When Asked If She Was Still Republican, Barbara Bush Said 'I'd Probably Say No Today'
(CBSDFW.COM) - About two months before her death, Barbara Bush was asked if she still considered herself a Republican. "I'd probably say no today," she told USA Today's Susan Page.
In a new book titled "The Matriarch: Barbara Bush and the Making of an American Dynasty," the former first lady talked to Page during her final years about her feelings on the rise of President Donald Trump.
Bush had "a lot of angst" during the 2016 presidential campaign, according to her son, Jeb. The former governor of Florida ran against Trump in a heated Republican primary, which seemed to affect his mother.
The former first lady reportedly blamed her June 2016 medical emergency involving her heart on the intense campaign where Trump scorned Jeb.
"Jeb said, 'mom, don't worry about things you can't do anything about,'" Bush told Page. "He's right. Just do good, make like better for someone else."
According to the new book, Bush had said she still considered herself a Republican when asked in October 2017. But when Page asked her again in February 2018, she said "I'd probably say no today."
The former first lady died on April 17, 2018 at the age of 92.
