At #G20 summit, there's pining for the predictability of the Bush years & the America he represented

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Pragmatist vs. pugilist: Bush death highlights Trump’s isolation on world stage

At the G-20 summit, there’s pining for the predictability of the Bush years and the America he represented.

By ANDREW RESTUCCIA

12/01/2018 02:23 PM EST


BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — The contrast couldn’t be more striking.

President George H.W. Bush was a war hero, an internationalist who played a consequential role in maintaining the post-war world order. In domestic politics, he is remembered as a pillar of the Republican establishment, a pragmatist who pined for a “kinder, gentler nation.”

President Donald J. Trump represents a starkly different strain of Republicanism, and a rejection of nearly all of Bush’s values. And as Trump played global statesman at the G-20 summit here against the backdrop of a former president’s passing, many world leaders clearly missed the predictability of the Bush years and the America he represented.

“I mourn George Bush...as the chancellor of the German Federal Republic but also as a German who, without the results of his politics, could hardly stand here,” Angela Merkel said during a press conference here, alluding to Bush’s efforts to bring an end to the Cold War and reunify Germany. “During George Bush’s presidency, we experienced the strength and reliability of German-American friendship, and we will never forget this experience.”

British Prime Minister Theresa May said Bush was “a true friend to the U.K,” adding that his “statesmanship, wisdom and friendship will be much missed.”...............................................








President Donald Trump

President Donald Trump represents a starkly different strain of Republicanism than the type George H.W. Bush championed. | Daniel Jayo/Getty Images