Joe Biden Has Tense Exchange With Reporter About Not Attending Pope Benedict's Funeral

US President Joe Biden will not attend Pope Benedict's funeral. During an awkward exchange with a reporter ahead of his trip to Kentucky, Biden explained why will he not attend the funeral.

EWTN's Owen Jensen asked the US President, "You're not attending his funeral tomorrow though, why?"

"Well, why do you think?" Biden asks the reporter.

"Well, you tell me," Mr Jensen said.

Biden responded, "you know why," and Mr Jensen asks again, "you can tell me."

"The reason I'm not attending the funeral tomorrow is it would take an entourage of a thousand people to show up," Mr Biden said. "We would move everything in the wrong direction."

The president added, "we would just get in the way." He added that Pope Benedict XVI was a "fine man".

However, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, Joe Donnelly, would be representing the U.S. at the funeral, reported Fox News.

She told reporters, "The U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, Joe Donnelly, will represent the United States at the funeral of the pope, in line with the wishes of the late pope and the Vatican. This is what - this is what their requests were. This is what their wishes were. And so, that's what you're seeing from the U.S."

Benedict, born Joseph Ratzinger, died on Saturday aged 95, bringing an end to an unprecedented situation of having two "men in white" -- he and Francis -- living in the Vatican.

An estimated 195,000 people have already paid their respects during three days of lying in state at the basilica, the Vatican said, Benedict's body in red papal robes laid out in front of the altar.

Benedict was a brilliant theologian but a divisive figure who alienated many Catholics with his staunch defence of conservative doctrine on issues such as abortion.