George Bush likes to joke Donald Trump ‘makes me look pretty good’
Bush has not been nearly as vocal as Obama in criticising the President, however
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Former President George Bush likes to joke that President Donald Trump’s chaotic White house makes his administration look “pretty good”.
The former president apparently enjoys cracking jokes at the President’s expense, and is often unable to grasp why the White House is always in a state of chaos, according to a report in the National Journal.
“Bush is often heard to remark, unable to stifle his trademark smirk: ‘Sorta makes me look pretty good, doesn’t it?’ “ the National Journal reported, quoting a Republican source.
“He’s shaking his head like everyone else wondering why they can’t get their act together,” the source said. “He wants the guy to succeed but thinks a lot of his problems are self-inflicted.”
While Mr Bush is not known as an ally of Mr Trump, he has so far mostly refrained from public criticism of the fellow Republican’s administration. That is in contrast to former President Barack Obama, who has broken from post-presidential norms and has been highly vocal of Mr Trump and the work he is doing on several fronts.
Mr Bush, who favoured his brother Jeb Bush during the 2016 Republican primaries, is however rumoured to have said that Mr Trump’s inauguration speech was “some weird s***”.
Mr Bush’s father, a fellow president and a fellow George, has joined Mr Obama in vocally criticising Mr Trump, however.
“I don’t like him,” the senior Mr Bush wrote in a recent book of his. “I don’t know much about him, but I know he’s a blowhard. And I’m not too excited about him being a leader.”
Of course, the Bush family is not the only source of Republican criticism of Mr Trump. In the run-up to the general election in 2016 and the primaries, several top Republicans disavowed Mr Trump and his divisive rhetoric.
While some of criticised him since he became President, Republicans in Congress have largely stood by his side legislatively.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments