Washington, Sep 25 (IANS/AKI) Pope Francis liked the US House of Representatives speaker John Boehner's tie and told him so at their meeting in Washington ahead of his address to the US Congress -- the first by a pontiff.
Seated beside Boehner in a leather armchair in his office, the Pope complimented the Republican on the colour of tie saying: "Green in the colour of hope."
"We'll need a lot of hope today," Boehner quipped.
Pope Francis is on the second of a five-day visit to the US.
The Pope's US visit will also include stops in New York and Philadelphia, where all 10,000 tickets to an open-air mass are already taken.
Pope Francis will address the UN in New York on Friday.