BFFs Bill Clinton, George W. Bush talk about Hillary, Jeb, and their friendship
It doesn't matter that their wife and brother, respectively, both hope to be the next president of the United States — Bill Clinton and George W. Bush say that nothing is going to come between their unlikely friendship.
"He loves his brother," Clinton told USA Today Thursday during a joint interview with Bush. "I love Hillary." If both wind up being their party's nominee, "he's going to vote for his brother; I'm sure going to vote for Hillary, and something will happen. But we'll still be friends." Clinton added, "If they win the nominations, it's going to be a very hard-fought campaign, and if it's like any other campaign, it'll be somewhat bruising, and the surrogates will be really tough, and they'll have hard debates, and we'll just live with it."
Bush also is sure that the relationship he has with Clinton won't change the tone of a potential Hillary versus Jeb race. "I don't think it's going to be different," he said. "I think it's going to be a political campaign. ... I know Jeb will treat Hillary with respect, and I'm confident Hillary will treat Jeb with respect. I'm not sure I can speak that highly of some of the surrogates they may have out there, but these two surrogates will."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Both men know that their friendship is surprising to many, but as Bush points out, they have a lot in common, beyond just being Baby Boomers and former governors of southern states. "[We're] affable people; we're not zero-sum thinkers," he said. They're also "like two old war horses, put out to pasture." Clinton shares a strong bond with George H.W. Bush as well, and W. has joked that Clinton's his "brother by another mother." Clinton is relishing the fact that Bush just had a birthday, turning 69 right before he does. "For one month a year, I'm the younger brother," he said.
Read the whole interview at USA Today.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Will Trump’s $12 billion bailout solve the farm crisis?Today’s Big Question Agriculture sector says it wants trade, not aid
-
‘City leaders must recognize its residents as part of its lifeblood’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
10 upcoming albums to stream during the winter chillThe Week Recommends As the calendar turns to 2026, check out some new music from your favorite artists
-
Senate votes down ACA subsidies, GOP alternativeSpeed Read The Senate rejected the extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits, guaranteeing a steep rise in health care costs for millions of Americans
-
Abrego García freed from jail on judge’s orderSpeed Read The wrongfully deported man has been released from an ICE detention center
-
Indiana Senate rejects Trump’s gerrymander pushSpeed Read The proposed gerrymander would have likely flipped the state’s two Democratic-held US House seats
-
Democrat files to impeach RFK Jr.Speed Read Rep. Haley Stevens filed articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
-
$1M ‘Trump Gold Card’ goes live amid travel rule furorSpeed Read The new gold card visa offers an expedited path to citizenship in exchange for $1 million
-
US seizes oil tanker off VenezuelaSpeed Read The seizure was a significant escalation in the pressure campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro
-
Judge orders release of Ghislaine Maxwell recordsSpeed Read The grand jury records from the 2019 prosecution of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will be made public
-
Miami elects first Democratic mayor in 28 yearsSpeed Read Eileen Higgins, Miami’s first woman mayor, focused on affordability and Trump’s immigration crackdown in her campaign
