President Trump is expected to attend the funeral of Pope Francis in Vatican City later this week, sources familiar with the plans tell The Post.
The funeral and interment of Francis, who died early Monday at the age of 88, must take place between four and six days after his death, though the exact schedule has yet to be finalized.
At the White House Easter Egg Roll, Trump did not say whether he would attend the funeral, telling reporters: “I don’t know yet. We’re going to be briefed on it right now … I just have to look at the timing.”
“He was a very good man who loved the world, and he especially loved people that were having a hard time and that’s good with me,” the president added when asked how he would remember Francis, whom Trump met during his first term in 2017.
Trump also said he had ordered flags to half-staff across the country to honor Francis, though that direction had not yet been made public as of 1 p.m. Monday.
Then-President George W. Bush and his wife Laura attended the 2005 funeral of John Paul II, the most recent pope to die in office.
The Bushes were accompanied by then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and former presidents Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush.
Francis’ immediate predecessor, Benedict XVI, resigned the papacy in February 2013, almost a full decade before his death on New Year’s Eve 2022.
