From the grave, Senator John McCain disinvited President Trump from attending his funeral, requesting instead the two previous presidents deliver eulogies.
Few occasions bring together ex-presidents, usually funeral services for members of their exclusive club or also-ran figures like McCain or Teddy Kennedy who failed to win the oval office.
Five ex-presidents now survive: on the Republican team, the father-and-son battery of George Bushes; the Democrats are represented by Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and Barrack Obama. These five were featured at a fundraiser in Texas for victims of Hurricane Harvey last year, and they seem to get along well regardless of animosity while in office or on the campaign trail.
It’s hard to imagine that any would want Trump to officiate at their funerals. Carter, at 93, has already outlived his immediate predecessors, Nixon and Ford, and the man who defeated him, Ronald Reagan. McCain and Ted Kennedy died of some evil brain cancer; Carter survived some form of brain cancer, and maintains a public presence as author, commentator, and working for the nonprofit housing outfit, Habitat for Humanity. He still teaches Sunday school twice a month in his hometown church in Plains, Georgia.
What does he have in common with Trump? Carter was criticized for a Playboy magazine interview in which he stated that lusting after a woman in his mind was as bad as committing the act – we all know where Trump stands on those issues. Carter helps build houses for poor people; Trump sells his brand for expensive properties. Through the Carter Center, Jimmy monitors free elections in third world countries, while Trump claims millions vote illegally here. Carter has published at least 20 books; Trump says he doesn’t have time to read. Carter installed solar panels on the White House (which Reagan removed); Trump promotes oil and coal. Carter, though often judged as an ineffective president, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his ongoing work for human rights, diplomacy, and democracy, two decades after leaving office. Trump hoped he’d win that peace prize for a photo op with Kim Jong Un.
The oldest ex-prez is the first George Bush, 94, now wheelchair-bound; no longer does he go skydiving on his birthday. Again, contrast the two: Bush a fighter pilot in World War II, Trump received draft deferments for college and heel spurs. Bush headed up the CIA, which Trump scolded in his first days on the job, and still mistrusts for its insistence that Russia interferes with U.S. elections. Bush comes from old money, representing traditional American values of the wealthy, including public service as an obligation. Trump, though he inherited his wealth, likes golden toilets. Bush served the family, the old-line Republican Party, the military and the government. Trump, a former Democrat, upended the GOP and claimed the presidency as his first government job, not with Bush’s “thousand points of light,” but by appealing to fear and conflict.
The distaste the elder Bush has for Trump obviously extends for his son George. While Trump rails against an invasion of dangerous immigrants from south of the border, the younger Bush had direct experience with immigration as governor of Texas. After Trump insulted Jeb Bush in the 2016 election debates, ain’t no way Trump will come to any Bush funerals. George Dubya has longevity in his genes – his mother Barbara Bush died only in April – he will surely outlive Trump.
As will Obama, and possibly Bill Clinton. No need to consider the contrasts there – both Democrats were raised by single moms and made their careers after academic success. Both dedicated family men, though Clinton shares with Trump an eye for the bimbos. But Trump’s hatred of Hillary Clinton, even though he defeated her for the presidency, means he could not go to a funeral for either Clinton.
Yet another tradition that Trump has shot down. We expect our president to act with dignity and represent the populace when important dignitaries pass away. This president is unwelcome at public memorials. Who will speak at Trump’s funeral?