‘Private chat with Pence can be frank’ – Varadkar
TAOISEACH Leo Varadkar has said he would prefer if his much-anticipated meeting with US Vice President Mike Pence today was not held in private.
However, Mr Varadkar said the private meeting may allow him have a “frank conversation” with Mr Pence.
The St Patrick’s Day breakfast meeting between the Taoiseach and the vice president is traditionally open to the media, and their comments can be reported to the public.
Mr Varadkar is one of very few openly gay world leaders and Mr Pence has been criticised for his views on marriage equality.
Decision
Speaking after his meeting with US President Donald Trump yesterday, Mr Varadkar said he did not know why the media are not allowed attend.
“I don’t know, he was actually in the meeting here now and I’m going to meet him again over breakfast tomorrow,” Mr Varadkar said.
“I appreciate from a media point of view you’d like to be there and we’d like you to be there too, but it’s their decision that it be closed.
“It allows us have maybeafrank conversation that we wouldn’t be able to have if the media were present,” he added.
Mr Pence has long been criticised for his opposition to gay rights and is a rumoured supporter of conversion therapy – a discredited practice that proponents claim can make gay people straight.
Last year’s meeting between Mr Pence and former Taoiseach Enda Kenny for St Patrick’s Day was open to the media.