pope benedict xvi, mother (beep). i'll just go with pope-2-you. that's taken? pope-2-you...? ( cheers and applause ) a one-man show. what? it's closed already? now that the pope is online though, well, what's the pope going to put out there? >> many of the key ideas of the gospel fit very nicely into 140 characters. >> very convenient. >> jon: it is very convenient although not all of them. you know what i mean? if you know the passage from the 23rd psalm though i walk through the valley of the shadow of death, i will fear... oh, boy. so close. of course, there is one message the pope really does want to get across. >> good to see the pope is communicating with young people. a great idea. >> jon: what about better way for a sell bait person to... i can't think of anything else you could do. hash tag, nothing comes to mind. we'll be right back. >> jon: my guest tonight is an astrophysicist and a direct rt director of the planetarium. his book is called space chronicles. please welcome back to the program neil degrasse tyson. ( cheers and applause ) very excited. thank you so

the pope. (cheers and applause) let me double-check here, pope, pope, pope, pope, pope, nope.ou know what, you know what, you know what, just because it's not in here, i still believe that there is a pope. and even if you were trying to buzz stomp my yuletide barn yard, i will still leave out milk and cookies for you. merry christmas. we'll be right back. (cheers and applause) >> welcome back, everybody. my guest tonight is abc's senior white house correspondent and the author of the outpost, an untold story of american valor. so how did he hear about it? please welcome jake tapper. (cheers and applause) jake, good to see you again, thanks for coming back. all right, jake, we're going get to the book in just a second here but first, you're a newsman, you're like the premier white house correspondent of network tv. right now. >> okay. >> stephen: white house, people think tapper. what other stories, now that the election is over, where has the news moved to right now because i did about two minutes on the fact that they are not charging their cell phones on homeland tonight. >>

the pope's is white.he red hat, as they describe it for the cardinals used to be a more eelaborate hat called the golero. that is a wide-brimmed hat. not a practical hat that one would wear. that was from the 1907's. the gallero is the hat depicted on cardinal o'brien's coat of arms, the hat that hangs down the side with all the tassels. it is used in heraldry and symbolism, but they do not bestow that hat anymore. >> each one of the cardinals now, all cardinals, have their own personal coat of arms? >> all bishops do. it is a long-standing tradition. cardinal o'brien has a coat of arms. he had one as archbishop o'brien. he had a new one as the grand marshall of the knights of the holy sepulchre. >> so pieces of his work throughout the church? >> yes. >> tell me about his motto. >> his motto, "i will give you shepards." is really a role which i think harkens back to his role as a seminary rector:he was charged with preparing men to be or daned priests. here comes cardinal o'brien now. he prays "receive th

did pope benedict measure up to pope john paul? tim? >> i know a lot of people who are upset with john paul's visit in 1998, that he didn't come sort of rattling the saber at cuba in the way he had gone into eastern europe, when go behind the iron curtain and try to bring down the soviet empire. >> but this pope did. >> well, he fired as much ammo at the united states as he did as fidel castro there, and there's stronger critiques i could think of that would be very apt than to say this does not so respond with reality. it's an evil dogma that the communist treat and does not respect human liberty, and whatever the u.s. policy should be towards there, there needs to be a very firm message, and i hope that the holy father -- >> did you see the exchange 15 the pope and -- fidel castro and they -- reconstructing what happened to the liturgy over the course of the -- >> i think the pope is a diplomat and handled this very well. and i would just hope that his words about the embargo might be taken seriously by american catholics and see some

agostino chigi was banker to pope julius and his successor, pope leo.onsequently one of europe's richest men, he persuaded raphael to decorate his new villa on the banks of the tiber. raphael created the illusion of two canopies to protect chigi's guests from the heat of the day. the gods dined above while the guests dined below, tossing their golden plates over the riverbank. chigi, by the way, kept servants below so the plates could be recovered. mercury, the god of money, presided over this splendid party and thus gave the pleasures of the flesh more elevated status. but the party-- metaphorical and actual-- did not last for long. vasari wrote... "raphael kept up his secret love affairs "and pursued his pleasures with no sense of moderation. "and then, on one occasion, he went to excess. "he returned home afterwards with a violent fever "which the doctors diagnosed as heat stroke. "raphael kept quiet about his incontinence, "and, very imprudently, "instead of giving him the restoratives he needed, "they bled him until he grew faint "and felt himself

things like the pope's secretary preventing people from having access to the pope. but i think there is a more serious problem and that is that the vatican and is dependent as a global organization on information that it receives from its bishops and functionaries around the world. and his bishops feel that the confidential letters that the right to the pope are not really confidential and can be published in the italian media two weeks later, then it would be reluctant to write those letters to the pope and that is a very serious problem within the institutional church. >> thank you very much for the report. >> on to egypt now where president mohammed morsi has been defending his dismissal of the country's powerful defense minister as well as the heads of the air force, army, and navy, saying he was acting in the best interests of the country. >> the move drew thousands of is islamist supporters to turn your square in celebration, but secularists have condemned the firing, saying it undermines the rule of law. >> egypt's military seems to have accepted the loss of

the same for pope benedict. feel much more for john paul. >> to this day, john paul has lost none of his popularity among the mexicans, and they consider it an honor that the procession of his relatives should have come first to mexico, right ahead of the visit of pope benedict. their enthusiasm is still focused on john paul and they remained reticent toward pope benedict. in that sense, it is difficult legacy that the polish pope has lived for his german successor. >> with us here to talk about the efforts of that successor in mexico is our religious affairs correspondent. john, welcome. first, just how important is latin america for this pontiff's? >> tremendously important to the catholic church. 70% of the population of latin america is known to be catholic. the population -- the catholic publication of mexico is the largest in the world, of any country in the world with the exception of brazil. but did church there is nevertheless confronted with very serious challenges, difficult challenges that are relate

they recognize the pope as a spiritual leader. it is also a country in which virtually all other middle eastern religions are represented. there are sunnis, shiites, and has been a very delicate balance there. that balance has been threatened. since then, there has been a delicate balance in lebanon which many see as a model, and that is part of what he will be saying there. >> he is arriving at a time of high protests in the country. how is he likely to handle the situation? >> he says he is coming to 11 on as a pilgrim, that he will pray for peace. that may seem to some of our agnostic and our atheist viewers as being rather futile, but bear in mind, some 90% of the people, perhaps even more, in the middle east believe in god. that is certainly something that can influence them. it is significant that hezbollah, for example, the shiite group, has militia that is regarded by the united states as a terrorist organization and has said that it welcomes the visit from the pope. >> the pope himself is no stranger to the fact that ther

literally at the pope's right hand, where he always is. he dresses the pope.ravels everywhere with the pope. and now he is accused of betraying the pope. >> that he could be involved in what most people would see as one of the most significant acts of betrayal in recent vatican history obviously is going to be a source of particular concern for the pope and for the vatican. >> reporter: vatican investigators say they found a stash of stolen papal correspondence in gabriele's home. that, they believe, proves he is the source of a flood of leaks to italian newspapers that have embarrassed the pope and exposed a poisonous atmosphere behind the ancient walls of the vatican. they include searing allegations of corruption and cronyism at the vatican bank. a bizarre plot to kill the pope allegedly by a cardinal hoping to succeed him. and a nasty power struggle between vatican reformers and those who want nothing to change. >> well, these documents, first of all, are highly diverse among themselves. which on the face of it would create doubt they could come from any o

>> the pope, i tell people you know, they say, does the pope have a computer?ke asking if the pope has a car. he has several, but he's normally not the one driving and unlike the rest of us, the pope is not looking down at his ipad during the meeting or the blackberry doing that. he's a pen and paper guy very much, but he is a word guy and he certainly does realize, or a word person. that doesn't sound very reverential. or a word pope. i think aappreciates twitter because of that. he recognizes this is a way to get the message out! the pope is going to be tweeting this seven languages. english, german, italian, portuguese and arabic. why include arabic and leave the latin out? >> why leave the latin out? that's the good question and don't, don't, don't, don't think it's out for good. we'll see what happens because there are actually a lot more people in the vatican who speak latin than arabic, but arabic is an outreach especially after the trip to lebanon. after the trip, the pope started doing a short thing in arabic and it's a shoutout, if you will, to the ch

this is the first time of course, that the pope, a pope has been to cuba in 14 years since john paul ii. and what pope benedict xvi said flying from rome was very interesting. because he said marxism has lost its legitimacy. do you interpret this as a direct challenge to the castro regime? >> it's not a surprise that the holy father said that, andrea, 25 years ago, he talked about the "impossible come proize between christianity and markism." pope benedict knows that cuba remains today a police state, a police state that has a very nasty edge to it. that edge has been revealed in recent weeks as catholic disside dissidents, catholic protesters against the regime have taken to churches and to the streets. soapy think he's going to continue in cuba the theme of religious freedom that he sounded in mexico these past two days. and he will do that, i suspect, both publicly and privately in his meetings with both the cuban government and with the catholic bishops of cuba. >> at the same time, he has said he's not going to meet with dissidents. but the pope has obviously authorized what car

. >> a room full of gifts for the pope. i'm monica in mexico and i have the story behind one of them coming up. >>> the singer whitney houston's family is expressing sadness over the late singer's toxicology results. the los angeles county coroner's office said that the superstar died from an accidental drowning caused in part by cocaine. teresa garcia reports now from los angeles. ♪ >> reporter: the los angeles county coroner's office confirms drugs did play a role in whitney houston's death. >> cocaine use indicated an acute use and it appeared that the cocaine had been used in the time period just probably immediately prior to her collapse in the bathtub at the hotel. >> reporter: houston's body was discovered in the bathtub of her beverly hills hotel room last month the day before the grammy awards. the coroner's office said the superstar was alive when she first went underwater but drowned because of heart problems and chronic drug use. >> chances are had she not had the pre-existing heart disease and cocaine use, she

the pope touching down in mexico about an hour ago. >> jon: these are live pictures as pope benedictered for a welcoming ceremony. it's his first visit threand heads to cuba for the first time on monday. mexico's bloody drug war makes security a big concern. one drug cartel has vowed to keep the peace during the papal visit. >> he blasted idolatry of money root cause of the violence that's killed merely 50,000 people. also worth noting today is the first time we have seen the 84-year-old pontiff using a walking cane in public. the vatican says it's not for any medical reason but helps the pope feel more secure. trace gallagher with the news. what do we expect from the pope's visit to mexico? >> we are expecting, jon, hundreds of thousands of catholics from all across latin america to gather in central mexico. go back to live pictures. see the pope greeting people. behind him is the president of mexico felipe calderon and his wife. the pope will celebrate mass sunday and from his early comments t appears the pope will have very strong words about mexico's drug violence. violence which

this is a man who had constant contact with the pope. of his apartment and doing personal things for the pope. he was kind of a gopher that would do, you know, tell him, hey w need thi hey, we need this, and go do that. that is the kind of thing to happen. and this is not first time that something has been stolen out of the pope's apartment. back in the 1970s, a technician from vatican radio stole some crosses, some gold coins and medals out of the pope's apartment. he didn't go to jail either. >> reverend, do you believe in light of the fact that the church is all about forgiveness here that the pope could pardon him from the charges? >> i'm pretty convinced that eventually he will be pardoned. i hope he is not pardoned until after the trial. i mean, that i think that we need the trial to get all of the information out to find out, you know, did he have accomplices? i hope they are looking at the phone records and the bank accounts, you know, his e-mail, and you know who was he just the pawn being youed by someone else? he's not the, yo

pope. it's the first papal visit to cuba since john paul ii went there in 1998. more on the situation for catholics inside cuba, coming up. >>> in cairo, tens of thousands of coptic christians came out to mourn coptic pope shenouda iii, who died at the age of 88. pope shenouda led the coptic church for more than 40 years, and his death comes as many copts worry about their future in egypt as islamist parties gain more power. religious leaders from around the world praised shenouda for promoting peaceful relations between christians and muslims. but he was also criticized by some younger copts for his support of former president mubarak. it may be several months before a successor to shenouda is chosen. according to church tradition, once three candidates are selected, each of their names is written on a piece of paper and one, who becomes pope, is picked at random by a blindfolded child. >>> memorial services were held throughout france this week for the four victims of a shooting at a jewi

a warm welcome for the pope's three-day visit. in other news, british -- two british soldiers have been shot dead in afghanistan by a man wearing an afghan uniform. the men's families have been informed. another member of the nato led forces in the east of the country was shot dead by a man dressed in afghan police uniform. there are a growing number of incidents in which afghan troops have turned their guns on nato personnel. >> this is a tough conflict at the best of times, but to international troops, the risk of being shot by the very men they are training and is fighting alongside is the hardest when they face. these two deaths bring to 15 the number of british troops who have died this way. the news was announced in the commons. >> details of the incident are still emerging, but it appears a member of the nafta and -- of the afghan national army opened fire, killing the two bridge personnel. the assailant was killed by return fire. -- the two british personnel. the assailant was killed by return fire. >> after stories of u.s

pope benedict's office. the vatican knows what impact the scandal could have, and its spokesman is holding international press conferences almost daily, but few facts have emerged, and so far, the investigation is not public. so speculation continues to grow about cronyism and power struggles. >> of course, there are always conflicts. that is clear. i do not know if they are objective or personal, but certainly, there are conflicts, and letters are written and receive. the worst thing is that this exchange is being undermined. one can no longer talk confidently about things because you do not know whether it will be in the papers the next morning. >> this man is at the center of the fuehrer. cardinal secretary of state and the pope's #two. he has repeatedly come under fire for a lack of diplomatic experience, speaking to view foreign languages, and for his authoritarian style -- speaking to few for -. >> one of the main culprits responsible for the disaster in which the roman curia finds itself. as carter an

this was a man hoserved the pope meals.ess and rode in the front see of the pope mobile at official functions. this was a man from the inner chambers of the vatican. >> brown: one last thing, naomi. has the pope himself said anything about all this? >> reporter: the pope has so far kept pretty silent on the matter. he-- the butler has asked for his forgiveness and expressedói his remorse at betraying the pope as he put it. he did say he considered what he did not to be a crime. now, some people have speculated, some commentators have said that were the butler to be handed down a sentence, the pope could come out and pardon him. but again, that remains to be seen. and it's like-- we're likely to hear the outcome of the trial on saturday, which is the final day when judges are expected to deliver their verdict and offeri a sentence. >> brown: all right naomi o'leary of reuters in rome, thanks so much. >> ifill: and back to presidential politics with a report from a midwestern swing state where votes are being cast, even befo

do not ever lose hope for peace -- that is the message from the pope this christmas. >> pope benedict delivered his twice yearly address from the balcony of st. peter's basilica today. the pontiff touched on political themes as well, calling for peace in syria and appealing to italians to embrace the spirit of cooperation in upcoming elections. >> tens of thousands of people showed up in st. peter's square to hear benedict's message, and millions to and in worldwide. >> tens of thousands of people turned out to hear the pope's christmas message. the square erupted in applause as the pontiff stepped out to address the crowd. he revisited one of the themes of his christmas eve message -- the wish for peace in the middle east. turning and i to syria, he called for an end to the conflict -- turning an eye to syria. the pope appealed to those responsible to stop the bloodshed and slaughter of innocent people. he called for dialogue in order to find a political solution to the conflict. the pope then delivered a christmas message in 65 languages. >> remind the world that true happiness lies

what does it mean to have the pope in cuba?> it is a present that invites to have more faith, more hope, more solidarity. >> reporter: for all the posters and enthusiasm, cuba is the least catholic country in latin america. communist party banned christmas until pope john paul visited in 1998. while most cubans are catholic, far less than 10% are considered practicing. most churches draw modest crowds for mass. the african tradition is far more popular, a mix of catholicism and west african rituals born out of slavery and widely practiced across the island. the pope's visit comes at a time of deepening economic hardship and increased privately run businesses. very small businesses from street vendors to small restaurants. with the decline of communism, the cuban government was forced to lay off state workers by the thousands, forcing people to fend for themselves. pope benedict said the marxist ideology of cuba no longer corresponds with reality. privately people here hope the pontiff will provide heat and light during his thre

the pope started it. the pope wrote a letter to the archbishops of new york and new orleans in 1862, trying to get them to use their influence to mediate an end to the war. the letter eventually became public and jefferson davis and many others read it, and davis wrote a letter to the pope in september 1863, trying to enlist the pope's sympathy and support for the confederacy. the pope wrote back to jefferson davis in december of 1863, and the museum owns that letter, actually. we have it on display right now. although some on the confederate side interpreted it as more or less recognition of the confederacy by the pope it really wasn't that. it was more like a nice diplomatic note, a friendly one, yes, but that's all it was. neither the pope nor any other foreign leader actually recognized the confederacy. but i think jefferson davis had another angle in writing to the pope. i think he would have certainly taken recognition if it was offered but he also new -- remember, this was december 1863, after well

you are talking about the comments that the pope made. another thing was "i am convinced cuba is already looking to the future and is trying to renew and broaden its horizons." how is that going to go down in havana? >> i think these kinds of events are very carefully orchestrated. there are never any real surprises. interestingly, the catholic church here has tried to work from the inside. rather than being a vocal critic complaining about the system, the treatment of political dissidents, it has tried to work within. they are holding reasonably regular meetings with raul castro. they see this visit as enhancing that processed. he talked about the redundancy of marxist ideology. i think there is a sense here that things are changing, albeit very slowly. >> ok, thank you very much for joining us. the threat of famine is something people throughout the vast african sahara region struggled to cope with. is a landscape that the u.n. says puts more than 16 million people in seven countries and in danger of chronic food shortages. niger is par

pope benedict urged cuba's leaders to build on what has been achieved. among those attending the mass where president ronald castro and high-ranking members of his regime. their presence is seen as a goodwill gesture, but the cuban government has reacted warily to the pope's cause for greater freedoms. earlier, a leading official said cuba's political system would not change. analyst pick up on that. i'm joined in the studio by our religious affairs correspondent. john, was it the goal of the pope's visit to set a change in motion? >> i do not think so. i think the change is already in motion. raul castro is no democrat, but he is more pragmatic than his older brother and he realizes that the current system cannot be maintained. he has already reduced government employees by 1 million. he started to privatize the agricultural sector, and estimates are that about 1/3 of the cuban population will be employed in the private sector within the next three years. cuba is really hurtling towards a free-market economy. the pope's goal is to try to help it make a