Obama chats with Prime Minister Taro Aso of Japan at G8Obama will meet the Pope tomorrow at 10:15 eastern. I hope we get some video. Michelle Obama also gets some time with the Pope. After meeting the Pope, the Obamas leave for Accra, the capital of Ghana, at noon eastern. There, Obama will deliver a major policy speech:
Barack Obama's meeting with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican on Friday carries more weight than normal for the new US president, the White House said.
"He recognises that this is much more than your typical state visit," Obama aide Denis McDonough said.
Obama, a committed Christian, will have his first audience with the pope since becoming president shortly after the end of a three-day Group of Eight summit in the Italian town of L'Aquila. He will be accompanied by his wife Michelle.
"In many ways the visit is not unlike visits with other heads of state," said McDonough, a deputy National Security Advisor.
"That is to say that there are issues on which they'll agree, issues on which they'll disagree, and issues on which they'll agree to continue to work on going forward. Read more at AFP
