President Donald Trump will name Callista Gingrich, wife of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, ambassador to the Vatican in the next few weeks, CNN reports.
Gingrich has been the White House’s favorite for the ambassadorship for months, but her nomination has been held up pending approval from the Office of Government Ethics, an administration official told CNN.
Callista, the third wife of Newt Gingrich, is credited with convincing her husband to convert to Roman Catholicism. The couple met Pope Francis briefly in a trip to the Vatican in 2014, according to their blog.
“She’s under consideration” for the Vatican ambassadorship, Newt said shortly after Trump’s inauguration in January.
The White House hopes to nominate Gingrich before Trump’s trip to Rome May 24 to meet with Pope Francis. Trump and the Pope have vastly different opinions, but Francis said he will not pass judgement on the president until they meet face to face.
“Topics will emerge in our conversations. I will say what I think, and he will say what he thinks. But I have never wanted to make a judgment without first listening to the person,” Francis told reporters Saturday.
“Even if one thinks differently we have to be very sincere about what each one thinks,” Francis said.
Francis has criticized two of Trump’s main campaign promises. Francis said the idea of a southern border wall is unchristian, and denying refugees entry into a country is uncharitable.
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