He can't contradict his predecessor?
Never mind the 'I don't want to accept evolution' or the unverifiability crap, does "We cannot haul 10,000 generations into the laboratory," fall under papal infallibility or something?
I believe that technically he could, as the previous pronouncement was not in the "infallible" category. But the Popes go out of their way to avoid doing so, particularly ones within living memory. Can't have the church appear to be flip-flopping after all.
Can bishops claim this as fact like HIV sized holes in condoms?
Yep. Pretty much by definition, anybody who is a Catholic bishop would consider any position of the Pope to be fact.
Jay