former u.s. ambassador to the holy see for the bush administration. he will talk about u.s.-vatican relations, the pope's visit to the white house and his speech before congress. ♪ host: pope francis arrived on u.s. soil yesterday, becoming only the fourth pope to visit the united states and the third to come to washington. he was greeted by the president, the first lady, their children, the vice president and his wife, dr. jill biden. he kicked off the six-day visit here to the united states, the hole father will speak before the joint meeting of congress in washington tomorrow, address the united nations in new york on friday, then head to philadelphia later in the week. before all of those events, the pope this morning will arrive

at the white house for a welcoming ceremony around 8:30 a.m. eastern time. we'll have coverage right here on c-span. leading up to that arrival, we want to begin the conversation with all of you. what is your view of pope francis? democrats, 202-748-8000. republicans, 202-748-800 . i happened penalties, 202-748-8003. join the conversation on twitter or you can go to facebook.com/cspan. accepted us an email as well. phone lines are open. more detail about the pope's schedule, as we said, today he will have a welcoming ceremony on the south lawn, about 15,000 people expected. his arrival time around 8:30 a.m. eastern time. afternoon, the he'll stay in washington, head up to the northwest part of the city, and he'll be going to the mass at the basilica of the

national shrine. mass will be held there. and then the pope on thursday, will be talking to both members of the house and the senate in a joint meeting of congress. and that is taking place around 10:00 a.m. eastern time. of course, tune in to c-span, because we will be having that leading up to the joint address as well, his arrival when he gets to the capitol tomorrow, we will bring you all of that tomorrow on c-span. we'll be taking your phone calls and your comments on c-span radio and.org.org as well. we want your view of pope francis. probably seen a lot of polls about what americans are hig of him. here's one from gallup. 59% favorable rating in july. that's down from 76% in february of 2014. his rating ics, down. some say that he struck a new

tone, a positive tone, that he is the people's pope. others disagree on his stance on what he has said on abortion, gay marriage, etc. we want to turn to all of you this morning. as the pope begins his six-day tour of the united states, what do you think of pope francis? george in ohio, independent, good morning to you, george. go ahead. caller: hello. host: you're on the air, sir. caller: with pope francis visiting today, i just wanted to talk about how christianity oesn't teach jesus' teachings. so when ed to say -- we fail in these attempts to do these things, we will see how ch we need our hevpble father's forgiveness, forgive people who trespass against us. host: lore knee california, democrat.

lori. up early, good morning. aller: yeah, i'm an insomniac. i think -- i'm sorry. i got a little nervous. i think it's a good sign that, one, that he's come from cuba , for our rancis children and stuff, and i just think he brought all the good, right things. open-minded than i think a lot of the other popes have been. caller: lori, are you catholic? you're no longer practicing? caller: i'm no longer practicing. 'm 54.

host: some folks say pope francis has brought them back to the church. do you listen to him, is he someone that can bring you back into the church? caller: i think if there's anybody that could, he probably could. host: why is that? caller: well, the church is kind of i thought been kind of -- as nded, and i just far as the birth control thing and the rights of women and that kind of thing, he may not be exactly to that yet, but i he could be nk leaning that way. he's just more open-minded i think than a lot of our popes have been in the past. host: ok. all right, lori. clark in bronx, independent. your thoughts? go ahead. caller: yes, i'm atheist and a jew, but i think he's a terrific man. i think he's the pope for the

21st century. where i live in an area we have a very big catholic population, but i think he's ery open-minded as the other woman had said, and he's the 21st century. host: that's mark, new york, independent. front page of the "wall street journal" this morning has this story. unease greets the pope from catholic rights. it says that they have anxiety about the pope, and they represent, they have provided a strong and energetic base for the church over the last three decades. for them, some issues behind pope francis' worldwide acclaim, conciliatory approach to gay people have instead been a cause for dismay. some of them fear the pope blurring lines around teachings and creating confusion about hat it means to be a catholic.

we're asking, what's your view of pope francis? keep dialing in. touching down in the united states yesterday, becoming the third pope to visit washington, the fourth pope to visit the united states. he was greeted there by the president and the first lady. a crowd of thousands and black people chanting. he was headed from there to the embassy here in washington, d.c. staying in washington, and he will be heading from there this morning over to the white house, so there's a picture right there of the vatican embassy here in washington, d.c. it's on massachusetts avenue. you can see the crowd out there right now. it is in the same area where there are many embassies, many countries have their embassies there. it's basically the embassy for the vatican.

eli in phoenix, a democrat. good morning. caller: yes, hi. good morning. great pleasure to be able to speak about pope francis. y views are on pope francis. it's been great to have the pope come out to our country. since the beginning of time, ou have spain, when they started as a world leader, they had the catholic church up in conquistadors to go out and conquer all the different priests before they

came in to actually have a war or have a destruction or decision, whether or not to put anybody in captivity. so it is a great thing that we have the pope different priests before they came in to actually have a war or have a destruction or decision, whether or not to put anybody in captivity. so it is a great thing that we have the pope for thousands of years. they've been selected to take he position of being a very, one of the holiest men on earth. it's a great pleasure and know to be a 's going ofessional holy outcome on what needs to be done and how things should be here in the united states. eli. ok, all right, david in connecticut, a republican. hi, david. caller: good morning, greta. how are you? host: good morning. caller: thank you to c-span. a few things about the pope. el david in connecticut, a republican. hi, david. caller: good morning, greta. how are you? host: good morning. caller: thank you to c-span. a few things about the pope. i'm happy he's learned a long t family. i how to say george in spanish. he wanted not to say anything bad about his mom, but as far as pope francis, i've attended ass at st. francis asisi

locally that i was known for dealing with animals, but not to be put a negative spin on it, that's to be as careful as umping into a snake pit. i'm very happy to see him, and i think he'll be good for the country. host: what impact will he have on this country, on lawmakers and the american people? caller: well, i think that he is a good person to take ution from and i'll take the esponse off the air. host: california, independent. you're next. caller: hi. i still feel that -- host: we're listening.

caller: i feel that he's that the pope is having a joint meeting with congress to address some public issues, some issues in our public policy. if you look back at the history church, man catholic they don't have a very good history with things. from what he fill off sized, say, i you want to don't like his intentions or what i feel are his intentions for the country. host: ok. in d.c. here, a democrat. good morning to you. gregory, your view of pope francis. you're on the air. caller: yes, i think wherever he goes, he brings positive with. host: ok. what's the positive message? hat do you like to hear? caller: let me turn my tv down. going , all right, i'm

to move on to peter. you got to have the tv down. listen through your phone. peter from california, republican. caller: thank you so much, and thank you, c-span. hello. how are you? good morning. caller: yeah, so i was wondering how the pope is going to be compared to pope john paul ii. them?how do you compare caller: well, it's hard to say. when the vatican came with reagan, it wasn't nearly as divisive as it is now. i mean, everyone on tv wants to separate everything this man said, and it's a shame. is he addressing the congress this week or tomorrow? host: tomorrow. tomorrow he will be addressing the congress. 8:30 or so, around up to capitol hill, and then he's slated to speak at 10:00 a.m. eastern time, and he'll be addressing both the house and senate for a joint meeting of

congress. caller: and that will be on c-span? host: yeah, you bet. you're a republican. do you view him as liberal or conservative or neither? caller: he's both. yeah, he actually -- sorry. he upsets both parts of the party. host: the pope yesterday during the plane ride from cuba to the united states held a press conference with reporters. if the news conference are w plane has different protocol. the reporters have to decide what questions they're going to asked. the pope sometimes will talk to reporters for up to an hour. yesterday's impromptu news conference on the plane lasted about a half-hour. there were seven questions asked. it's not clear what the question was, but he did answer this way, according to some of the headlines in the papers today, when he was asked about

whether or not el8d take left turns, and they say that the pope denies taking a left turn, referring there to the vehicle that awaited the pope when he touched down in the united states. it was a hatchback fiat, and he got in and was escorted by a fleet of s.u.v.'s here in the united states. and then this is the actual quote from the news conference where he said this to the reporters, maybe i have given an impression of being a little bit to the left, but if crept me to recite the creed, i can. good morning to you, jay, a democrat. what's your view of the pope? you're on the air, jay. caller: my view of the pope, he acts like he's never read the manuscript.

host: ok. say that? mean, even the bible. he's condoning, and i hope somebody gets a chance to ask him what he thinks about cutting up babies. because he ain't going to come out with it on his own. host: do you think he condones abortion? caller: i think he'd like to see americans dead, period. host: ok. why do you say that? caller: because he's from the eastern part of the world. host: what do you mean, eastern part of the world? caller: doesn't the pope live in the east? doesn't the vatican and all that, isn't that in the east? host: ok, all right, lakeland, florida, democrat. yesterday, father lombardi, the vatican, current director of

the press office, held a news nference about what the pope is expecting to receive from the american people. listen to his answer. father lombardi: if we listen what the pope says in his piece normally, it's always to isten. express e also appreciation for the eastern american nation and the american church. and the pope means that he -- also from the

american faithful. and they have impressive work of charity --, and think that y will know better than i, also here. host: spokesperson for the vatican. you can see it outside the embassy here in washington. the crowds are already lining glimpse g to catch a of the pope. when he leaves there, the his n's embassy, makes way to the white house for a welcoming ceremony. they are expecting around 15,000 there. the pope will be greeted by the president and the first lady. of course, music will be played, lots of fanfare, his way to the and it's this morning. we will take you there on c-span and have live coverage of that and the journal earlier to bring you coverage of the welcoming ceremony this morning francis.

so what is your view of this pope? he conclusion off a tour of the united states. by the way, politico reporting that the main event reported 8,000 journalists from all over the world have been accredited the visit. which includes stops at the white house, congress, and the united nations. steven, missouri, independent. steve? caller: greta, thank you for taking my call. i think that the interview with charlie rose, he was interviewing like the pope's best friend a couple of months ago, and he done a double take because the pope praised the koran and muslims, and i have nothing against all of that, but i am a christian steve? caller: greta, thank you for taking and a true christian knows that jesus christ, the son of god, is the only way to god, and there are many ways to god so. that right there is -- i think he's a good man, but a good man

don't get to heaven. that's my comment. steve. , all right, norma, california, republican. good morning to you. what are your thoughts on pope francis? caller: i don't think there's one in the whole world who is more devoted to jesus than he is. m a catholic, and our belief is that you love everyone. you may not like what they do, but you love them, and that's his background also. host: are you practicing catholic, norma? caller: i am, daily. host: what does it mean to you, for him to come to the united states? caller: i'm delighted. so pleased.

i'm stuck to the television. host: are you watching as much coverage as you can? caller: absolutely. host: a little bit about pope francis. he was born september 17, 1936, n buenos aires, argentina. he was ordained as a priest in 1969, consequence crated as a bishop in 1992. made archbishop in 1997. he's made -- he was elected pope, as many of you know, march 13, 2013. he's the first jesuit and first non-european pope and the first pope to be named francis, took e name in honor of saint francis of assisi. pope francis becoming only the fourth pope to visit the united states, the third to visit with the u.s. president, the first to have a joint congress. our coverage of all of that here on c-span continues with conversations with all of you

on your view of pope francis. e'll go to trevor in woodbridge, virginia, a emocrat. woodbridge, virginia, a democrat. what are your thoughts on pope francis? caller: he's a man of faith, nd he's going to our congress. it's a country like america. we have so many people, inequality in this country. host: who do you think his audience is? who do you think he's trying to speak to, just catholics? caller: he's trying to speak to everybody. i'm a protestant, and he's speaking to me. he's a man of faith. if you have man of faith like jesus christ, he came for

muslims too. but hey, you can choose to listen to him, and that's up to you. protestant, as a does he have an impact on you? caller: yes, protestant, does he have an impact on you? caller: yes, yes, because he's speaking from the bible. that's what i believe. host: all right, trevor. take a look at the catholic population in the united states. here are 51 million catholics. the catholics in the united states make up 8% of 1.2 billion catholics worldwide. there are three million fewer catholics than in 2007. it's down from 23.9% in 2007 to 20.8% here in 2015. there's 13% former catholics. for every convert, six leave the church.

this is stable compared to .ther religions yesterday, it was noted that the catholic church has lost members of all ages, say they have been alienated by the sexual abuse scandals, the exclusion of married men and women, birth control, and the communion to catholics who have divorced and remarried without an annulment. two decades ago, about one of every four americans that identified as catholic say it is about one of every five, part of a communion to catholics who have divorced and remarried without an annulment. two decades ago, about one of every four americans that identified as catholic say it is about one of every five, part of a broader trend. it would be the nation's second largest outranked only by the catholic church itself. caller: good morning. i probably should have written down some notes, because this is a complex question.

i don't know that he would have any impact as a head of state economically or, you know, affecting policy issues of the u.s. government. i don't know what to think as far as views as a head of state. i do think what is being received by so many, and even the callers, it just sounds like idoltry, and the press calling him a rock star and rolling stone magazine, the donald trump issue arrived yesterday, a picture of the pope, and just glowing about views as very positive. i think the pope has a mixed message with so many -- so uch, and i don't know -- i

can't see how this is going to affect catholics who seem to ignore a lot of what the vatican says anyway, and you hear from the caller saying he's a pope for the 21st ntury, which even an atheist or agnostic said this morning that he's adapting to what the modern culture and society wants. and we say things like, who am i to judge? my first reaction to that is, well, you're the pope. that's your job. you're the leader of the catholic church. so when i heard your guest a couple of days ago, again, sent so when i heard your guest a couple of days ago, again, sent mixed messages, telling homosexuals that they're ok, but what they're practicing is not, and i think it's -- it's

just very confusing to a protestant, but it's probably also confusing to catholics too. so i'm not sure. is the pope trying to appeal to marketing in saying, making the church more appealing, and what you decided about people leaving the church and other religions too. so is he trying to make the church more appealing, and as she said, get them in and then we'll talk, but as the caller said, well, is the doctrine of the church changing? are we going to talk and compromise and change, or we want to get you there, and then we'll teach you church doctrine. so i don't know. i'm confused. host: all right, well, the front page of the "wall street journal" this morning, unease among catholic conservatives about this pope, and they have this graphic inside "the wall street journal" this morning. overall, do you think pope

francis is leading the catholic church in the right direction? those are the answers in blue. 92% of democrats say yes. independents, 77%. but it's waning among republicans. 70%, yes, he's leading us in the right direction. you can see the percentage there of those who think that he's leading the church in the wrong track. but overall, most people saying this pope is leading the church n the right track. there is a religious -- that religious liberty is under assault, reversing the global war against faith, and that is also their headline this morning. we're going to get your thoughts on pope francis this morning, as he kicks off his six-day tour of the united states. e arrived yesterday in washington around 4:00 in the

afternoon, then headed right to the vatican embassy, and there it is in washington, the vatican embassy, where he's staying. people are lining up, hoping to get a glimpse of him when he comes out those doors there on the left hand part of your screen. he will get into his vehicle and make his way to the white house, where he will have a welcoming ceremony there. so we will have coverage of that, again, here on c-span. we'll bring you that live when he arrives to the white house and continue our conversations with all of you about your view of pope francis. we other news this morning, specifically capitol hill. the "new york times" says first step to avoid a government shutdown. senate republican leaders on tuesday took the step to avert a government shutdown by scheduling a vote on a temporary spending measure that will keep the agency functioning december 11. the move marks an important breakthrough, even though they're going to block the

spending bill. the planned parenthood provision, prompted by the controversy over the use of fetuses, is expected to be dropped from the senate's spending bill. that would allow the underlying legislation to move forward with bipartisan support and set up a larger showdown over spending between republican leaders and president obama later this fall. as for planned parent hood, mitch mcconnell said the group would lose financing for one ear, while $235 million in savings be redirected to community health clinics. by the way, abortion has become a flash point in congress in recent months, but particularly this week with the pope's arrival. yesterday, senate republicans failed to advance a bill that would have banned abortions after 20 weeks, legislation the house has approved. yesterday, ahead of the pope's arrival, senate democrats offer a climate change bill aimed not at success for now, but in 2016, the measure would establish a reduction of

greenhouse gas emissions by 2% each year through 2025, a cut even larger than the target set by the obama administration. the bill has no chance of passage in the republican-controlled congress, but democrats say they believe that forcefully pushing for climate change policies could help them win control of the enate in 2016. that was put forth yesterday by washington. l of "the washington post" also this morning weighing in on this debate over the government shutdown, and they say that the speaker of the house needs to grab the reins. mr. boehner needs to get house republicans to pass a spending bill and not let the government shut down. hey write this --

host: your view of pope francis, that's our question this morning. culpeper, virginia, monte, an independent. you're on the air. caller: thank you. i just to want make a brief comment. it's wonderful to have a high-ranking official with such faith, but the amount of money and the security and all the things that are spent for this decides one of few folks who come here to the united states to voice an opinion, we've been the reformed lutheran church for over 10 years, and when we know one thing is true, all faiths all denominations do not turn their back on the lord are all denominations do not

turn their back on the lord are blessed. my point in sharing this, we put entirely too much faith to have all this faith that when e serve the people, -- culpeper was the birthplace of the first amendment, belief it or not. we need to look at staying up there, cutting each other apart, instead of exhibiting the leadership qualities that america is beginning to turn back to. i justment to say it's a blessing here, but the impact if you look at the call, why he put 95 on the door of the catholic church, they're looking at why we don't virgin mary, in joseph. you do it in god. thank you for letting me tell

you that we need to look at how our government is turning its truth of what the bible teaches. truth of what the bible teaches. host: there's a story on the new jersey website, and it says that a philadelphia spokesperson said that they have a goal to raise $45 million. that figure covers a wide range of costs, from infrastructure to scholarships, to attend to the printing of an official program book. the goal also includes cost of certain services, which will be provided by the city of philadelphia, where the pope heads on saturday and sunday. the visit is designated to security, and some security funding is expected to be provided through grants from the state department. state and other high-ranking dignitaries are afforded protection by the u.s. government through state and local authorities in the city visited, which typically reimburses state department

rotection. the port authority of new york and new jersey, which spent olice overtime this year for president obama's trip to the city, had no stments for its cost for the papal visit. it also says in here that americans united for -- americans united for separation church and state, washington-based advocacy group, said there's a fine line between providing public assistance for a papal visit nd funding for a religious event. and they point to government bodies can provide assistance for papal visit that is similar for other provided nonreligious events. there are concerns that this seems apparent. difficult issue. the story goes on to say that

this is in the courts before, and those that are for separation of church and state have won. barbara in berkeley springs, west virginia, a republican. good morning to you, barbara. you're on the air. what's your view? caller: good morning. of people a lot will pooh pooh what i'm going o say. there will be a one-world religion, and he is fulfilling that -- that is the purpose of his being called the compassionate pope, and he says that there are many ways to god and all that, they bring in everybody that is willing to come in to it.

then before too long there will arise the anti-christ, and this pope is the last pope, and he is the false prophet. host: ok, barbara, we'll leave it there. patrick, democrat, your thoughts. caller: when pope benedict came to washington, we were terviewed by my sisters in iowa, we were fortunate to come to washington to witness the visit of pope benedict, and now we are -- my while i can't go to philadelphia because of a sick animal, she's at the end of her life, i'm going to have to stay here while my sisters and my entire family go to and delphia to participate

pope francis coming to philadelphia to visit, and i have to tell you, i'm really about the ambivalence when it comes to the wisdom of our country and the world that cannot participate. from my perspective, as a man, i think it is wisdom of our country and the world that cannot participate. from my perspective, as a man, i think it is absolutely a representation of intolerance. not to allow women to be priests in the catholic church, but also to be in the hierarchy of the catholic church when it comes to the mechanisms of of our l infrastructure faith. because i mean, who did jesus turn to when he was resurrected? he turned to a woman. he dent turn to a man. so, from my perspective, i catholics - we

embrace the concept and demand the women h to allow who are the inherit fors of his directive to become -- and a leadership position, and i thank you for allowing me to participate. host: all right, patrick. we got to get to other news as well from the hillary clinton private email server that she had as secretary of state. bloomberg breaking this story, the f.b.i. is set to recover personal emails from hillary clinton's server. his story, the f.b.i. has recovered personal, work-related emails from the server used by hillary clinton during her time as secretary of state. the f.b.i.'s success at salvaging personal email that is clinton said had been raises the possibility

that the democratic correspondence could become public. the disclosure would like fan the controversy over the use of a private system for official business. and then there's also this, in politico this morning, they have the story on more email service, hillary clinton benghazi probe. they say more previously undisclosed emails have surface in addition federal court filing, offering a public accounting of some of the records. filing monday in a freedom of information act lawsuit brought by the conservative group citizen united described about a dozen benghazi-related emails that were withheld in whole or in part seeking information. most of the documents also appear, politico about a dozen benghazi-related emails that were withheld in whole or in part seeking information. most of the documents also appear, politico reports, to have been withheld on benghazi. the committee is scheduled to take public testimony from on october 22.

so that in the paper this morning on the email. as many of you know, hillary clinton yesterday said that she is opposed to the keystone x.l. pipeline. she broke her silence. take a listen to what she had to say. >> and i think it is imperative at we look at the keystone pipeline as what i believe it is, a distraction from the important work to combat climate change, and unfortunately from my perspective, one that interferes with our ability to move forward to deal with all the other issues. therefore, i oppose it, and i oppose it, because i don't [applause] it's in the best interest of what we need to do to combat climate change. host: hillary clinton breaking

her silence on that. martin o'malley and bernie sanders have said from the get-go they're opposed to this pipeline. she made that announcement at a town hall in iowa yesterday. she also talked about prescription drug costs. many of you know the story about one of these drugs, the price going up overnight from bout $13.50 to $750, and $750, and hillary clinton saying that out of pocket drug expenses at $250 a month, she said that on tuesday. bernie sanders held his own plan and long record for pushing to lower drug costs. and then also in the papers this morning, the man behind drug price increase, the chief of touring, the head of

the company, he first said he would not back down and lower the price yesterday on nbc. he said he thinks it makes sense to lower the pce in response to anger, but it was felt by people, he department y how much he would be lowering the price. and then "the wall street journal" weighing in on that, their editorial saying this is an insult on drug innovation comments clinton's helped tank a biotech stock, as she comes out for price control , and they write they must recoup the cost of development, a successful drug goes off patent, and it's remarkable how much the pharmaceutical debate has shifted in a few years and allegedly couldn't innovate and drugs that were too modest for price, now the class is spreading because the benefits are transform active and costly. so that on the debate over prescription drugs in the papers this morning. thoughts on your pope francis, your view of him as he makes this historic trip to the united states. speak to a meeting of congress yesterday.

before that, he will be heading to the white house for a welcoming ceremony. and joining us on the phone, can a tritch i can't marshall, a former chief of protocol for ration from ministration from 2009 to 2010. this begins with the touchdown at andrews air force base. how significant was it that the president was there? capricia: well, hello, a pleasure to speak to you from the south lawn of the white house, the white house has a back drop. i am quite thrilled as a catholic myself. just about an hour, the president will be escorting the pope out through the south portico door, but it has been so citing, exciting day far. to answer your question, it's very significant when the president travels to andrews air force base.

accompanied by mrs. obama and their daughters. the vice president was there with dr. biden and with a few granddaughters, and, of course, an array of other dignitaries there to welcome the pope to the united states. i think it was an historic moment and certainly a moment i t i personally am sad that missed experiencing firsthand. host: so you were on the south lawn at the white house this morning. what's it like there? set the scene a little bit, expecting a crowd of 15,000. capricia: i was impressed with the logistics, the manner in which all the people have been so graciously escorted on to the south lawn through the white house, and making sure that all security measures have

been met. there were several check points to get through, but people are very happy, from senators, ambassadors from around the world, to other dignitaries, everyone is just really bubbling with excitement here on the south lawn. white house. we're waiting for the ceremony to begin. it's a glorious day here in washington. we're so happy to be greeting the pope with beautiful weather, and so there's excitement in the air, people awaiting for this ceremony to begin. host: what goes through planning and preparing for a visit from the pope to the white house for this welcoming ceremony? hat goes through this? capricia: i will tell with you all the variety details, secret service, the uniform division,

everyone has been working around the clock for months, and the moment that the visit was announced by the president, they been working on every detail, every moment of the pope's visit to waters, and then cities beyond the event, because they're not only the focus on today and tomorrow, but once the pope was in d.c. both new york and to philadelphia, they will be monitoring those aspects of the visit as well. and then right on the heels of the you have the visit of president of china. they have a lot going on the next few days. host: right, so the visit this morning, the welcoming ceremony for the pope, is being designated as one state. what does that mean? what does that mean for rotocol?

capricia: the highest invitation the president has to a dignitary is a state visit. in some instances, when it is the head of government, there's that would tate and be an official visit. d with that comes all of the extraordinary -- that our country will welcome. there's a beautiful south lawn various elements of the ceremony from the trumpets to the welcoming to the speeches and a greeting will take place with the people here gathered on the south awn. the pope will go out and walk through the streets of -- we

understand for a bit. he also will be in his special pope mobile, we understand. parade through the streets of washington. extraordinary given by that was president obama to a dignitary. president obama to a dignitary. host: what will happen after the pomp and circumstance? will they go behind closed doors? how long will they meet for? capricia: the amount of time, i'm not sure. it can vary from visit to visit. but yes, there will be a moment of private meetings and discussions on issues that are relevant. the pomp and circumstance will then rise again, when they depart. and then the pope will, as they say, go through the streets of

washington, d.c. and parade through the streets of washington, greeting all of our great american citizens. host: we're showing shots of the south lawn right now as the crowds start to come in and get seated for that welcoming ceremony. who gets to attend this welcoming ceremony? capricia: if you're looking at the white house lawn, i'm not quite sure if you can spot me. as stated, there are a variety of different people who have been extended an invitation. they're just before me in various seats near the podium. people who are specific to catholic organizations, so we associations, of

course, it's with the catholic hurch. enough to lucky have a ticket from the members of congress or other people that they know, both at the white house or at the state department. so it is really just a gathering of names, thousands here to celebrate this moment in time, and frankly, this very historic moment. host: all right. capricia marshall, we appreciate your time this morning. thank you very much. capricia: thank you. host: we, of course, will bring arrival of of the the pope to the white house. he's expected to leave the

vatican increase here in washington and make his way down to the white house from there, where he will be greeted by the president. that on your screen is the vatican's embassy here in washington, d.c. it's on massachusetts avenue. along with other countries and embassies, many of them on embassy row, as it's called here in washington, d.c. he will be greeted by the crowd , and the crowd is expected. greeted played, and by the president. after that, as capricia marshall said, he will do a ry brief parade around the perimeter of the white house. he will be make his way on constitution avenue, they be then back up around. he'll number the pope mobile. and this is a picture of one of "usa e mobiles from today." for 85 years, pope mobiles have been carrying popes to large crowds, making it easier to see

the crowds. the vatican has tried to balance safety, responsibility ature, and technological innovation. take a look inside "usa today." they note this, that -- you can see the map of washington, d.c. and all the spots that the pope will be visiting while he is here. she has an air cargo company -- the pope will be using a jeep wrangler as pope mobile. and a company has already delivered several of the jeeps, well ahead of the visit. francis will need them in washington, new york, and philadelphia in case one of them breaks down. john in crofton, maryland, a republican. thanks for hanging on the line. good morning to you. what's your view of this pope? caller: i think this is the worst pope in my lifetime. he was called hitler's pope.

they found that wasn't true. but he did wonderful ministry during the second world war, of course. he had to operate within the political system and what was going on during the war, certainly a bigger challenge than today. but this pope has been a mistake. both dopes for the way they've handled, opened up relations with cuba. apparently this pope was behind and obama and he worked to get the castro brothers, and the first thing the castro brothers said is we have reparations for the 50-odd year embargo and caused the lower standard of living in uba.

between what communism means economically and what capitalism means in the country, even in our down turn, there's got to be a marked contrast. he's capitalism and throw the united states under the bus, and i don't respect this pope for that. things that are god, this guy is dealing too much with the caesars. he's a fraud, the same as the president, the worst president ever. look at the contrast between what we have with the breakdown of communism. john paul ii was the pope, who knew what communism was. host: i'm going to leave it there so i can get another voice. robert, independent. you're on the air. caller: yes, i was just add my view to the pope, i was just nting to say that he has concern -- are you there?

host: we're listening, robert. we're here. caller: ok, yes, the son of the poor and all, which here in west virginia, there's a lot of that, but the catholic church seem to build all these big, giant churches that are worth and possibly millions of dollars throughout the world. maybe they could help more better, because a lot of them churches, only a handful of eople are there each week. host: a democrat, your thoughts on pope francis. caller: good morning. i'm just calling to host: a democrat, your thoughts on pope francis. caller: good morning. i'm just calling to tell my opinion. the pope is supposed to be the leader of the roman catholic church. i am a christian.

none of us knows what anyone .lse thinks his visit was like a shot. i'm wondering, when because of hatred, we say things about each other, and we cannot find anyone to say here, we are christian, love god with all your heart, with all your soul, and your neighbor as yourself. every morning is a topic that they rides the country. every morning you sit together , when you have thers, i wonder.

what about europe? host: wait, wait, hold on. , ller: well, the pope's visit what about the visit? host: whoever sits in this chair is the moderator, it's not their role, it's not the part that they play. part of the role of the moderator is to facilitate a conversation to turn it over to l of you to let washington know what you think. that's the point of this show, it doesn't matter what this chair thinks. to share other headlines from "the washington post." e.u. approves my deprant action . they're spread across europe, rare sign of discord. four nations have rejected the plan. these are former soviets, but they have come together on this, and then there are many

more looming questions to be answered because of the situation in syria. and yesterday occupy capitol , l, former u.s. commander neral petraeus, testifying for the first time in his public appearance. sharply criticizing the for the first time in his public appearance. sharply criticizing the policy, we covered that here on c-span. we'll be interested in what you have to say. they carried out syrian towns and cities and urged that stuff be taken to strengthen the military effort in iraq, including by exploring the use of small american teams to air strikes on the part of iraq forces. so that in the "new york times" this morning, and, of course, like i said, we covered that up on capitol hill. and then there's this from "the wall street journal." russia is expanding its footprint inside of syria. president obama plans to push idea next week when he is

at the united nations assembly in new york. officials are exploring whether or not they could work with moscow and pave the way for a successor from the sect, preventing a class of the government and takeover. president obama expected to push this when he goes to new york for the general assembly next week, also on his visit to new york next week, it was noted in the paper today that for the first time the president will skip the clinton initiative. he will not be attending that which usually coincides with this assembly. here's an update on the situation in yemen. many of you remember the war that broke out, a proxy war between sued sandrabe iran. the yemeni president has returned to his country because saudi arabia has been able to ush back the iranian hutsi rebels there, and so the former president is returning to that country. you can see him here on a plane returning to the city there in

yemen. this is a saudi plane that he was aboard, as he made his way back to that war-torn country. florida, an independent. good morning to you, nancy. you are last for our view right now on pope francis,you are ourt now on pope francis. caller: thank you for taking my call. i would like to associate myself with the gentleman's comments from maryland. there are three political points to this pope's poconosumber one, the that they are losing members of their church in the united states wholesale after all of the scandals with the church. number two, i think that obama invited him here, or wanted him the optics of him being seen with the leader of the christian world because of obama sat on his fanny