George W. Bush Turns Heads With His Call To President-Elect Biden

There may be no sign that President Donald Trump wants to concede the election, but there are signs that the Republican party is ready to work with President-elect Joe Biden. The day after Biden was named winner in the 2020-polls-that-took-forever, 43 released a statement saying he had called the incoming 46 to wish him the best. His George W. Bush Presidential Center tweeted: "I just talked to the President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden. I extend my warm congratulations and thank him for the patriotic message he delivered last night. I also called Kamala Harris to congratulate her on her historic election to the vice presidency. Though we have political differences, I know Joe Biden to be a good man, who has won his opportunity to lead and unify our country. The President-elect reiterated that while he ran as a Democrat, he will govern for all Americans. I offered him the same thing I offered Presidents Trump and Obama: my prayers for his success, and my pledge to help in any way I can."

He continued: "I want to congratulate President Trump and his supporters on a hard-fought campaign. He earned the votes of more than 70 million Americans — an extraordinary political achievement. They have spoken, and their voices will continue to be heard through elected Republicans at every level of government."

The former president also noted that the robust election results were cause to celebrate the country's healthy democracy: "The fact that so many of our fellow citizens participated in this election is a positive sign of the health of our democracy and a reminder to the world of its strength. No matter how you voted, your vote counted. President Trump has the right to request recounts and pursue legal challenges, and any unresolved issues will be properly adjudicated. The American people can have confidence that this election was fundamentally fair, its integrity will be upheld, and its outcome is clear."

Bush concluded: "The challenges that face our country will demand the best of President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris — and the best of us all. We must come together for the sake of our families and neighbors and our nation and its future. There is no problem that will not yield to the gathered will of a free people. Laura and I pray for our leaders, their families, and our Nation, and we urge all Americans to join us in wishing our next President and Vice President well as they prepare to take up their important duties."

Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush also sent his congratulations to the President-elect and Vice President-elect on Twitter, saying, "Congratulations to President-elect Biden. I have prayed for our President most of my adult life. I will be praying for you and your success. Now is the time to heal deep wounds. Many are counting on you to lead the way."

The Bush family famously broke with the GOP line in 2016 — the late President George H.W. voted for Hillary Clinton, and Barbara had written her son Jeb's name on the ballot. In 2018, family matriarch Barbara told USA Today's Susan Page that she had begun to see a party that she couldn't support. "I don't understand why people are for him," she had said. In her diary, Mrs. Bush said she saw Trump as a "real symbol of greed in the '80s. The Trumps are a new word, both of them. Trump now means Greed, selfishness and ugly. So sad" (via ABC).

Before she passed, Barbara Bush had kept a "red, white, and blue digital clock displayed how many days, hours, minutes, and seconds remained in President Trump's term," and it sat close to her until the day she died.