Who Gets to Vote for Pope?

I read an article from the Huffington Post about whether or not Cardinal Mahoney, an American who covered up priest sex abuse scandals in California and Oregon, should be able to vote for the next Pope. Cardinal Levada was in favor of Mahoney voting for pope, saying that "there are some victims' groups for whom enough is never enough." The general attitude both priests took, one of being the victim, kind of disgusted me. Mahoney was actively involved in covering up evidence and protecting pedophile priests, and allowing them to molest again. No matter what he has done to make up for it since, his past judgments still reflect on him in a way that do not make him a good candidate for voting for pope.

The end of the article had an interesting aside which talked about the likelihood of an American pope. It was deemed unlikely because of the perception that the pope would somehow take orders from the U.S. government, which is the world's biggest military power. I find this an interesting turn-around from JFK's election in the 60's, in which many people were concerned that as a Catholic, he would take orders from the pope. Is this indicative of how power has shifted away from religion and toward nationality or military might? It remains to be seen.