President Joe Biden will not be attending Pope Benedict XVI’s funeral on Thursday at the request of the late Pope himself. Instead, the U.S. ambassador to the Vatican, Joe Donnelly, will represent America at the pontiff’s burial.
“The U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, Joe Donnelly, will represent the United States at the funeral of the Pope, in line with the wishes of the late Pope and the Vatican,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre confirmed. “This is what — this is what their requests were. This is what their wishes were.”
From The Daily Wire:
The German-born Benedict died on December 31 at age 95. He had stepped down as pope in 2013, when he was succeeded by Pope Francis, but retained the title of pope emeritus.
The Italian and German delegations were the only nations whose delegations were officially invited, according to Euro News. Vatican spokesman Matteo Burni stated, “If other heads of state or government come, they will do so in a personal capacity.”
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier will attend Pope Benedict’s funeral, as will Queen Sofia of Spain and King Philippe of Belgium. President of Poland Andrzej Duda and President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa will also attend.
More over at The Daily Wire:
Biden Won’t Represent U.S. At Benedict’s Funeral, Per ‘Wishes Of The Late Pope’ https://t.co/ZWso6PVpK2
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) January 4, 2023