The Pope and Trump had a meeting this ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/b\/ba\/Pope_Francis_among_the_people_at_St._Peter%27s_Square_-_12_May_2013.jpg\/1024px-Pope_Francis_among_the_people_at_St._Peter%27s_Square_-_12_May_2013.jpg\" "\\"By")
week and it really didn’t like look like a meeting of minds.\u00a0 Trump was smiling but the Pope did not look happy.\u00a0 As I heard someone predict the Pope gave Trump a copy of his encyclical on climate change.\u00a0 The meeting was short and there was what was described as an “exchange of views”.\u00a0 Presumably they covered such areas as refugees, walls and the environment.<\/p>\n
So far Trump has led to headlines that would have destroyed any candidate much less a sitting president.\u00a0 Almost everyday you rub your ears in disbelief when you listen to the news and move on.\u00a0 However, whilst Trump is trashing a lot of environmental protection in the US (drilling in National Parks, huge cuts to the EPA, etc) he has so far baulked at pulling out of the Paris agreement.\u00a0 There were apparently long discussions about doing so but no decision.\u00a0 I remain reasonably optimistic that he will not do so, but not totally optimistic.\u00a0 In the meanwhile all we can do is pray that he doesn’t do so and sees some sense.\u00a0 His attempts at resurrecting the fossil fuel industry seem doomed to failure as batteries, solar and wind continue to plummet in cost.\u00a0 These are the industries of the future not fossil fuels.<\/p>\n
It seems unlikely that the Pope and Trump will hold any more meetings at least in the short term, but lets hope the Pope has some influence on Trump over issues such as climate change in the longer term…<\/p>\n
Neil<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Pope and Trump had a meeting this week and it really didn’t like look like a meeting of minds.\u00a0 Trump was smiling but the Pope did not look happy.\u00a0 As I heard someone predict the Pope gave Trump a … Continue reading