President Trump will attend the midweek funeral of former President George H.W. Bush, the White House said Saturday.
“A state funeral is being arranged with all of the accompanying support and honors,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement, through media pool reports. “The President will designate Wednesday, December 5th as a National Day of Mourning. He and the First Lady will attend the funeral at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.”
Trump’s potential presence at the service had been an open question since news of the 41st president’s passing broke overnight Saturday. Most or all of the four living former presidents are expected to attend, each of whom Trump has had frosty relations, to varying degrees.
On the campaign trail in 2016, Trump regularly chided former President George W. Bush, a son of the late president being honored on Wednesday, over the Iraq War. He also defeated another son of the late president, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, for the 2016 GOP nomination, often hurling personal taunts and barbs.
And Trump’s vanquished opponent, former first lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, may attend as the wife of former President Bill Clinton.
Trump’s decision to attend the funeral comes hours after offering a statement of praise for the late president.
“Through his essential authenticity, disarming wit, and unwavering commitment to faith, family, and country, President Bush inspired generations of his fellow Americans to public service,” Trump said in a statement released early Saturday by the White House.
