WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell released the following statement today regarding Pope Benedict XVI:

“Catholics and other people of good will around the world are grateful today for the ministry of Pope Benedict XVI. Pope Benedict’s message of a loving God who calls all men and women to a greater kinship with Himself has inspired many to a deeper faith, and his forceful warnings about the dangers of relativism have served as an important reminder of something we all learned as children: that there is such a thing as right and wrong. We wish the pope health and happiness in the years ahead, and we thank him for his humble leadership in these very challenging times.”