President Joe Biden, the first Catholic Commander in Chief in some six decades who proclaims himself to be a "devout" follower of the church's teachings, won't be attending the funeral of Pope Benedict XVI following his passing last week.
If it seems strange that such a close follower of the Catholic Church would not attend the final goodbye to the previous Holy Father — not to mention passing on a chance to get out of D.C. for a few days as he seemingly does whenever possible — it's because it wasn't Biden's choice. At least not completely.
When asked the obvious question of whether "devout Catholic" Biden would attend the funeral for the former leader of his church, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre spilled the beans.
In Tuesday's briefing, Jean-Pierre said that — instead of the president — the United States will be represented at Pope Benedict XVI's funeral by America's Ambassador to the Holy See, Joe Donnelly. Jean-Pierre explained that the decision for Biden to skip out on the farewell was made "in line with the wishes of the late Pope and the Vatican" because "their wishes" were for Biden not to attend.Townhall Link
