WASHINGTON (DC)
Chicago Tribune
Michelle Boorstein, Abigail Ohlheiser, Michael R. Ruane
Washington Post
Pope Francis arrived in Washington on Tuesday to a joyous greeting from well-wishers as he began the historic visit that millions of Americans have been awaiting and for which three of the country’s great cities have been anxiously preparing.
The pope’s white and green Alitalia jetliner touched down at 3:50 p.m. on a flight from Cuba at the start of a spiritual and political journey that will take him to the centers of U.S. government, power and history.
Beneath gray skies, the pope stepped off the airplane at 4:05 p.m. at Joint Base Andrews in Prince George’s County and was welcomed by President Barack Obama and a cheering crowd assembled on metal bleachers.
The pope took off his white skullcap as he walked down the steps from the jet to the windy tarmac to greet first lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden and Washington Archbishop Cardinal Donald Wuerl, among others. …
A group of women held signs protesting the Catholic church’s handling of its ongoing pedophile priest scandal.
Becky Ianni held up a photo of herself as a child, saying she left the church for what she called a failure to crack down on clergy sexual abuse.
“When the pope comes into town, we’ve seen posters everywhere, pope cocktails and pope bobbleheads and such good feeling,” said Ianni, who leads the Virginia chapter of SNAP, a group that advocates for people who were abused by priests. “But on the other side of the coin are all the victims that are still hurting.”
Nearby, Russell Heiland and Anthony Ezzell, of Reston, Va., stopped by the nuniciature to get a glimpse of the pope before their celebrating their 25th anniversary at a restaurant in Washington.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.