Despite bitter family rivalry, Bush wanted Trump at his funeral

[oberliner]

When President Donald Trump didn’t attend Barbara Bush’s funeral earlier this year, it stoked chatter about a rivalry between the two powerful families who have a history of sniping at each other.

The former first lady criticized Trump during the 2016 campaign for saying “terrible things” about women and the military, and was long displeased with Trump’s insults toward her husband and sons.

But many of the family’s confidants said Saturday former President George H.W. Bush wished to put that all aside when it came to Trump attending his funeral.

“If anybody at anytime knew anything about the 41st president of the United States, they would completely and totally understand that he would welcome the current occupant 100 percent,” said an aide in the office of the former president. “This is the way the country says goodbye to presidents.”

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/12/01/bush-family-trump-funeral-1037144

[Cartoonist]

1. I couldn't find a quote in the article

Did GHW actually wish that, or is this being put in his mouth?

This quote is a beaut: "I don’t think it’s going to be about Trump,” said the senior Bush 41 White House staffer.

Has he been paying attention the last two years? EVERYTHING is about Trump to Donald.

[Xipe Totec]

2. George wants Donald to follow in his footsteps. nt

[monmouth4]

3. Will George be falling over a cliff? n/t

[Xipe Totec]

5. A six-footer. Yes. nt

[Princess Turandot]

4. Between JFK and GHWB, seven former presidents died..

In each case, the sitting president attended one or more of the funeral related ceremonies. Any living former president did as well, unless prevented by health. (However, they did not always speak.)

Truman didn't have a formal state funeral; the only public event they even held was a period of him reposing at his library, where he was to be buried. None-the-less, Nixon and Johnson flew to Missouri with their families to pay their respects at the library, then visited with Bess Truman briefly before returning to Washington.

Herbert Hoover died in 1964(!) in NYC, 31 years after his presidency. LBJ and several other officials/politicians dutifully traveled to attend a very short church service there, even though Hoover was next to be brought to DC to lay in state at the Capitol Rotunda.

So, they probably decided to go with tradition, in terms of attendance. I'll be shocked if they let him speak, though. And I tend to doubt that he would want to make that effort.

[DUgosh]

6. It's going to be harder on Spanky

To attend than it would be staying at home tweeting about it