The Climate Couple’s junket to see the Pope is nothing but an expensive diversion from the real problems Massachusetts and Boston face daily.

While Gov. Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu hobnob with Pope Francis at the Vatican and Italian business leaders next week – no doubt taking in all the great things about Italy like wine and pasta and sightseeing – they are leaving behind a troubling state of affairs in the Bay State.

But budget woes, the skyrocketing cost of housing migrants, and the plunging commercial real estate market in Boston can wait another week.

Maybe Acting Mayor Ruthzee Louijeune will come up with some solutions while she’s in charge and Wu is gone. Or Acting Gov. Kim Driscoll.

Of course, you can’t go to Rome without having a good time, and it’s especially rewarding to go all on the taxpayer dime like Wu and Healey.

Pope Francis is leading the global conference, which brings together “researchers, policy makers and faith leaders together to understand the scientific and societal challenges of climate change and recommend solutions for resilient people and resilient ecosystems,” according to the Vatican.

Healey is giving a keynote address at the opening of the conference and Wu is scheduled to talk about “governance, health and energy.”

The mayor can chirp about her progressive climate-focused agenda, with streets full of empty bike lanes and traffic jams. Or she can talk about hiring the first climate chief officer at just $195,000 a year. That’s a lot of green.

And maybe Wu can recount her Duck Boat ride with Healey to a Red Sox game.

What exactly is the carbon footprint of a Duck Boat? Or drag racing in the Back Bay?

The Democratic governor is also hosting a roundtable with the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy with Italian business leaders.

“It really is an opportunity to showcase Massachusetts’ leadership on climate on a global stage,” Healey told WGBH.

“What I’ll be speaking to is some of what we’ve done and what we want to do here in Massachusetts.”

Healey wants to be known as the most “aggressive” climate governor in the country.

She’s funneled billions of dollars in investment in climate technology, was the first to appoint a cabinet-level climate chief,

established the first ever “green bank” dedicated to affordable housing, and announced a “global climate workforce” to train workers in Massachusetts. That of course includes millions more in taxpayer money.

Healey has also spent $1 million on a useless public relations campaign which attempts “to educate residents on how they can participate in climate initiatives like electric vehicle adoption or residential solar programs.” You know how much it costs to “adopt” an electric car?

The Democratic governor of course will be overlooking deep differences with the Vatican on issues like abortion. She’s coupling the Pope visit with a trade junket.

“Italy happens to be our 10th largest trading partner,” Healey pointed out. “I’ll have an opportunity to meet with Italian companies to talk about how they might expand business in Massachusetts.”

Just a well-worn excuse used by previous governors to get taxpayer dollars to fund the trip.

Gov. Maura Healey, Mayor Michelle Wu plan to use public dollars to pay for Italy trip

Pope Francis is hosting a climate summit “From Climate Crisis to Climate Resilience” from May 15-17 in Rome. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)