Michelle Obama reveals what forms her strongest bond with former president George W Bush
Michelle Obama has always been friendly towards former president George W Bush and in a new interview the former first lady spoke highly about her friendship with him. In a recent interview with Bush’s daughter Jenna Bush Hager, co-host at TODAY with Hoda & Jenna, on their trip to Vietnam to raise awareness about educating girls, Michelle said the Obamas and Bushes share same values even if they disagree on policy matters.
“I had the opportunity to sit by your father at funerals, the highs and the lows, and we shared stories about our kids and about our parents,” Michelle, 55, said. “Our values are the same. We disagree on policy, but we don't disagree on humanity. We don't disagree about love and compassion.”
Revealing the philosopher inside her, Michelle said highlighting her friendship with the former president: “I think that's true for all of us. It's just that we get lost in our fear of what's different. Michelle’s husband Barack Obama served as a Democratic president between 2009 and 2017, succeeding Bush, a Republican who served in the eight preceding years.
Michelle and Bush's funeral exchanges were much discussed
The camaraderie between the former first lady and president became a much-discussed topic in September 2018 when the duo attended the funeral of Republican senator John McCain who had run against Obama in 2008. There, Bush was seen handing over a cough drop discreetly to Michelle as his wife Laura Bush and Barack looked on smiling. Then in December, as the two attended the funeral of Bush’s father, George H W Bush, he handed Michelle a candy.
In an exclusive interview on TODAY after the cough drop incident, Michelle had called Bush her “partner in crime at every major thing where all the ‘formers’ gather".
“I love him to death,” she added. “He's a wonderful man, he's a funny man.”
Bush, 73, made the headlines a few months ago after sitting with Ellen DeGeneres at a Dallas Cowboys game with backlash sparked by the duo’s different takes on homesexuality. Jenna brought up the issue with Michelle: “You're friends with both Ellen and my dad, and they sat next to each other which caused some sort of online backlash. Your husband recently talked about the dangers of ‘cancel culture'. What do you say to people that want to be closer with each other?”
“When we drop our guards, we let ourselves become vulnerable, and that vulnerability allows us to share our true stories with each other,” Michelle, who has authored the hugely successful book ‘Becoming’, replied.
The philanthropist then went on to praise the new generation saying it knows more than what her own generation did and hoped that they “will be more open-minded and secure in who they are” so that they can welcome other people’s stories. “But it has to begin with us,” she added.