Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2009
| Subscribe to Newser's RSS feeds RSS | Follow Newser on Twitter Twitter


3

Bush Leaves Customary Oval Office Note for Obama

Continuing a tradition begun by Reagan, Bush pens encouragement to his successor

Share

(AP) – Continuing a White House ritual begun by Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush left a note in the Oval Office for President-elect Barack Obama, wishing him well as he takes the reins of the executive branch. The White House declined to provide specific details of the message, saying only that Bush wrote it yesterday and left it in the top drawer of his desk.

"The theme is similar to what he's said since Election Night about the fabulous new chapter President-elect Obama is about to start, and that he wishes him the very best," White House press secretary Dana Perino said today. After the swearing-in ceremony for Obama at the Capitol, Bush will take a helicopter to Andrews Air Force Base, where he'll make private remarks before flying to Texas.

President-elect Barack Obama and Michelle Obama leave the Blair House before going to a church service at St. John's Episcopal Church across from the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009.
President-elect Barack Obama and Michelle Obama leave the Blair House before going to a church service at St. John's Episcopal Church across from the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009.   (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
President-elect Barack Obama is welcomed by President George W. Bush during a meeting with former presidents Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, and George H.W. Bush, not shown, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009.
President-elect Barack Obama is welcomed by President George W. Bush during a meeting with former presidents Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, and George H.W. Bush, not shown, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009.   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
President George W. Bush sits at his desk in the Oval Office in this file photo. Bush left the traditional note for his successor, Barack Obama, in a desk drawer.
President George W. Bush sits at his desk in the Oval Office in this file photo. Bush left the traditional note for his successor, Barack Obama, in a desk drawer.   (Getty Images)
President George W. Bush walks on the colonnade with President-elect Barack Obama at the White House November 10, 2008 in Washington, DC.
President George W. Bush walks on the colonnade with President-elect Barack Obama at the White House November 10, 2008 in Washington, DC.   (Getty Images)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Don't let the turkeys get you down.
- President Ronald Reagan's Oval Office welcome note for successor George HW Bush

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
OFF THE GRID
11.24.09
Murdoch and Microsoft: The Mice Are Trying to Roar
11.23.09
Books Are Bad for You
3 comments
VIEWING:
 
Lula
Jan 20, 09 8:31 AM CST
It sure will be nice to see him get on the helicopter, taking him away from the White House. Praises to Obama Reply
Vote up! Vote down!
0
nick
Jan 20, 09 9:20 AM CST
It's hard to believe that Bush served eight years. It seems more like a hundred! Reply
Vote up! Vote down!
0
Mad
Jan 20, 09 4:48 PM CST
"PSYCH!" - signed GWB Reply
Vote up! Vote down!
0
LEAVE A
COMMENT Comment Policy
Facebook ConnectPost this comment to Facebook?

After connecting you will have the option to post your comment on your Facebook profile.

 

Related Newser Stories

1149 Stories

Analysis

 Obama Is the Anti-Cowboy 

Slow decision on Afghanistan a contrast from Bush's gut checks

Nov 25, 09 9:26 AM CST
(Newser) - Barack Obama’s prolonged Afghanistan strategy review has if nothing else distinguished him from his predecessor—Obama is anything but the “gut player” Dubya claimed to be. In fact, he’s put on “a spectacle of deliberation unlike anything seen in the White House in recent memory,”... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Barack Obama • Afghanistan war • strategy • President Obama • Afghanistan exit strategy

Michelle wore...

 The Skinny on the State Dinner 

Michelle Obama wore Naeem Khan, and other tidbits

Nov 25, 09 7:49 AM CST
(Newser) - Didn't have a ticket to the country's hottest social event? No worries. Here's the who and what of last night's state dinner honoring Indian PM Manmohan Singh:
  • The outdoor tent was decorated with local, sustainably harvested magnolia branches and ivy; centerpieces of hydrangeas, roses, and sweet peas evoked India's
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • Michelle Obama • White House • Manmohan Singh • President Obama • state dinner • Obama's first state dinner

OPINION

 Race-Speech Obama Is MIA 

Prez's actions failing to match his clear rhetoric of past

Nov 24, 09 2:13 AM CST
(Newser) - The moral clarity that Barack Obama revealed in his groundbreaking Philadelphia speech on race has been nowhere to be seen recently, writes Richard Cohen. The Obama who made that speech wouldn't have let the Chinese stage-manage his appearances, or allowed the civilian trial of Khalid Sheik Mohammed go forward without... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • human rights • speech • rhetoric • President Obama

1149 Stories

Copyright 2009 Newser, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. AP contributed to this report.



US  •  Politics 
TwitterFollow @NewserUS on Twitter

 
Barack Obama • presidency • United States • Oval Office • inauguration • George W. Bush • President Obama

from our news partners

Associated PressAssociated Press