Former President George H.W. Bush is returning to Washington as a revered political statesman, hailed by leaders across the political spectrum and around the world as a man not only of greatness but also of uncommon decency and kindness.
Bush, , is to be honoured with a state funeral at National Cathedral in the nationB次元官网网址檚 capital on Wednesday, followed by burial Thursday on the grounds of his presidential library at Texas A&M.
Before that, his body will lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda for a public viewing from his arrival in Washington Monday until Wednesday morning.
President Donald Trump, who ordered federal offices closed for a national day of mourning on Wednesday, is to attend with first lady Melania Trump and other high-ranking officials.
BushB次元官网网址檚 crowning achievement as president was assembling the international military coalition that liberated the tiny, oil-rich nation of Kuwait from invading neighbour Iraq in 1991 in a war that lasted just 100 hours. He also presided over the end of the Cold War between the United States and the former Soviet Union.
B次元官网网址淲e didnB次元官网网址檛 agree much on domestic policy, but when it came to the international side of things, he was a very wise and thoughtful man,B次元官网网址� former Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis, a Democrat who lost the presidency to Bush in 1988, told The Associated Press on Saturday. He credited BushB次元官网网址檚 ability to negotiate with former Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev as playing a key role.
B次元官网网址淚t was a time of great change, demanding great responsibility from everyone,B次元官网网址� Gorbachev told the Interfrax news agency. B次元官网网址淭he result was the end of the Cold War and nuclear arms race.B次元官网网址�
During that time and after, Gorbachev said, he always appreciated the kindness Bush and his family showed him.
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In Washington, the former Republican president won praise from leaders of both parties.
Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan lauded him for leading the nation with B次元官网网址渄ecency and integrity,B次元官网网址� while Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi said it was a B次元官网网址減rivilege to work with him.B次元官网网址�
Republican Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee said Bush B次元官网网址渂efriended political foes, reminding Americans that there is always more that unites us than divides us.B次元官网网址�
At the G-20 summit in Argentina, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was raised in then-divided East Germany, told reporters she likely would never have become her countryB次元官网网址檚 leader had Bush not pressed for the nationB次元官网网址檚 reunification in 1990.
A humble hero of World War II, Bush was just 20 when he survived being shot down during a bombing run over Japan. He had enlisted in the U.S. Navy on his 18th birthday.
Shortly before leaving the service, he married his 19-year-old sweetheart, Barbara Pierce, a union that lasted until her death earlier this year.
After military service, Bush enrolled in Yale University, where he would become a scholar-athlete, captaining the baseball team to two College World Series before graduating Phi Beta Kappa after just 2 1/2 years.
After moving to Texas to work in the oil business, Bush turned his attention to politics in the 1960s, being elected to his first of two terms in Congress in 1967. He would go on to serve as ambassador to the United Nations and China, head of the CIA and chairman of the Republican National Committee before being elected to two terms as Ronald ReaganB次元官网网址檚 vice-president.
Soon after he reached the zenith of his political popularity following the liberation of Kuwait, the U.S. economy began to sour, however, and voters began to believe that Bush, never a great orator, was out of touch with ordinary people.
He lost his bid for re-election to then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton, who would later become a close friend. The pair worked together to raise tens of millions of dollars for victims of a 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and Hurricane Katrina, which swamped New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in 2005.
B次元官网网址淲ho would have thought that I would be working with Bill Clinton of all people?B次元官网网址� he joked in 2005.
Clinton said he would be B次元官网网址渇orever gratefulB次元官网网址� for that friendship.
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Rogers reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press writer Susan Haigh contributed to this story.
Darlene Superville And John Rogers, The Associated Press
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