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Pope Tries To Welcome Pelosi

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The Associated Press

Published: February 19, 2009

Pope Benedict XVI received Nancy Pelosi, one of the most prominent abortion rights politicians in the United States, and told her Wednesday that Catholic politicians have a duty to protect life "at all stages of its development."

The House speaker, a Catholic, was the first top Democrat to meet with Benedict since the election of Barack Obama, who won a majority of the U.S. Catholic vote despite differences with the Vatican on abortion.

On his fourth day in office last month, Obama ended a ban on funding for international groups that perform abortions or provide information on the option, a sharp policy change from former President George W. Bush's Republican administration. The Vatican's attempts to keep the Pelosi visit low-profile displayed its obvious unease with the new U.S. administration. Benedict and Bush had found common ground in opposing abortion, an issue that drew them together despite their differences over the war in Iraq.

Wednesday's meeting, in a small room off a Vatican auditorium after the pope's weekly public audience, was closed to reporters and photographers.

The Vatican also said, contrary to its usual policy when the pope meets world leaders, that it was not issuing either a photo or video of the encounter, saying the meeting was private.

A short written statement from the Vatican says the pope "briefly greeted" Pelosi and did not mention any other subject they may have discussed besides abortion.

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