White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre revealed that Pope Benedict and the Vatican specifically requested that Joe Biden not attend his funeral. The U.S. will send Joe Donnelly, ambassador of the Holy See, “in line with the wishes of the late Pope and the Vatican,” stated Jean-Pierre. “This is what their requests were. This is what their wishes were,” she clarified. The request can be seen as direct shot to Biden’s relationship with the Catholic Church as he continues to speak against its teachings on abortion. Other world leaders are lining up to make sure they are present for the funeral as seven heads of state, four prime ministers, and two delegations of royal representatives were attending as private citizens.
Watch Jean-Pierre’s statement below:
JEAN-PIERRE was asked whether or not President Biden would be attending the Pope's funeral
JEAN-PIERRE: "The U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See…will represent the U.S. at the funeral…in line with the wishes of the late Pope and the Vatican…This is what their wishes were." pic.twitter.com/rKnjhIo5mg
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) January 3, 2023
Biden was confronted with the Vatican’s snub by a reporter on the White House lawn and his response was extremely awkward. “You’re not attending his funeral tomorrow though, why?” EWTN’s Owen Jensen asked the president. Biden responded, “you know why,” and later stated, “The reason I’m not attending the funeral tomorrow is it would take an entourage of a thousand people to show up,” Biden said. “We would move everything in the wrong direction.”
The statement from the president makes absolutely no sense and doesn’t answer for why he isn’t attending as a private citizen like so many other world leaders.
Watch Biden’s comments below:
“You're not attending [Pope Benedict’s] funeral tomorrow… Why?"
BIDEN: "Well, why do you think?
“You tell me!”
BIDEN: "You know why." pic.twitter.com/Wo521Msozh
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 4, 2023
