Bush To Roll Out Red Carpet For Pope

Nearly 12,000 People Expected At White House Ceremony In Honor Of Benedict XVI's Arrival

(CBS/AP)  The leader of the world's Roman Catholics has been to the White House only once in history. That changes this week, and President George W. Bush is pulling out all the stops: driving out to a suburban military base to meet Pope Benedict XVI's plane, bringing a giant audience to the South Lawn and hosting a fancy East Room dinner.

These are all firsts.

Mr. Bush has never before given a visiting leader the honor of picking him up at the airport. In fact, no president has done so at Andrews Air Force Base, the typical landing spot for modern leaders.

A crowd of up to 12,000 is due at the White House on Wednesday morning for the pope's official, pomp-filled arrival ceremony. It will feature the U.S. and Holy See anthems, a 21-gun salute, and the U.S. Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps. Both men will make remarks before their Oval Office meeting and a send-off for his popemobile down Pennsylvania Avenue.

The White House crowd will be the largest of Mr. Bush's presidency. It even beats the audience last spring for Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, which numbered about 7,000.

The evening festivities will mark the first time the Bushes have put on a high-profile meal in honor of someone who is not even a guest. Wednesday is the pontiff's 81st birthday, and the menu celebrates his German heritage with Bavarian-style food.

But Benedict's prayer service that evening with U.S. bishops at a famed Washington basilica precludes him from coming to the dinner, according to the White House. Catholic leaders will be there instead.

The president explained the special treatment - particularly the airport greeting.

"One, he speaks for millions. Two, he doesn't come as a politician; he comes as a man of faith," Mr. Bush told the EWTN Global Catholic Network in an interview aired Friday. He added that he wanted to honor Benedict's conviction that "there's right and wrong in life, that moral relativism has a danger of undermining the capacity to have more hopeful and free societies."

One senior Vatican official told CBS News correspondent Allen Pizzey that the pope's six-day visit to Washington and New York will be like a pilgrimage to the soul of the American people.

The Bush-Benedict get-together will be the 25th meeting between a pope and a sitting U.S. president.

The first did not come until shortly after the end of World War I, when Woodrow Wilson was received at the Vatican by Pope Benedict XV in 1919. The next was not for 40 more years, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower saw Pope John XXIII in Rome. President Jimmy Carter hosted the first White House visit by a pope, when John Paul II came on Oct. 6, 1979.

Since then, such audiences have become a must-do. Every president has met with the pope at least once, often more. This week makes Mr. Bush the record-holder, with a total of five meetings with two popes.

There are more than 64 million reasons for this. Catholics number nearly one-quarter of the U.S. population, making them a desirable constituency for politicians to court. Worldwide, there are now an estimated 1 billion Roman Catholics.

"The pope represents not just the Catholic church but the possibility of moral argument in world affairs and it is very important for American presidents to rub up against that from time to time," said George Weigel, a Catholic theologian and biographer of Pope John Paul II.

The Vatican - seat of a government as well as a religious headquarters - has an interest, too.

"It wants to be a player in world affairs, and everyone understands that to do that you have to be in conversation with the United States," said John Allen, the Vatican correspondent for the independent National Catholic Reporter.

On social issues such as abortion, gay marriage and stem cell research, Mr. Bush and Benedict have plenty of common ground.

But they disagree over the war in Iraq, just as Mr. Bush did with Benedict's predecessor, John Paul.

When Benedict was a cardinal before the 2003 invasion, the now-pontiff categorically dismissed the idea that a preventive strike against Iraq could be justified under Catholic doctrine. In his Easter message last year, Benedict said "nothing positive comes from Iraq."

Benedict told Mr. Bush at their first meeting last summer at the Vatican that he was concerned about "the worrisome situation in Iraq." Mr. Bush characterized the pontiff's concerns as mostly limited to the treatment of the Christian minority in Muslim-majority Iraq. The statement out of the Vatican suggested a broader discussion.

Weigel predicted talks this time would be focused almost entirely there.

Prominent Christians have been slain in Iraq in recent weeks and tens of thousands of Iraqi Christians are believed to have fled the country because of attacks and threats. "The Vatican is a very adult place," he said. "The arguments of five years ago are over."

The current pope's approach may be softer than that of John Paul, who turned from Mr. Bush's presentation to him of the Medal of Freedom in 2004 to read a statement about his "grave concern" over events in Iraq. But Benedict is no less committed to the church's stand on issues such as abortion, stem cell research and the death penalty, as well as war.

In fact, the death penalty is another area of long-held disagreement, with Mr. Bush a strong supporter. Benedict also speaks forcefully against punitive immigration laws and the U.S. trade embargo against Cuba, and for environmental protection and social welfare - all in ways that often run counter to Bush administration policies.

But differences between popes and presidents are nothing new.

John Paul and former President Bill Clinton clashed - with strikingly sharp Vatican statements - on abortion.

Also, the church's opposition to almost any war but self-defensive ones has been a persistent theme in U.S. relations.

Pope Paul VI wanted to help mediate an end to the Vietnam War. John Paul also urged President Ronald Reagan against the arms race and spoke out vigorously against the Persian Gulf war under the current president's father. All these urgings, like the current anti-Iraq argument, were to no avail.

"Modern popes have seen themselves as voices of conscience and peacemakers," Allen said. "U.S. administrations haven't always been excited for them to play that role."

Weighty discussions aside, the talks with Mr. Bush are not likely to be the most-remembered or most influential part of the pontiff's six-day, two-city U.S. tour, Weigel said. That is expected to come when Benedict addresses the United Nations on Friday.

"I think it's nice they're going to meet. They have a lot of things to talk about," he said. "But the notion that the world operates by the big guys getting together and cutting a deal is wrong."

[shawnhussey]

I wanted to expand on my previous remarks concerning President Bush.There has never been a President with a better record of supporting the right to life.He has strongly opposed abortion and embryonic stem-cell research.I think he has been one of our best Presidents.President Bush has been a consistent defender of the culture of life.

[shawnhussey]

I believe that future Americans will judge President Bush to have been one of our nation''s outstanding leaders.He led our country through one of the worst attacks in its history.Because of strong actions taken by President Bush, there has not been a major terrorist attack against the U.S. since September 11, 2001.The President''s leadership in the war against terrorism has led to the emancipation of Iraq and Afghanistan from evil regimes.President Bush has also been a staunch defender of the right to life.He has appointed pro-life judges and Supreme Court justices.He has opposed abortiand embryonic stem-cell research.The President may not be popular at this time.President Truman was not popular when he left office, but he is now considered one of our great Presidents.I believe this will be the case with President Bush.

[shawnhussey]

I think President Bush and Pope Benedict are two of the great moral leaders in the world today.They have the courage to say that our liberty and justice are given to us by the Almighty.They understand that God has created a natural law for mankind.The Pope and the President are not afraid to proclaim a culture of life.I have great respect for their devotion to the pro-life cause.Abortion and embryonic stem-cell research are wrong.I commend President Bush and Pope Benedict for opposing them.

[jdubs63]

MOST OF YOU ARE SO DISRESPECTFUL...AMEN

[mjr123451]

IN REPONSE TO:
"Our money should not go to events like this... LOL. What a bunch of classless Americans thinking that. Perhaps we should not have a White House or Defense Department. But all these Dummycrats will surely want their food stamps and welfare checks. Bunch of LOW RENT Whiners. LOL "

You are pretty ignorant. Just re-read what you wrote and think about how stupid what you wrote is. Just take a few moments.....
ps I''m not a low rent whiner, I have a Ph.D. and a MORTGAGE, not rent, thank you.

[middleman8]

The poem " The church walking with the world " by Matilda C. Edwards describes this meeting perfectly.

[leftyintexas]

The Catholic Church is partly responsible for putting DOOFUS in the White House in the last Presidential election. The priests and higher ''ups'' in the Church actively attacked Kerry and urged it''s members to voted against him because he is ''pro choice'' on the abortion issue. For that, we end up with DOOFUS. It''s no wonder DOOFUS gives him the royal treatment. He owes a lot to the Pope and Church officials. The Catholic Church deserves a special place in Hell for that.

[watcher269-2009]

Maybe Bush thinks having the POPE by for dinner will buy him a ticket into Heaven!

OR

President Bush often argues that history will vindicate him. So he can''t be pleased with an informal survey of 109 professional historians conducted by the History News Network. It found that 98 percent of them believe that Bush''s presidency has been a failure, while only about 2 percent see it as a success. Not only that, more than 61 percent of the historians say the current presidency is the worst in American history. In 2004, only 11.6 percent of the historians rated Bush''s presidency in last place. Among the reasons given for his low ratings: invading Iraq, "tax breaks for the rich," and alienating many nations around the world. Bush supporters counter that professional historians today tend to be liberal and that it''s too early to assess how his policies will turn out -

[leftyintexas]

and j-whitman is still a dork

Posted by jamesm12341 at 06:23 PM : Apr 14, 2008

Ha!Ha!Ha! Look who''s calling someone else a dork. Ha!Ha!Ha!

[cfin5]

Run to the hills, run for your life!

[drinuk]

It will be a summit of Hypocritical Dictators, for all the harm to mankind commited by Bush, he has a long way to go to catch up with the Catholic church. We know what this cretin has done in 8 years, just try and imagine the hurt and genocide they have caused over the last thousand years.

[inventagod]

Oh, yeah - that''s right...
Bu$h just had the IRS collect all that wonderful tax money, he can afford to throw it around...

[aaabee-2009]

Bush rolls out the Red Carpet for the Pope,,,, McBush rolls out the Red Carpet for John Hagee who says the Pope is the Devil. Posted by j-whitman at 04:29 PM : Apr 14, 2008

and j-whitman is still a dork
Posted by jamesm12341 at 06:23 PM : Apr 14, 2008

Or maybe he is making a point that even conservatives aren''t sure about bringing religious people into their inner circle, it being so small and tight and all.....

[pollroller1]

The pope is nothing more than a great actor, con artist.
So are all of the tele-evangelists preachers.
A lot of them are worth hundreds of millions of dollars. They start brain washing people from the time they are born to give money to the church.
As I have said before, the bible is just a book that was written by humans. It is just stories and fairy tales used to brain wash people into giving their money to a church or a preacher.
It''s your money and your business, but I hope you will at least think about it before you give your money to a church.
What a deal these guy have. They don''t even have to pay taxes on all that money.

[anticorp47]

This clown needs to stay in the vatican and tend his nursery

[inventagod]

Bu$h and the Pope...

The closest thing we have that looks like royalty...

Euwww!

[rudy654-2009]

agree with mudrose. When Iranian President and World Wide Terrorist Supporter Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came to New York to speak at a meeting of Democrat Union and Political Leaders they treated him like a beloved Hero. And American Tax Payers Paid for it.
Posted by demslie at 03:19 PM

Why do you so-called "conservatives" enjoy lying? You must get it from you god Limbog, your papa.

[denissully]

I believe the Pope to be a religious extremist. He, nor any other religious extremist, should receive a state greeting by this country.

[aaabee-2009]

Taxpayers who foot the bill for these world wide trips and fancy White House dinners aren''t allowed to attend them:


White House Policy Illegally Silences Americans Critical of Bush, ACLU Charges (6/28/2007)

Civil Liberties Group Sues Former White House Staffer for Ejecting Taxpayers from Public Events

http://www.aclu.org/freespeech/protest/30298prs20070628.html

[aaabee-2009]

More Bush antics on taxpayer money:

The Fargo event like many others, was a public speech for which we, the taxpayers, footed the bill. Yet, the White House continues to "screen out" anyone who is not a Republican loyalist.
http://www.buzzflash.com/editorial/05/02/edi05027.html


Taxpayers Pick Up Tab as Bush Campaigns for GOP
By JENNIFER LOVEN, AP
Bankrolled almost entirely by taxpayers, Bush is roaming far and wide on Air Force One to help Republicans retain control of Congress and capture statehouse contests in high-stakes midterm elections.
http://articles.news.aol.com/news/_a/taxpayers-pick-up-tab-as-bush-campaigns/20060830233009990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001

The list goes on and on what Bush spends taxpayers money on....what is one little Pope?