Bush Is Back: Portrait Event Stirs Up Odd Politics
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama is welcoming his favorite foil, former President George W. Bush, back to the White House for the unveiling of Bush's official portrait. Given the history, the scene ought to be quite a picture.
Obama is still bad-mouthing Bush's time in office, and it's not just because of the debt and the unfinished wars Obama inherited. Obama sees Bush's economic ideas as the same as his current rival, Mitt Romney, so he lumps them together.
Never mind all that, say the Obama and Bush camps. Thursday's event is a timeout for tradition.
The political reunion is expected to put aside any campaign rhetoric, as other gatherings among past and current presidents have, to honor nostalgia and the service of the former president and his wife, Laura.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
