| Getty Spicer left out of Vatican visit 
 
 ROME – President Donald Trump’s entourage at the Vatican on Wednesday included his wife, his daughter, and an array of staffers—but not White House press secretary Sean Spicer, a devout Catholic who told reporters earlier this year that he gave up alcohol for Lent. Spicer helped organize three briefings with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who seemed to warm up to the exercise after receiving criticism for not traveling with his own State Department press corps. McMaster -- Trump's highest-ranking foreign policy aides -- stood flanking Francis. Two other senior communications aides from the White House were included: Hope Hicks, who like Melania and Ivanka Trump wore a black veil over her hair, and Dan Scavino, the White House director of social media and a longtime Trump loyalist. Spicer declined to comment about his role or the audience with the Pope. Two additional senior White House officials said the Vatican was very "strict" on the number of people who would be allowed to join the talks. JUST WATCHED Melania Trump: Why a head covering this time? Hicks, a loyal aide who has been at Trump's side since before he announced his candidacy, was introduced to Pope Francis by the president as someone who has worked for him a long time.
– One of the hot topics among journalists in the wake of President Trump's visit to Pope Francis on Wednesday isn't about policy differences. Instead, it's about the president's perceived snub to Sean Spicer. CNN reports that the press secretary, who is a practicing Catholic, is seething that he was left off the short list for the visit. Some expected names accompanied the president: Melania and Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, HR McMaster, and Rex Tillerson. But lesser-known aides Hope Hicks, Keith Schiller, and Dan Scavino were selected over Spicer. "Wow, that's all he wanted," a White House source tells the network, which adds that meeting the pope had been a "bucket list" item for the press chief. Spicer has not commented publicly about the decision, but the Washington Post notes that an odd thing has happened: Journalists he dickers with on an almost daily basis were openly expressing sympathy for him. A typical sentiment: "This seems needlessly harsh," tweeted Maggie Haberman of the New York Times. "When else is Spicer likely to meet the Pope, and it mattered to him?" By all accounts, it mattered to him a great deal: Politico describes Spicer as a "devout" Catholic, noting that he took flak last year when he appeared on CNN with ashes on his forehead for Ash Wednesday. But it may be in line with an apparently diminished new role for the press secretary.