Following the funeral of Pope John Paul II in Rome, Newsweek reports on a remarkable "bonding" among the most recent members of the president's club: Bush, Clinton, and Bush.
Upon their arrival late Wednesday night, the group went directly to St. Peter’s, where they kneeled and prayed at the body of the late pontiff. On Thursday morning, the former presidents accompanied Bush as he paid a courtesy call on Italian President Azeglio Ciampi. Later that afternoon, they entertained a group of American cardinals and bishops at a reception at Villa Taverna, the American ambassador’s residence. That night, the presidents had dinner with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. Bush even invited his father and Clinton to sit in during his daily intelligence briefings, prompting what one administration official described as a “wide-ranging discussion” of foreign policy with Rice and National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley.Posted by Alan at April 11, 2005 12:38 AMBush and the ex-presidents spent so much time together on the trip that one White House official jokingly referred to the trio as the “troika.” Even when they weren’t in the company of President Bush, Clinton and Bush 41 were often spotted mingling together outside the American embassy and in the lobby of their Rome hotel.
Bush spoke openly about his decision to invite the former presidents to his CIA briefings, explaining that he had wanted to update the pair on his administration’s policy and strategy “in dealing with particular issues.” “It’s interesting to get their points of view about their experiences in different countries,” Bush said.