Transcripts For KGO ABC News Good Morning America 20130228 :

here. >> mostly never. >> full morning ahead. of course, let's go back, now, to george in rome. george? >> and it is just a glorious day here, robin. sunny, warm. almost spring-like. those cardinals that the pope met with this morning have already begun their informal discussions about who the next pope is going to be. and the pope gave them some direction today. they come from 50 countries. and benedict asked them to work like an orchestra, to create harmony out of their differences. abc's david wright is here with us. and, david, the pope made clear that once he steps down, there will be only one pope. >> an important point to make. at the end of this day, for the first time since the middle ages, we will have a pope and an ex-pope. previous popes may well have said their good-byes to the cardinals. but if they did so, it was on their deathbeds. benedict is very much alive. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: today began with the cardinals saying good-bye. exchanging a brief, private moment, one by one, by order of seniority. the venue, the clementine hall at the apostolic palace. the same, ornate room where dead popes lie in state. most recently, pope john paul. before the body is moved across st. peter's square to the basilica. unlike all of the past popes whose reign ended in this room, benedict is the first to leave office still breathing. like a king, attending his own funeral. today, the dean of the college of cardinals thanked him for his service. benedict stood up and embraced him. the pope wasn't expected to speak, but he did. saying, among you is also the future pope, to whom i pledge my unconditional reverence and obedience. that hasn't been an issue for 600 years. today, vatican cameras will follow benedict's departure, minute-by-minute. 19 cameras documenting his trip, live. every angle covered, from his final wave at st. peter's. they'll be there with him on the helicopter, as he flies to castel gandolfo. there, he'll greet the faithful one last time from the balcony. and then, tonight at 8:00 p.m., the swiss guard will leave and the gates will close. symbolically signaling that benedict is no longer pope. so, who is actually in charge in the interim? the papal camalango is in state. we're sure it's going to happen. but he will take the pope's fisherman ring, and deface it. that's officially the pope's signet. and the pope has to give it up because they don't want anybody forging that on a document. george? >> thanks, david. i'm joined now by cardinal timothy dolan of new york, and bishop regali. thank you both for joining us. >> thank you, george. good morning. >> first, your reflections on pope benedict as you said good-bye this morning. >> first of all, we're very grateful to god for having giving us this pope for the last eight years. and we're grateful to pope benedict for all his work. for all his dedication. and for his personal kindness during those years. and at the same time, at the same moment, we're looking forward to receiving god's help to elect his successor. >> you know, i'd echo what cardinal rigali said, too, george. we every day at mass, which is the greatest prayer we have, every catholic in the world, every priest prays, for benedict, our pope. when cardinal rigali and i had mass a little while this morning, we said that. and we commented after mass, that's the last time we'll ever say that. there's a feeling of emptiness. there's a somber tone. we love our pope. he's our holy father. and there's going to be -- not only is the chair vacant. but there's a vacancy in our heart. >> cardinal, you were in the conclave that chose benedict as pope. you were in the vatican. you're the god father to cardinal dolan. brought him along. >> i never considered myself that. >> now, he's on everyone's short list, or just about, to be the pope. >> well, i think we're going to have to let the holy spirit decide that. but you can see he has many virtues, many gifts. >> every time it comes up, you laugh. >> i do. well -- i did so. that's the only appropriate sentiment, i presume. >> and as you prepare to go inside, this conclave, do you think that the consensus choice is already emerging? >> it is a very dynamic process. we assemble in the holy spirit. we ask god's help. we listen. and we know that whoever is chosen has to be the choice of two-thirds of the cardinals. so, it's a very -- it's an experience of learning as we go in. certainly, someone may begin with one candidate and end up with another. >> that's happened before. >> probably. >> he knows more than he's saying. you have that feeling, don't you? >> he's a good guy. >> good luck. thank you very much. >> thanks, george. >> good to be with you. >> thank you. >> thanks. and let's get more on this now from abc's cokie roberts, a veteran vatican watcher. we were hearing that no consensus is forming yet. very different than eight years ago. when cardinal ratzinger was the front-runner for pope. >> he was the guy to beat. it was ratzinger versus not ratzinger. there is no obvious candidate. and they don't know each other very well. more than half of them have been appointed by this pope in the last eight years. so, they have to get to know each other. and then, see who's for whom before they can -- form a consensus. >> discussions have begun even though the conclave hasn't met yet. you pointed out that more than half were chosen by pope benedict. that means he's going to have some influence on the choice, even though he pledged to stay out of it. >> and he pledges to pray for them and hopes that the holy spirit leads them in the right direction. which is interesting, george. in the past, he said the holy spirit didn't have much to do with the conclaves. he didn't want to blame the holy spirit for a bad pope. it is a time when people really don't know what's going to happen. and that makes it exciting but also a little bit scary. the secretary of state -- former secretary of state, who greeted the pope this morning, the dean, said it was with some trepidation that the cardinals met. and i think he means that. i think they really don't know what's going to happen. >> he's never been through anything like this before, either. you saw cardinal dolan laugh off as the idea that he will be chosen pope. most watchers don't believe it's going to be an american. but what about the idea it could be a pope from africa or latin america? >> well, of course, that's where most catholics are. the southern hemisphere, that's where it's growing. it's very hard to break the european barrier. here we are at this beautiful renaissance church. the renaissance was a long time ago. hard to get them to recognize what they still consider the new world. >> cokie roberts, thank you very much. you'll be back for our live coverage of the pope's departure at 10:45 eastern. right now, back to new york and robin. >> a historic and beautiful day there in rome. back here at home, to the extraordinary public clash between the white house and bob woodward, escalating right now. the veteran journalist accusing a very senior person in the obama administration of threatening him over his reporting on the massive budget cuts about to go into effect tomorrow. abc's jon karl joins us, now, from the white house. what's going on here, jon? good morning. >> reporter: well, robin, what's happening here is the white house suddenly finds myself in a war of words with the most famous investigative reporter in america. legendary "washington post" reporter, bob woodward, is accusing the white house of threatening him. >> and it makes me very uncomfortable to have the white house telling reporters, you're going to regret doing something that you believe in. >> reporter: woodward isn't just any reporter. he's the one portrayed along with carl bernstein, in the movie "all the president's men" as taking down richard nixon. now, he's accusing the obama white house of being dishonest about the president's responsibility for those automatic spending cuts set to go into effect tomorrow. first, woodward reported that the cuts were the president's idea. then, he said the white house was trying to change the agreement by asking for tax increases, something the white house says is just flat wrong. >> that's nonsensical. >> reporter: woodward said a top white house official responded by yelling at him for 30 minutes. and then following up with what he said was an e-mail threat. he read the e-mail to politico. >> i think it's important for people to understand, he says, you know, says, i think you will regret staking out that claim. >> reporter: the white house acknowledges that that e-mail was sent. but that woodward is just wrong about how he interprets it. a senior white house official telling me, quote, of course, no threat was intended. the note suggested that mr. woodward would regret the observation he made regarding the spending cuts because the observation was inaccurate. nothing more. and, robin, the white house says that woodward responded to that supposedly threatening e-mail with a friendly exchange back to that senior white house official. >> all right, jon. thanks so much. we're going to turn, now, to josh. other top stories that are developing right now. >> including on wall street, robin. that's where we begin with your money there. the markets clearly shrugging off any concern about the spending cuts in washington. the dow surging. it gained 175 points wednesday, coming now within 89 points of an all-time high. investors are encouraged about rising home sales. and a new statement by fed chairman, ben bernanke, who hinted wednesday that the federal reserve plans to keep pumping money in the economy, and so keeping interest rates low. and there's word this morning of the deepest america involvement thus far in syria's bloody civil war. "the new york times" reports the u.s. is already training rebels at an undisclosed base in the middle east. secretary of state john kerry is meeting with syrian rebel leaders in rome today. and the union boss considered the most powerful woman in mexico is under arrest today. accused of embezzling some $200 million. she ran mexico's teachers union. and allegedly used the money for plastic surgery and mansions in california, as well as a private jet. and near detroit, a suspected gas line explosion leveled 1 house, damaged 35 others. one person was killed in the blast. a blast so powerful, it was heard and felt several miles away. and it is being called the first human mission to mars. millionaire space tourist, dennis tito, wants to send two people to the red planet on a 500-day journey. still has to work out a few kinks, like modifying a space capsule to keep the two people alive. >> oh. >> just a minor kink to work out. he is convinced it will be feasible by 2018. says he wants to use a married couple, saying it's less likely that they'll get lonely. and conflict resolutions will be at a premium. >> you really enjoyed that, didn't you? >> i loved every moment. >> all right, josh. thanks so much. this next piece of video really caught our eye. the hockey coach caught on camera tripping a young player. sending him to the ice. well, that coach is in court this morning. this week, i should say, now facing jail time. abc's rob nelson has that story for us. >> reporter: 48-year-old martin tremblay walked into a courtroom this week for sentencing, fully expecting to walk out, with nothing more than a slap on the wrist. instead, the peewee hockey coach is now facing 15 days behind bars, all because of this. watch as tremblay viciously trips a 13-year-old boy during what's supposed to be a symbol of sportsmanship, the postgame handshake after a game last summer. instead, the boy goes down hard, breaking his wrist and taking a 10-year-old teammate down with him. that ice-cold attack now leading to cold justice, with a canadian judge handing down an even harsher sentence than the one prosecutors had recommended. >> it certainly sends a message. to succeed in sport, you certainly have to have passion, but you also need to have control. >> reporter: tremblay's attorney says the outburst cost his client several construction contracts, volunteer jobs and even his marriage. but he says he will not be appealing the judge's decision. >> he put in years and years coaching hockey. that's all over. he's paid a heavy price. >> reporter: this is not the first time that parental unnecessary roughness has been caught on camera. assistant football coach cory batero was charged with a misdemeanor in 2006, after attacking a 13-year-old player in stockton, california. then, there was this little league brawl in georgia, where several fathers pummeled each other. as for tremblay, he'll likely be sentenced to anger management classes, as well. for "good morning america," rob nelson, abc news, new york. >> every time i see that video, unfortunately, as rob pointed out, not the first time we have seen that. >> it's not. and that postgame handshake, a great tradition. now, to a legal battle at a hair salon over who owns a winning lottery ticket. it's worth $9.5 million. and seven hairdressers are suing a co-worker, saying they bought the ticket as a group. alex perez has the story. >> reporter: after years of coloring hair blonde and brown, this morning, these seven hairstylists are seeing nothing but red. the women all work at this indianapolis salon. but they spent wednesday in a nearby courthouse, asking a judge to straighten out a mess. the hairy situation, started february 16th, when the women along with a co-worker pooled their money to buy lottery tickets. agreeing to split any winnings. but things got tangled after that co-worker, christina shaw, purchased their tickets at this gas station. >> she came in to the shop on monday after the saturday night drawing. and said, we didn't win. but i did. >> reporter: shaw didn't just win, but she won big. hitting a hair-raising jackpot worth nearly $10 million. money she says is hers. shaw's lawyers maintain she bought two sets of tickets that day. one batch paid for by the group. the other out of her own pocket. but the group agreed whoever purchased the tickets had to buy personal tickets somewhere else. it was discussed and mentioned. it was a rule, she said. shaw's attorney told reporters the money is his client's. >> your client believes this is her ticket? >> yes. >> reporter: shaw has now quit her job. and the court has frozen the jackpot until a judge can decide whether the stylists have a case or if they'll be cut out of the winnings. for "good morning america," alex perez, abc news, chicago. >> we heard a few biters. sign it up. >> in triplicate. it happens too often. >> i would give you the 2% that you earned in our group ticket. i would gladly give you the 2%. >> oh, sam. >> wow, sam. thank you. let's start with some big snow pictures. february, the month of snow. pictures from killington, showing 18, 19 inches out of the 1-snow total. look at the new hampshire video. in case you haven't seen snow out of this february, this is what it all looked like into the new england area. kansas city, you're done with your snow so far. but you just missed being your snowiest february ever by 0.2 of an inch. now, these lows pull into new england. light snow falling. a little shower activity, as well. look at the temperatures well down into the deep south. atlanta gets to 28 on sunday. miami, 47. there will be light snow showers in central florida, probably, by the weekend. coming up, we're going to go back to george in rome. and also, the star quarterback on trial, taking the stand in his own defense. star quarterback on trial, taking the stand in his own defense. i don't know. i can ask. c'est un fruit ou un legume? 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[ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. go talk to your doctor. you're not indestructible anymore. >> now from use. >> we should get new details in the deadly shooting of two veteran santa cruz police officers at a news conference. the mayor is expected to announce about funs being set up to help the families of those officers as well as plans for a community memorial service. many in the beach town of 90,000 resolution democrats came -- residents came to write notes and more on the loss of the two police officers. sue? >> going to the peninsula, we have an accident at embarcardero blocking southbound 101. elsewhere, it is crowded but moving through berkeley and to the macarthur maze and when you funnel into the bay bridge, metering lits are on and track is backing the first evercrossing toward the 880 overcrossing. eric? >> when we come back our >> at 7:28. here the temperatures. we are at 55 in pittsburg and richmond and 51 in the financial district and cooler, though, in pleasanton and santa clara at 41 and 40. we are three to nine degrees above where we should be for this time of the year. today is the warmer day in the forecast as we push the mid-to-upper 60's an the bay shore and low 70's inland but not so breezy at the coast with temperatures pushing 60. the warm of the day is tomorrow but check this is startling video of what's called gallons gashing. it's gone viral. teenagers, spilling gallons of milk on the floor, pretending to fall. we'll take you inside this craze and the very real ramifications. >> absolutely nothing funny or cool about it. >> we say good morning, america. george in vatican city. we're going to get back to him with the latest on the pope in a moment. lara taking a little time off. and bianna here with us. also ahead today, a dramatic day in court for the star college quarterback, revealing his side of the story about what he says happened with his accuser. why a text she sent to a friend may, in fact, be a key to this case. and skeptical? or should we finally believe you can eat whatever you want and lose weight? it is called the fast diet. it has a lot of people dropping pounds. >> a lot of folks believe in this. >> i'd like to believe it, that's for sure. also, prince harry showing he's got all the right moves, right now, on his goodwill trip. what he says he hopes his mother, diana, would say right now. >> he loves being with the kids like that. let's go back to george at vatican city on this historic day. benedict, in his final hours as pope, before stepping down. pledging loyalty to his successor. george, give us a sense of what it's like to be there right now. >> you could feel the history, robin. just a few hours left, now, in pope benedict's papacy. and people are starting to gather in st. peter's square here in rome. his meeting with the cardinals has ended. here's what's going to happen next. 5:00 rome time, 11:00 on the east coast. the pope will leave the vatican, go to the helipad behind st. peter's and take off for castle gandolfo. that's about a 15-minute helicopter ride. vatican cameras will follow it. we'll cover it live here on abc news. he'll address the townspeople there in castle gandolfo. and his papacy ends. at this moment, the swiss guards who have been protecting popes for more than 500 years, the longest standing army in the world. you see them there in their colorful uniforms. they will leave castle gandolfo and close the doors and walk off-duty. that will end the papacy for pope benedict. and a new chapter in the catholic church will begin. robin? >> george, we'll get back to you in a little bit. so great to have you there. now, to the dramatic trial of the star university of missouri quarterback. taking the stand for what he says is his side of the story. linsey davis is here with the latest. >> reporter: good morning, robin. we heard johnson definitively say again and again, he never sexually assaulted his accuser. we also heard from his high school coach and from his dad, that he'd never been in trouble. that he studied the bible, went on mission trips. and when johnson got a letter from the dean's office accusing him of rape, johnson says he was shocked beyond belief. from the witness stand, jordan johnson, former star quarterback for the university of montana, now accused of forcing a former acquaintance to have sex with him, said no, means no. but that his accuser never said that word. >> she never said no. i would have heard her. and i would have listened to her. and i would have stopped. >> reporter: for the first time, johnson explained directly to jurors wednesday, what he says happened that night. that they agreed to watch a movie in her room. he had been drinking. and asked her to pick him up. >> i liked her as a person. i didn't like her as, like, a girlfriend-type. >> reporter: he says about 15 minutes into the movie, they started kissing on her bed. and things quickly escalated. >> she wasn't resisting in any way. and she was still kissing me. >> reporter: he testified that she seemed to be enjoying herself. that she drove him home afterward. and she saw a message she sent to a friend right after the incident, where she texted a smiley face. >> she seemed fine. if she seemed upset, i would have asked her what's wrong? >> reporter: the incident happened last february. but it wasn't until more than a month later that the 21-year-old alleged victim, whose name isn't being reported, told authorities he raped her. but the defense described the victim as a spurned woman, who was jealous of a new relationship johnson was having with another woman. >> i was kind of starting to think about [ bleep ]. and i didn't want her to know that i had sex with another girl. >> reporter: this case that has divided the university and surrounding community, could likely be in the hands of the jury to decide as soon as tomorrow. testimony resumes today for the defense's final witness. johnson is charged with sexual intercourse without consent. a felony that carries a maximum sentence of 100 years in prison. robin? >> linsey, thank you. let's bring in legal analyst, dan abrams. jordan johnson, did he hurt or help himself? >> he survived. that's all he needed to do. in inconsistencies in his account. no differences from his police interview. the prosecutors are focusing in regards to how much did he drink that night? where were his hands? how long did the incident occur? they say there's some inconsistencies there. as a result, i think it was a net positive for him to have taken the stand. >> it is a classic he said/she said. it has us here in the studio buzzing. and to be able to prove something like that, is that what they're really up against right now? >> the problem is, they have to prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt. as a result, i will be stunned if there's a conviction here. i don't say that lightly. that does not mean she's lying. that does not mean prosecutors should not have brought this case. it means to prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt, to get 12 jurors to agree that there is enough evidence to send him away, i think is going to be incredibly difficult for prosecutors, based on the evidence we've heard in this case. >> is there one piece of clear evidence that supports her claim? >> it's the fact that she texted immediately thereafter, to a friend, basically saying, she thought she was raped. but most important, it's her account. this is that great debate have around the country all the time. when a woman says she was raped, we have to take that very, very seriously. >> of course. >> and as a result, this is a woman who over a series of time, and there's people who came forward who said she was talking about it before she reported it to the authorities. that she was incredibly upset when talking about the incident, et cetera. so, there are other witnesses here, in addition to her, that help support her story. but proof beyond a reasonable doubt to send him away for up to 100 years, that is going to be very difficult in this case. >> and jordan has had a lot of character witnesses on his behalf. again, it goes down to a classic he said/she said. what is next? >> the case is almost over. one more witness today. closing arguments on friday. we could have a verdict shortly thereafter. you also have the possibility of a hung jury. one or two jurors who are unwilling to go with a majority. but again, i'll be really surprised if they're able to get 12 jurors beyond a reasonable doubt. and i'll bet the prosecutors know that, too. >> we'll see what happens, dan. back down to sam. sam? >> hey, robin. we're going to start with the pictures out of midland, texas. the gentle tumbling tumbleweeds. that's 50-mile-per-hour to 60-mile-per-hour, that took every tumbleweed in the area and piled it up against one house. going to make more than a little weed whacker to get rid of that. that's how gusty and dry it's been in the texas area. we're in drought. the worst part is fire danger there. we'll show you what temperatures are like in the west. we're on a warm trend. it's the only place in the country in the next couple days, the southwest, that has gorgeous weather. palm springs, l.a. almost 80 degrees. when you consider that normal is about 69, this is way above normal. and beautiful, beautiful weather. there's snowfall to be caught up in the northeast. as the low pulls away it's going to take its time. it's a big circulation here. that means additional snowfall in five to eight inches in >> see they werebling tumbleweeds. spilt milk. inside the prank causing a controversy. and the 16-year-old model in a very provocative pose. why her makeup is causing a big backlash right now. 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(woman) it's just been an amazing, amazing journey. i love these people. ♪ and it's beautiful here's "the play of the day." >> a musical entry today. i love the bruno mars. very few people can sing like bruno mars can. he has a great song, "grenade." there's this young fellow, though. kyle langer. >> okay. >> take a look. singing "grenade." ♪ >> he can sing, indeed. this is a 4-year-old who feels the weight of the world. >> the cutest words ever in the history of mankind. it's heartbreakingly cute. >> thank you, kyle langer of austin, texas. >> and the hat. >> you are the best. i feel pain. i don't even know why. give me some milk. unbelievable "deals & steals" just for you. go nowhere. >> sparkling boxes. [ male announcer ] how do you make america's favorite recipes? just begin with america's favorite soups. bring out chicken broccoli alfredo. or best-ever meatloaf. go to campbellskitchen.com for recipes, plus a valuable coupon. campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. ♪ >> announcer: this is an abc news special report. ♪ farewell to pope benedict. now reporting live from rome, italy, george stephanopoulos. >> hello from rome. a glorious day here in rome where history is being made today. you see the vatican right there. st. peter's basilica, the final hours of the living pope, benedict xvi preparing to leave for the first time, the first pope in almost 600 years to relinquish power and retire. there he is leaving the vatican right now. accompanied by secretary of state bertone and he will walk out into the courtyard of san damaso where swiss guards and the entire household will say farewell to their pope. the pope moving slowly now. eight years as pope. said he was retiring in part because he was no longer up to the physical, intellectual and emotional demands of the job. and this farewell has been remarkably personal. the pope yesterday in his general audience speaking about both the joys and the burdens of that office. earlier today he said farewell one by one to the cardinals, 207 cardinals in all, not all were there today. and now he is walking out into that courtyard for the last time. that is the secretary of state to his right walking right ahead. the swiss guards, the army protecting popes for 500 years. and the pope now getting applause from members. i'm joined by donald cardinal wuehrl. you had the chance to say your own personal good-bye. >> i did. i had the opportunity along with all the other cardinals one by one to go up, greet him and really just express great affection for him and it was a very hard thing to say good-bye, the first thing that he said to me was, ah, washington. i remember my visit. because it was almost five years ago. >> so personal but the pope also so conscious of the president, he has said in the history he is making right now. i was struck in those remarks to you where he pledged reverence and obedience to the successor pope. >> every bishop pledges that when he is named bishop that he will be owe bead cent to the holy father and the holy father is setting the example now. he is no longer going to be pope and he is pledging his loyalty to the new pope. i thought it was a beautiful and touching -- >> it was beautiful and cokie roberts, longtime vatican watcher, as well. everything here brand new, no one living has ever seen anything like this before. >> to say the words brand new and vatican in the same breath are really quite remarkable in itself, but that is the case. now, we've seen, of course, the ceremony and the swiss guard and all of that before, but the idea of a retiring pope is totally n unprecedented in hundreds of years, as you said, and that's why even though as cardinal wuerl said, it is very important for him to say them now. >> essential. he is getting in the car. he will be driven to a helipad on the vatican grounds and take a short 15-minute helicopter ride to the castel gandolfo, which is -- that's the papal summer residence with -- the pope loves that place. i want to go to ron claiborne outside the courtyard of castel gandolfo, ron. what is the scene there? >> well, george, about 2,000 or 3,000 people have been taking part in a silence of prayer preparing for the arrival of the pope in about 20, 30 minutes from now. many of these people are from local communities around here, villages including the one that i'm in here, castel gandolfo. it is here where history will be made in about half an hour, two hours from now, george. the pope will be inside this palazzo, the pontifical palace at the hour of 8:00 local time he is officially cease being the pontiff and at that moment in what we expect to be a dramatic development, the swiss guard who, of course, are the pope's official guards, will leave the front door there, that wooden door you see in front of the palace and at that moment, pope benedict will become pope emeritus. benedict no longer the leading figure in the catholic church, george. >> you see the aerial view of the pope as he drives to that helipad. bring in john, longtime journal and author of "the vatican diaries." in this move by the pope to retire has been described as revolutionary. >> it is revolutionary. and, you know, i suppose it could be seen as traumatic for the church, as well. that's why i'm very interested in seeing the pope's demeanor as he's gone through these farewells the last few days. i think he's gone out of his way to reassure the catholic church that, yes, this is new, but it is not traumatic. you even see it in the low-key way he is greeted individuals with smiles, the personal asides that he's made. you know, this is a moment that's full of drama. everyone here knows history is being made, and, yet, the pope seems 0 have almost a low-key approach to it. >> like all moments full of drama in rome it has accompanied by sirens and horns as the pope makes his way to that helipad. terry moran joining us, as well. so many have been struck by the humility of the pope in the final hour. >> something else over the past couple of days, the affection. this is a pope who came into office with the reputation of a tough guy on doctrinal issues. >> god's rottweiler. >> and he's transformed his own image and i think we've seen over the past couple of days in his relationship to the people in the square behind us yesterday and to the world at large, he's transformed himself into something very, very different and i felt this tremendous affection towards him as he leaves. >> so interesting, cardinal wuerl, this pope who has been known as a pope -- fiercely defending the traditions of the church chose to emphasize the living reality of the church, the living reality of the church. >> part of what he was trying to communicate was the continuity. that's at the heart of the office of pope and i think he was saying to all of us in this very gentle way, the church goes on. i have served. i've done my best. it's now time in my judgment to move on, but what continues is the gospel, the work of the church and just the way he has presented himself has highlighted that. >> i think he also, though, was deeply moved and he said those words and this is not an emotional man. this is not an italian. this is a german, and he -- and he has seen all those people including a lot of young people and babies and all that and he's been saying over and over, this is a living church. this is -- this is a body -- this is the mystical body, and i think that that is something that really struck him too so that he's developed an affection for the people in the same way they have developed one for him. >> the pope now reaching that helipad right now. he'll get on that helicopter as we said for the short 15-minute ride accompanied by many members of the pontifical household, private sectors, archbishop, his butler and personal physician and arrive with him to his home for the next several weeks, an apartment inside the vatican, a cloister for nuns will be prepared for his life as pontiff emeritus, a life, john thavis, that will be devoted to studying prayer and meditation. >> i think the church is happy to take him at his word at that. there is no job description for a retired pope. and it's going to be pope benedict emeritus who writes that job description. i think everyone in the church knows that here is a man of great discretion, a man who would never interfere with the work of his successor. >> i want to interrupt you there because i was speaking with cardinal dolan of new york yesterday -- this morning, and he said that he hopes the pope continues to write. is that realistic for a retired pope to have published writings? >> well, it could pose a question because obviously if he publishes, he may be saying some very interesting things. it's hard to imagine pope benedict not writing. it's hard to imagine him not thinking, not studying. >> cardinal wuerl, i see you wincing at published writing. >> i think he can write but i wonder when those become public is going to be the real issue, timing, yes. >> we have seen the final suite from the pope, the first pope to have a twitter account. he has now sent out his last tweet "thank you for your love and support. may you always experience the joy of putting christ at the center of your lives." terry moran, the pope speaking of the joy of his office yesterday, and also the troubles and this has not been easy. >> it hasn't. it's been eight years which has shaken the faith of the church and in the ideas of many non-catholics because of some of the scandals and the pictures of the workings of the church and through it all he has had to bear those burdens and as his eminence says keep preaching the gospel to a world who done much want to hear it certainly so that's been a struggle for him and been frank about how hard it's been. >> that sexual abuse scandal touched not only the united states but just about every country where the catholic church is -- >> and it has really shook the church to its foundations and the faithful to our foundations. it is something that is so dispiriting and wrong in every way wrong, sinful and the idea that the first of these abuses would happen and then they would be covered up has really taken away the moral authority of many of the church spokesmen at a time when it's been needed in the world as a whole. >> cardinal wuerl, you and your fellow cardinals prepare to choose the next pope how does the church restore itself? >> i think there is one particular way in which we have to deal with this, we've already taken the steps to address it and see it doesn't happen again but what we have to do and i think what cokie said is right on target, we have to rebuild the confidence in the church and the way we do that is to do what the church does best, her ministry, preach the gospel, care for the poor, be there for people, in parishes, i think that's where confidence will be restored. >> as the pope prepares to take off we're hearing the bells over rome right now. i want to go to david wright just outside st. peter's square. we see the bells right there. tell us the scene there now. >> well, you've got a growing crowd gathered to watch this event on tv screens that are permanently posted in st. peter's square as the bells ring, i'm reminded of the moment when benedict stepped out on that balcony eight years ago. none of us expected we would be back here so soon and i think at the end of his papacy approaches, you can see the church almost adapting its rich wallets, inventing -- adapting what is normally reserved for just the death of a pope to this transition today. we're going to be seeing him every step of this way on his journey from st. peter's to castel gandolfo and the crowd here certainly seems to be eager to see him off. >> all the bells of rome now building to say farewell to pope benedict xvi as he prepares to leave rome for the last time as pope taking off there from the vatican on his way to castel gandolfo where at 8:00 p.m. tonight rome time, 2:00 p.m. eastern time in the united states his resignation will take effect, and, cokie, as terry was saying a minute ago and the bells and that sign "grazie" suggest a real outpouring of affection in the final hours. >> yes, absolutely, but coming at a time that is very, very difficult and this is cardinal wuerl and his colleagues will have to deal with as they go into conclave and not too long from now, we assume, your eminence and, you know, one of the things that we see, for instance, is in the american church, even though people are faithful to the religion, they are not necessarily agreeing. >> and we see the helicopter over our shoulders right now as the pope is taking off. and, cardinal, cokie does bring up the heavy responsibility you and your fellow cardinals share meeting on monday to decide when the conclave begins and then 115 of you, 117 are eligible will begin the process of choosing the next pope. just tell everyone at home a little bit about how that process is going to begin and how you'll conduct yourselves. >> well, as you point out, monday morning we'll begin this preconclave session and the purpose of that is twofold. the cardinals have to get to know each other better, personally, since we're going to be picking one to be pope so that will be part of it. >> more than half of you will be voting -- were chosen by pope benedict so you don't know each other, as well. >> have never been in a conclave -- >> that's why this period builds in just to get to know one another and all the little details of preparing for the choosing and also just reading the rules to us so we all get familiar with how this all works, but then comes the moment of the conclave itself. and when that moment is on us and we go into the sistine chapel and that's all closed, now comes the solemn function of choosing who will succeed this wonderful, beloved pope who we see now flying away. >> i should point out at this point the pope himself is a helicopter pilot. he's not flying this time. but he does -- he does enjoy flying and talk about the qualities you believe you and your colleagues are looking for most at this moment. certainly over your left shoulder. >> circling st. peter's. >> provides him one last view of his city, one last view of the city of which he is still bishop for a couple more hours and i think it gives everyone a chance to offer a prayer for him as he flies over as he's doing right now. >> right over us. >> right over us right now. >> you can hear the rotors right there, st. peter's basilica on those screens in the square. >> george, i'm struck as he takes his last view of where he's lived and served how different his life is going to be. talking about this life he's going to have in seclusion from serve -- the servant of god, the ruler of a billion and 200,000 catholics to a -- >> john, you get the sense you have at times during his papacy that is the life he would prefer. >> absolutely. >> i think the pope will be happy to devote the rest of his days to reading, to writing to playing the piano, which he does and probably to feeding some of his cats which i understand he's going to be taking with him to his monsatic setting. there are questions. will the pope come out of the vatican at any time? he, of course, is a free man. he can do so, and as his helicopter flies over rome, i know probably every roman is out is there looking up in the sky and if not waving outwardly waving this their hearts because they really have a sympathy for this pope. >> you wonder, we're talking about these precedents at the moment when the new pope is picked, it's his first phone call when he leaves the conclave to the pope emeritus, cardinal? >> does he leave a note like the president did. we would have been fascinated by all of this. >> all new. never done this before. the one link of continuity the great bells, they're the same bes that rang to announce he was elected. >> he just flew over the circus maximus. we're fascinated with what he will wear. what he's going to be called. we now know that. >> we know about what he will wear. he will wear a simple white cassock every day, the red shoes that received so much attention will be replaced by simple brown shoes made by craftsman in mexico. the pope was there last year. >> one pair. he might need a few pair. >> he'll lead a very simple life. that is something that is quite clear from everything we've been told so far. >> and the signs of office -- >> don't you think that's why he chose a cloistered convent to be his home? i don't think we're going to see or hear much of him by his preference. this is a retirement for a man who loves to read and write. he doesn't need all of this public attention. >> when he gave his audience, his last audience yesterday and he talked about becoming pope, he essentially said, lord, let this cup pass from me, and if i have to do this, i'll do it, but it was not something that he took on with joy. >> and he has said publicly that he is going to lead a life, quote, hidden to the world. >> hidden to the world and i think that's probably as much by necessity as by preference. his personal preference is precisely that, but i think it's absolutely necessary that there be no confusion. we have a pope and the new pope will be pope. >> and cardinal wuerl, so much discussion about whether he will have anything on the choosing. clearly he will not be active in any way but has chosen, 57%. can you elaborate a little on the quality that you and your fellow appointees by pope benedict might share? >> well, this holy father has asked us over the years to focus on a couple of things, to focus on at the level of academia, the level of the intellectual world, to focus on the compactability of reason and faith, so that we're able to talk to this modern world. and i think this is going to be the real focus of whoever is elected pope. we have to begin once to preach the gospel in a convincing way, to help all those people in a simplistic way, young people for whom the gospel doesn't seem to say much. we have to find a way. >> he did give you one piece of direction today when he spoke to all of you, of course, the cardinals will be electing the next pope come from 50 different countries. he asked all of you as a great orchestra to work in harmony. >> i think that's one of the things that you will recognize -- not been in conclave as a voting member, but recently we had a meeting of many cardinals working together and when they come from all around the world the focus moves very quickly to where they came from to what the task is today. and the task today is going to be the work of passing on -- >> the past can be wildly different when you're talking about a universal church. in some places it's dealing with the crisis of aids. in some places it is dealing the growth of islam and what that means for the church. i mean these men can't be divorced from their homes and their reality. >> no, but what they bring with them is all of that into the conclave so you're going to have a reflection of the entire world but what it will be focused on is who will best carry on the spiritual mission of the church in the very -- >> in the meantime, there will be no pope while you are all in conclave. getting a lot of questions from viewers. facebook from kelly larson and john thavis, she wants to know, maybe it's a he, who is governing the catholic church, vatican city or benedict leaves at 8:00 p.m. tonight. >> sure, of course, in the state of a conclave period a lot of things that the vatican normally does simply comes to an end, a temporary end. most of the main vatican agencies stop their current projects. the prefecks of these agencies are -- >> everything on hold. >> everything is on hold. >> except the -- brand-new -- >> there are some housekeeping things and cardinal bertone takes care of those and the dean of the college of cardinals has the biggest job really of convening these meetings called general congregations which as cardinal wuerl pointed out begins monday. he will preside over those and that really will be the main role. >> when you meet in those general kong get gags you talk about qualities but never names in the congregation. >> i would suspect you could say to someone do you think so and so has all of these qualities? >> but that's privately. >> oh, yes, yes. >> not in the congregation. >> not in the congregation itself but one of the reasons why there's a coffee break is so you can do these things. >> not to mention dinner, there's dinner. >> cokie, this is something you're familiar with. as i think about this conclave meeting, it seems most -- of course there are many differences but most analogous to the election of house speaker. a group of members of congress choosing one of their peers, it can be anybody, doesn't have to be one of their peers but in practice it almost always is. >> it is, and the pope alluded to that this morning when he said one of you will be taking this job and, of course, that's a very difficult, as you know, george, job to fill because lots of different elements and different people with different constituencies and desires for themselves, as well as for the house of representatives and the country as a whole. and i think that's what happens here, as well. >> terry, from what we can tell at least so far this is quite different. this conclave could be quite different from the one eight years ago when cardinal ratzinger was chosen to be pope benedict. he seemed to be next in line eight years ago. this is far more wide open. >> in american politics we have the great mentioner. who is going to be the next president -- you start mentioning and the great ment n mentioner has one name in the last conclave, more or less. and it was cardinal ratzinger who became benedict xvi. >> it was not another group of names. >> wouldn't part of that be the fact that every single cardinal in that conclave knew him. he had been here in rome so long. he was the right hand of the pope. every cardinal knew him. >> so is there someone like that now? >> there is no one like that now and as you pointed out, 50% of us, over 50% of us are cardinals made by benedict so there's no one person who was a part of this continuity for the entire pontificate of benedict. >> the largest single group inside that conclave, of course, will be italians, about a quarter of the electors and i guess some feeling in certain parts of the church it's time for the papacy to be returned to an italian. also a lot of interest, of course, for all of our viewers, is there a possibility of an american pope, we were speaking yesterday, you're quite skeptical, cardinal. >> well, i think there's -- the reality and the fantasy. fantasy is loads of fun but i think when we get back to who could possibly be chosen, coming from a super power, i think that would raise real serious challenges. i believe there are across the church people confident to be pope and that would include north america and our country. but whether or not it would be the wisest choice, i think that's -- >> john thavis, i know it's difficult to talk about this with someone voting here but you talked about the idea that perhaps the boldness that the pope has shown in taking the step of retiring will inspire the cardinals who will choose the next pope. >> it's hard to say how the cardinals will react. i'm not a cardinal, of course. but if i were going into that room, i would want to take my cue from pope benedict in a sense. he has brought the papacy more fully into the modern world and i think the cardinals might really look at how the office of pope should work in the modern world. especially in terms of management. and the relationship between the pope and the roman curia. i think there are a number of things that could be done, you know, some of them more radical than others, but i'm thinking there may be an appetite for change even here in the vatican and that pope benedict may have sparked some creative thinking with this move. >> one of the things, though, we are, again, this might be fantasy, but is that we are at a time when, as you said, your eminence, young people are not necessarily relating, and you see, for instance, and i'm looking at numbers of the american catholics, where two-thirds disagree on issues like married priests and women in the priesthood. so do you see any appetite for some sort of council or something to open the windows of the church in the way that john xxiii did. >> i wonder what will probably see is much more along the lines of the new pope saying all of this is happening. it now falls to me to begin to address that and one of the areas of addressing that is much better use of communication, the meanings of communication. i think the voice of the holy father can be active and i think this is one thing that john said that's very, very true. we're seeing a pope has opened the doors to a whole new way of the papacy -- >> first twitter account as you said. >> we just heard that. what he -- what he said to everybody. but wouldn't it be -- wouldn't it be reasonable, more than reasonable, wouldn't it be really the inspiration of this pontificate to say to the next pope, you have to be everywhere electronic. >> i and not only electronically but globally how do you all balance as cardinals the need to pay attention to those parts of the world where the catholic church is growing most quickly, latin america, asia, africa and here in europe where it's had more trouble and has actually been shrinking. how do you balance that out? >> this is one of the things that came to light, surfaced during the recent synod, the gathering of bishops, this enormous energy in the church in africa. enormous energy. that there's growth in asia. there is a reawakening in parts of south america and you're absolutely right. we have to look at that and say, how do we tap into that and how do we be present to all of that in a way that's effective? >> and relevant, cokie roberts. >> that's what i was just about to say, george. it's not just that the pope says it and say it in ways he they can hear it but what he says and i think that's a serious problem in the modern world. >> well, we have to keep in mind, though, that while personalities change, while faces of the popes change, while their approach changes, the message is always the same. the gospel message, the creed isn't going to change so when i am faced with statistics there are a lot of people unhappy with this or that, part of it i say to myself has to do with how have we presented it? in what terms have we presented it? >> and perhaps pope benedict's greatest contribution has been as a teacher, as a theologian. we just heard john talk about the need for perhaps a manager in the church. what other singular qualities are you looking for? >> i think the first and most important one would be we would have to see in this cardinal a person of deep faith. we would have to see someone who just radiates a sense of closeness to god. then you begin to look around. i'm not certain that i would trade a good spiritual for a good manager. you can always find a manager so that might be part of what we would be looking for. >> the pope touching down now. his helicopter ride has ended. he'll be heading now to castel gandolfo for his last few hours now as pope, less than three hours remaining in the papacy of benedict xvi. at 8:00 p.m. he will no longer be pope. ron claiborne, has the crowd sensed that the pope has touched down? >> they do not know that. there are no monitors here. they're still praying in anticipation of his arrival. you see though behind me now the swiss guard. they've opened that door that i indicated earlier was closed. the guard is there in preparation for that moment at 8:00 when they will close the door officially slam it shut and leave. at that point it will become the former pontiff. if you look up to the second, third floor there, they've sort of a microphone and a papal tapestry where the pope while still the pope is expected to address this crowd now growing about 3,000 or 4,000 people. that is very likely to be a very emotional moment here in this piazza outside the castel gandolfo, george. >> terry moran, perhaps the most personal comments yet, the general audience yesterday and meeting with the cardinals today. >> he's the bishop of rome. here the bells pealing farewell and the people gathered there to greet him and put him into his retirement and at the stroke of 8:00 local time tonight, he stops being not just pope but their bishop too. >> to underscore the point you made he's being met by cardinal bertone, the president of the pontificate commission for the city state and when he gets to castel gandolfo he'll be met there by the mayor. >> it's interesting. at the briefing today, the vatican spokesman father lombardi made a point, one of the things that interested everyone is the question of the fisherman's ring that the pope wears and the seal with which he signs documents and father lombardi says don't be -- let's be a little prudent are the words he used about this. don't have in mind that somebody is going to smash these things. it's just defacing them slightly so that they can't be used again but he did make a point of saying that the pope is entitled to wear the ring until 8:00 tonight and at that point, the ring comes off. >> and the symbolism, the church uses so much symbolism because it speaks sometimes better than words, the fact that the swiss guard will walk away from that door will say visually to people, he is no longer the person who is in here is no longer the pope. >> so we are no longer in charge of guarding him. >> getting other questions from our viewers as we watch here. one on twitter and john thavis, let me give it to you from amanda johnson, how the new pope's name is chosen how joseph ratting george became pope benedict xvi. >> it is the pope himself who chooses that name and one wouldty that they would be thinking very carefully about the name. it always has significance, you know, benedict chose the name in part because of the figure of his -- the last pope benedict but st. benedict. there are some names that have a long history of being used by popes like pius, for example, there are some names that have never been used like francis and joseph. so obviously when that announcement is made everyone will be listening. >> in some ways that choice of benedict by benedict turned out to be prophetic because that pope led -- was known for leading in turn leapt times. this pope, as well. >> exactly. >> we can see right behind us the balcony on which the pope comes out and tells us what his name will be. first the leader of the cardinals comes out and says -- the pope tells us what his name will be. i pus say, cardinal, do you look up there and think, wow in another ten days or so we'll -- >> you have look at that square. you have to envision someone standing in that loggia and i think that's part -- two elements to it, one is who will it be but, two, it's going to be peter with just another name and that's what gives -- that's what gives that thought of that church such meaning, the continuity of it. the permanence of it. >> david wright in the square right now. that square will be even more crowded in just a couple of weeks when that new pope comes out to greet the faithful. >> absolutely, every time the smoke appears here or we're told that the smoke is going to appear, the crowd fills up with people, a very expectant atmosphere as people look forward to figuring out who the next pope will be. the first hint of it comes in latin as a pronouncement is made and when benedict's name was announced you could hear dripping off the tongue of the person making the announcement, you could just hear the name ratzinger and there was a collective gasp and a pleading of excitement from some people. the mood today very different. i should point out these things are timed to precision. nobody does showmanship quite like the catholic chump and clearly timed this to show the sun set over st. peter's square. the sun is setting on his papacy as he moves into retirement and a new day dawns for the church. >> and as you talk about that announcement of the next pope i have to go to john thavis, in your new book "the vatican diaries" you tell in detail all the confusion created when cardinal ratzinger was -- >> it is, in fact, one of the most orchestrated moments in church theater, if we want to use that word. you would have thought they would have added every -- >> the white smoke. >> the white smoke is always confusing because it looks dark, it looks white and then it looks gray and everybody, the whole world and especially journalists are going around saying, what is it? what is it? what is it? >> i remember it well. >> the bells were supposed to ring the last time as soon as the pope was elected. they didn't. hfs a long pause. minutes passed, 10, 15 minutes passed. finally the bells did ring but the reason i discovered later for the delay was that the guy who was supposed to push the button didn't really want to take that order from a swiss guard who was the person telling him to ring the bell. he waited for his own boss to tell him. >> he waited and waited and the entire world waited, as well. 15 minutes. >> what was so wonderful, there we were all of us in the 21st century stuck because we couldn't tell what color the smoke was. it was so anxious and had all of us completely -- >> there's something to be said about the pageantry because otherwise we can get so caught up in everything being routine and when you deal with the church that's really -- >> and the pageantry is designed to lift people out of the routine. >> yes, and when john said how this is all so well planned, we have been doing liturgy for 2,000 years so when you want to plan something you already have a whole life experience of what would lift people's hearts. and this is an example of it. >> you know, i think there's a balance that needs to be struck to some degree because as beautiful as this is and as symbolic as it is, it is so old world and it is exclusionary to women and to people who are not in the red hat and i think that the church needs to pay attention to that. >> the pope now has arrived at castel gandolfo. that is his archbishop by his side i believes that he's heading inside the doors. as we said he will address the townspeople gathered in the square and then go behind those closed doors for his final two hours or so as pope. >> he seems far more frail than even just a year ago. >> that was apparent today when he walked into the clementine hall with all of the cardinals. when he talked about not having the energy, it's true. the beautiful thing is that he was humble enough to admit it. >> in some ways, cardinal wuerl, this frees the next pope to make i similar decision if necessary. >> george, i think that's the real revolutionary thing. i think that is going to be the element that historians will look back on and say benedict made it possible for every pope in the future. >> is there still not the risk, this very divisive issue in the church. imagine this pope, the next pope taking a different line on women priesthood or the role of the priesthood and some cardinals who don't like that line going to the old pope in seclusion and saying one word to us, papa benedict, just one and we can take it back to the world and stop this. is that a risk? >> i think he would probably say do you remember that talk i gave on my loyalty and fidelity and obedience, maybe you ought to go back and read it again. >> a pertinent lesson for him to live by in these days as a retired pope, as a pope emeritus. another question on his life as pope emeritus coming from mike. john, does the pope get a salary? will he have a pension? >> you're giving me all the tough questions. the vatican i don't think has specified whether he'll get a pension but the presumption is, yes, he'll be taken care of. there was a rome newspaper that reported, i believe, he'll be getting about $3,000 a year. he won't be going out to spend that money, so it's impossible to really tell what that means. he, of course, gets the health caregiven to everybody in the vatican and have the assistance of the consecrated women who make up his household who run his household while he's living in this monsatic setting. >> hearing cheers from the crowd inside the castel gandolfo. ron claiborne, what are they saying? >> well, george, they hear the bells tolling so they know now that the pope is here. almost here and there is a pap panel excitement, a buzz to the crowd. previously they've been pretty quiet praying quietly. the pope will be arriving any minute now and addressing -- will be addressing the group shortly. >> we can feel that excitement coarse through the satellite. >> we're seeing an observatory. cardinal wuerl, you made the point about the reason and the faith and castel gandolfo is a place where a great deal of science goes on and people are not aware of that. >> that's part of the tradition of the church that goes back centuries and centuries, the idea that human intellect, human reason is a great gift from god and we should be using it. we should be using it at its full force. that's why there is this ancient observatory out there. >> but it's doing very modern work. >> yes. >> and working with scientolois all over the world and in the united states. >> encouragements and people do need to appreciate this engagement. i think part of what we have to try to do today is once again simply let people see the true faith of all the things the church -- >> let people see a world they don't normally see. cokie, you're one of the few who have been to castel gandolfo. tell us about it. >> it was an early summer morning. my mother and my husband -- >> there you are right there. >> that was in the vatican. but with the swiss guard but my mother and jewish husband and i went and we were -- there's the castel gandolfo. and -- you see how much more casual it is. we were in a holding room for awhile and we thought they had forgotten about us and then we -- i went out to the hallway as a reporter and said where is everybody and finally someone came and brought us down this narrow hallway and unexpectedly we turned left into a tiny chapel that was profused with light and there as close to me as john is to me was pope john paul ii praying very simply and my husband who is jewish and i both just felt the moment of spirituality unlike something neither one of us has ever felt and completely unguarded and unexpected as we turned into the chapel there and then we had a mass where the pope was really too weak to really pray orally but he was there on his knees throughout with others saying the mass for him. so it was quite, quite a moment. >> and, of course, pope john paul, cardinal wuerl, teaching a very different lesson in his final days to the public. >> yes, and i think pope benedict summed it all up in his remarks that he made. there are many ways to carry a cross. everyone has a cross to bear in life. but there are many ways in which you carry it and blessed john paul did it visibly. >> and in those remarks to the general audience he also as he now comes out to address the public. [ cheers ] >> pope benedict giving a blessing. >> the last time the pope with his people. >> last time he'll ever do that. [ speaking a foreign language ] >> translator: i'm happy to be with you. surrounded by the beauty of creation and your support that is very good to me. thank you for your friendship, your affection. you know that my day today is different from the prior days. i'm no longer the pontiff of the church up to 8:00 p.m. i am but now i'm just a pilgrim starting the last leg of his journey. i would like also -- i would also like with all my heart, my love, my prayers as my reflection with all my inner strength to work for the common good of the church and of humankind and i'm really supported by your help and support. let's continue together with the lord for the good of the church and the world. thank you so much. thank you from the bottom of my heart. let me bless us, father, son and holy spirit. thank you, good night. thank you. thank you to you all. >> a personal and humble note saying in just a couple of hours he will no longer be pope. just a pilgrim on the last leg of his earthly journal, cardinal wuerl. >> it's so moving, isn't it, to see both the beauty of his humility, the affection of the people and here we are witnessing a moment in history that no one has seen ever before. the actual good-bye of a pope as he goes into retirement. it's so touching. >> striking a perfect note, cokie roberts. >> indeed, and as the sun is actually setting behind us here at st. peter's and the bells ring again, he is saying farewell in a way that is incredibly humble and moving and, you know, dying popes sometimes thought maybe this is the last time, maybe this is the last time but with this pope we know it's the last time. >> john thavis, your final thoughts. >> just the serenity that you can see on his face as he spoke to that crowd. here is a man truly at peace with his decision and i think he communicated that. >> and for an american audience there's two american figures that this day remind me of -- one is george washington who laid down power first of the generalship of the revolutionary army and second of the presidency itself in a gesture that shapes the future of the american government. the other is tom sawyer who presided -- saw his own funeral and pope benedict got to shape his legacy and tell them how he should be -- >> these final words in these final hours and as we leave you with one last look, castel gandolfo and the crowd down in the square, just a couple of hours now from the final moments of pope benedict xvi as pope at 8:00 p.m., his resignation will take effect. benedict will become pope emeritus. his papal ring will be defaced. red shoes replaced by ordinary brown. his apartment in the vatican will be sealed and the swiss guards at castel gandolfo will close the gates and simply walk off duty. one chapter in the long, rich history of the catholic church, another will begin in 89 world's 1.2 billion catholics will wait to learn who their new spiritual leader will be. much more on "world news" tonight. for all of us at abc news, have a good day. thank you for sharing this moment of history with us. >> announcer: this has been a special report from abc news. animal style. i'll have a double-double, animal style, no tomato. look at that. look at that right there. see that? see what's about to happen right now? my life's about to improve. >> now, go. this is the way french fries are supposed to taste. >> in-n-out for breakfast. and just a few blocks away, the street where i grew up. this manhole cover right here, home plate. >> hi. >> you're gigantic. >> before there was sam, the bromance was with mike. >> i'm proud of you. you've done well. >> thank you. this is my house, where i grew up. come see the window i would sneak out of. my bedroom was right there. parents' bedroom right there. >> sneak out of the window for what, exactly? >> to go out and play -- we weren't breaking any laws. the occasional misdemeanor trespassing. >> all right, josh. where are we? >> right back there is a little league field. this is where i had my single favorite moment as an athlete. i'll never forget this game. i played for the mets. and we were playing the dodgers. and scott threw the fast ball. right out there. and i feel like i probably closed my eyes, i was so scared. and i didn't feel the ball leave the bat. i hit it perfectly. and just traced this majestic arc over that. over center field. my grandpa happened to be in town for a couple of days. and it was the only time he ever got to see me play in little league. i have never, ever, ever, ever been happier as an athlete. never in my life. not anything i did after that. and i remember rounding second base and looking back up at the stands, between second and third. and i could see him. and he stood up. and -- not bad. not bad. this is where i'm from. >> you can feel the cold air coming off that ocean. >> for lunch, i'm taking sam to el tarasco, a place i've been coming to for over 20 years. >> how is it going? >> really good. i can't tell you how many number 7s i have had here. >> this is awesome. you can see where that was just, like, cooked. >> are you ready? >> i'm ready. >> for my good friend, samuel j., i couldn't leave without taking him to the ocean. i've had times where, if i literally have five minutes, shoes off, feel it. stick 'em in. it's so good to be back. >> all right, man. >> thanks for coming. >> thanks. >> incredible tip that everybody should know. when you land at l.a.x., if you have time, get in a taxi, drive around the airport. the in-n-out burger is right there. you can get drive-through and go through with an in-n-out burger. it's true. >> what is animal style? >> the condiments are grilled on the bun. everything is fresh daily. >> are you sold? are you moving out west? >> i'm totally sold. i think this show would play very well from the west coast. >> i want to point out. that was the dead of winter. >> there's something special when you two get together. when you're out and about. >> he only got pulled over twice. >> i know. >> the story with the grandfather, that especially. >> i had not been back to that field since i played there. and when we stopped in, it was a last-minute thing. and you could just -- i could feel -- >> he got so excited. really, as we're driving by. i don't think we planned to stop by. we were going to do a drive-by. he wheeled in there. there was a game playing. everybody was excited. it was a great day. >> it was great to be back home. >> you can visualize the way he described it. >> before that -- talking about it the whole trip. the whole time. coming up, we're going to go back to the vatican city. george, taking us behind closed doors at the vatican, on this and i'm back here in rome, now, with john thavis. long-time vatican journalist. and author a brand-new book called "the vatican diaries." very good timing. it's a fascinating book. it's filled with so much detail. i was struck by the word you used to describe pope benedict's mission. you said to decontaminate the church. >> i think really a lot of pope benedict's pontificate has been rereading the second vatican council. that was the landmark assembly that really set the church's direction over the last 50 years. and i think benedict had some critical things to say. i think he did not like the direction the church took in terms of liturgy. he did not like some of the changes he saw men and women were acting. he did not like the way some of the catholic faithful were approaching church teaching. and i think, fundamentally, he saw the church adopting too much the ways of the world. >> yet, at the same time, so much of his papacy, still shadowed by scandal. some suggestion here in the italian press, that he decided to retire after getting a report on the various scandals. >> well, he did get a report last december. and all we know is that he had commissioned three cardinals to investigate, number one, how leaks occurred under his pontificate. and number two, what was the terrain here in the roman curia that allowed that to happen? what were the fundamental reasons? we don't know what was in that report. only pope benedict had seen it. when that happens, journalists and especially italian journalists, tend to project very imaginative scenarios. we've seen one scenario that's been floated in the press, that there must be a gay cabal in the vatican. thats will tremendous move. i'm skeptical. we would have known about it before. >> this is a bold move, the decision to retire. how do you think it will impact those cardinals who are going to decide who the next pope should be? >> i think it could have a chain reaction effect. there are cardinals and people here in the vatican who have seen this as traumatic. they want someone who will take the church back to the normal. someone who will do things in familiar ways. but there are others here in the vatican who have an appetite for change. and in their view, the cardinals should catch the spirit of pope benedict's gesture and do something bold themselves. this could mean a number of simple changes in church governance. in fact, i sat down with a vatican official last week. he outlined in a few strokes, how the pope could really revolutionize the papacy. the next pope, that is. number one, he could bring in his whole, new team. he could start having weekly cabinet-style meetings, to make sure the managers are all on the same page. as i wrote in my book, that doesn't happen now. and that's one of the root causes of the controversies. >> makes for a modern papacy. john thavis, thanks very much. "the vatican diaries" is on sale now. and we'll be right back. a very special note before we go. great news from be the match, since robin has returned to us here. weekly online registrations to become a bone marrow transplant donor, more than doubled. >> when robin returned, the swab kits went up 600%. >> you're giving the gift of life, everybody. >> "gma live!" logon, join us. have a good day. well, well, well. growing up, we didn't have u-verse. we couldn't record four shows at the same time. in my day, you were lucky if you could record two shows. and if mom was recording her dumb show and dad was recording his dumb show then, by george, that's all we watched. and we liked it! today's kids got it so good. [ male announcer ] get u-verse tv for just $19 a month for 1 year when you bundle tv and internet. rethink possible. >> now from abc7 news, bart directors will meet this morning to decide whether to raise fairs and parking fees. the average bart fare would go up 18 cents. daily parks increased by 50 cents. now, mike? >> a look from downtown san francisco where it is mostly sunny with temperatures one to two degrees warmer than yesterday putting us in the mid-to-upper 60's around the bay, and upper 60's to low 70's inrand and not so breezy as yesterday. warm of the tomorrow but winter returns next week. sue? >> big problem remains in richmond eastbound 580 at central we have a motorcycle down, lanes are blocked and i am seeing lots of slow traffic westbound 80 as well and we have a caltrain delay and a bart announcer: it's "live with kelly and michael." today, from the hit comedy "sburgtoir" cheryl hines. and how to lose pounds with the shred diet. and one republic. all next on the emmy-award winning "live." [captioning made possible by disney-abc domestic television] announcer: now here are kelly ripa and michael strahan! [cheers and applause] michael: yo! yo! [cheers and applause] kelly: hi! wow. michael: oh wow! [cheers and applause] kelly: all right, all right!odyt everybody just stay calm! michael: calm down! kelly: it's thursday, february 28, 2013. welcome to our show. you can tell it's a thursday crowd because remember what we said about thursdays, thursdays are when women are at their most satisfied. if you know what i mean. [laughter] so, good for all you. [cheers and applause] michael: plus, i think half our audience has already started

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