“Recorded videos and audio can always be cleaned up with the blessing of Francis”
On the night of October 29, the plane of the President of the United States Joe Biden landed at Rome airport, who arrived in Europe to participate in the G20 summit. The first stop of the American leader in the framework of the European tour was the Vatican, where the head of the White House will meet first with Pope Francis, then Biden plans to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi.
Photo: AP
The US President’s plane landed in Rome at 02.24 local time (03.24 Moscow time). The American leader, along with First Lady Jill Biden, went down to the Italian and American officials who met them, and then got into the motorcade.
The first stop in the framework of the European tour of the head of the White House was the Vatican, where he was expected to have an audience with Pope Francis. Two of the world’s most famous Catholics (recall that Joe Biden is the second Catholic president in the history of the United States) planned to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and poverty.
This is Biden’s first visit to the Vatican since his election as the head of the American state, but at the same time his fourth meeting with Pope Francis.
The US President is very proud of his Catholic faith and often uses it as a moral guideline for building many social and economic strategies. However, Biden’s support for abortion rights and same-sex marriage has led to his disagreements with many American bishops. Some of them even suggested banning the head of state from receiving communion.
White House press Secretary Jen Psaki, anticipating the president’s visit to Rome, said that she expects a “warm and constructive dialogue” between Biden and the pontiff. “The President and Pope Francis agree that their opinions coincide on a number of issues – poverty, the fight against the climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic,” Psaki said at a briefing for journalists. “These are all extremely important issues that will become the central part of the meeting.”
It is noteworthy that on October 28, the Vatican canceled the planned live broadcast of Biden’s meeting with the pontiff – this caused discontent on the part of journalists accredited to the White House and the Holy See.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni explained that these changes reflect the “normal procedure” established for all heads of state or government visiting the Pope during the coronavirus pandemic
The Vatican banned the presence of any journalists unrelated to the church at the beginning and end of the meeting. It is assumed that the edited footage will later be provided exclusively to accredited media. Meanwhile, many Americans on the Network expressed the opinion that the live broadcast was canceled due to Biden’s inability to adequately behave during speeches.
«Only two possible reasons: 1—«not my president& raquo; (Biden) asked to edit his speech to eliminate his mistakes, 2— he goes to confession, which is a sign of a «righteous Catholic », — writes PDID user under the corresponding publication on the website of the Fox News channel. However, no self-respecting priest can absolve Joe Biden of his sins, since he does not repent of them. Obviously, we will stick to version #1.
“The Vatican staff is a smart cohort,” notes user charliesix295. Why take the risk if Joe Biden can make a blunder or stumble on the air? Recorded videos and audio can always be cleaned up with the blessing of Francis.
“I am a traditional Catholic,” gadsden_one comments. And the fact that the pope is meeting with pro-abortion politicians like Biden is a real scandal.
After talks with the pontiff, Biden is expected to meet separately with Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, who are hosting the G20 summit. On Friday evening, the American leader is scheduled to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron, at which the heads of state will discuss a wide range of issues, from the fight against terrorism in the Middle East to the rivalry of great powers and issues of economy, trade, technology. This was announced by the assistant to the President of the United States for National Security Jake Sullivan.
According to him, Biden will assume a leading role at the G20 summit, where neither Chinese President Xi Jinping nor Russian President Vladimir Putin will be personally present. “The United States and Europe will be represented there, and they will demonstrate an energetic and cohesive approach, setting the agenda,” Sullivan added.
However, for Biden, who needs to restore confidence in the United States after the chaotic withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and discord with France after the nuclear submarine deal with Australia, this will be a really difficult task.
After the G20 summit in Rome, the head of the White House will go to the two-day UN Climate Conference (COP26) in the Scottish city of Glasgow, which will begin on November 1.