George W. Bush recalled being surprised by the reaction of Americans towards his friendship with former first lady Michelle Obama.
The former president told "CBS Sunday Morning" that Americans are too “polarised” to believe a friendship between a Democrat and a Republican, and that the reaction “shocked” him.
“I think it's a problem that Americans are so polarised in their thinking that they can't imagine a George W. Bush and a Michelle Obama being friends,” said the 74-year-old.
“It shocked me,” said Mr Bush, who recalled the reaction to a photo of him hugging Ms Obama at the opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington DC in 2016.
Ms Bush, the former first lady, and former president Barack Obama were also photographed together.
“We got in the car and I think Barbara [Bush] or Jenna said, 'Hey, you're trending!',” recalled the former Republican president. “The American people were so surprised that Michelle Obama and I could be friends”.
Ms Obama described Mr Bush as her “partner in crime” because of the seating arrangements for ex-presidents and their spouses for funerals and inaugurations, in an interview in 2018.
"I love him to death," Ms Obama told the “Today” show of the former Republican president. "He's a wonderful man. He's a funny man."
In the interview, Mr Bush went on to criticise former president Donald Trump for being “undignified” while in office — and out of it.
“I feel a responsibility to uphold the dignity of the office, I did then and I do now, and I think it’s undignified to want to see my name in print all the time,” said Mr Bush of Mr Trump.
The 74-year-old, who took-up painting after leaving office in 2009, was interviewed ahead of the publication of a book of oil paintings of the country’s immigrants.
Mr Bush called for Republicans in Congress to “put aside the harsh rhetoric about immigration,” and to adopt a tone that is “more respectful of the immigrant,” amid concerns of an increase in arrivals at the Mexico border in recent months.
