Pope Francis Arrives in Jordan
BLACKWELL: Now, to this historic trip, the visit to the Middle East.</s>PAUL: Pope Francis is in Amman, Jordan, as we speak here. Just arrived about an hour ago. Take a look here as he arrived. Welcome on the red carpet. His first visit ever as pontiff to the Middle East, we should point out.</s>BLACKWELL: He's reaching out to Christians, Muslims, and Jews in a volatile region. CNN senior Vatican analyst John Allen joins us on the phone now from Amman. John, I referenced it a few moments ago speaking with you and Becky Anderson. You call it a high wire act, this visit, why?</s>JOHN ALLEN, CNN SENIOR VATICAN ANALYST (via telephone): Well, I mean, you think about all that's on the pontiff's plate, it's a short, 20- day visit. He's trying to give a shot in the arm with the Christian minority of the Middle East, which was 20 percent of the population now less than 5 percent, trapped in the general, the economic and political difficulties, and specifically arrived</s>PAUL: Well, I mean, as Victor alluded to, this is a dicey region. The pope, as we know, loves to be, quote, "close to the people". And he wants to do that on the trip. He does not want to use -- he's rejecting the use of bullet proof vehicles, or high security. What do you know about that and how dangerous is it for him?</s>ALLEN: Well, I mean, I can tell you for sure, each of the places he's going, that is Jordan, the Palestinian territories in Israel have no interest at all in having something untoward happen to the pope while he's on their territory. So, they're going to move heaven and earth to try to keep him safe. That said, you are right, the pope has decided not to travel around in armor plated cars. He's going to do public appearances in the same kind of open air Jeep he uses in St. Peter Square. He's a spontaneous figure that often likes to plunge into crowds, and slap backs and kiss babies. And no doubt, we'll see some of that going on here. So, he will be exposed. But I can tell you, the local officials I talked to in each one of these three sites have said that they are going to pull out all of the stops to make sure that he is secure.</s>PAUL: All righty. John Allen, we appreciate your reporting. Thank you so much. We'll talk with him throughout the morning as the pope continues and gets immersed in this three-day trip.</s>BLACKWELL: Yes, historic, indeed. You know, something else happening this morning. These calls for Eric Shinseki to resign as the secretary of Veterans Affairs are getting louder. But he says he's not going anywhere.</s>PAUL: Who should be held accountable for the alleged cover up? That conversation is next.