President is also hosting a dinner at the White House in the Pope’s honor, although one guest will be notably absent: the Pope himself.
Bush scheduled the dinner at the same time as one of Pope Benedict’s prior commitments. The attendees will celebrate Benedict’s 81st birthday without him, with a menu of Bavarian food in his honor.
Bush and Benedict will meet in the Oval Office today. They are on the same side of the fence when it comes to issues like abortion, stem cell research, and gay marriage. So the focus will likely be on where they differ most — the war in Iraq. The Pope has stated “nothing positive comes from Iraq.” Bush believes Benedict is only concerned about the Christian minority in Iraq, not the country or war as a whole. It should be an interesting conversation.
Anyone who works in DC should just take the rest of the week off. Expect road closures today for the Popemobile’s procession and a crowded Metro tomorrow when the Pope offers Mass to 47,000 people at Nationals Park.
So, is anyone heading to the District for this event? If you are, keep an eye out for the goodies and post some photos when you get back.
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April 16th, 2008 at 2:49 pm | Please log in to reply. | Log in to rate this comment | report this comment
Maybe Bush doesn't think anyone, even the Pope, should be troubled by the amount of people that are killed in Iraq.