[SMCC1]

There was an article in the Italian media about a couple of powerful Cardinals (Bertone) in the curia pushing for Scherer if they could get an Italian in the Secretary of State type position.

Along with Ouellet, they’ve also been mentioning Peter Erdo of Hungary who I don’t know much about.

[livius]

Yes, I saw that. Of course, Italians are a dime a dozen, so just about anybody could give them an Italian Secy of State. It would be wonderful someday if we could actually get a GOOD Secretary of State. BXVI tried (Bertone isn’t from the Vatican diplomatic corps) but unfortunately few of his appointments were really that sterling, mostly because he had been around the Vatican so long that he relied on the people he knew.

[Perdogg]

Current Intrade, who will succeed Benedict XVI

Archbishop Angelo Scola (Italy) 26.0%

Cardinal Peter Turkson (Ghana) 18.5%

Any other individual not listed 15.0%

Cardinal Marc Ouellet (Canada) 9.5%

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone (Italy) 7.5%

Cardinal Odilo Scherer (Brazil) 5.1%

Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi (Italy) 4.1%

Cardinal Leonardo Sandri (Argentina) 3.6%

Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco (Italy) 3.4%

Cardinal Claudio Hummes (Brazil) 3.0%

Cardinal Christoph Schonborn (Austria) 2.0%

Cardinal Timothy Dolan (USA) 2.0%

Cardinal Francis Arinze (Nigeria) 1.5%

Cardinal Albert Malcolm Ranjith (Sri Lanka) 1.5%

Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga (Honduras) 1.3%

Cardinal Raymond Burke (USA) 0.4%

Cardinal Keith O'Brien (Scotland) 0.1%

Cardinal Philippe Barbarin (France) 0.1%