--- title: Michelle Obama on Her Bond With 'Beautiful' George W. Bush description: Michelle Obama opened up about why so many people seem to be interested in her close cross-party bond with former President George W. Bush. canonical: https://time.com/5454153/michelle-obama-on-george-w-bush/ author: Ashley Hoffman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-11-14T15:35:33.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:55:59.788Z og:title: Michelle Obama on Her Bond With 'Beautiful, Funny, Kind, Sweet, Man' George W. Bush og:description: She gave him a hug, he gave her a mint, and they've been friends forever og:url: https://time.com/5454153/michelle-obama-on-george-w-bush/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5fc27a81d4409563/6988bcd07cdbac30d7d57579/george-bush-michelle-obama-e1542216023837.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2630 og:image:height: 1479 og:image:alt: US-MUSEUM-AFRICANAMERICAM-CULTURE-HISTORY og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Michelle Obama on Her Bond With 'Beautiful, Funny, Kind, Sweet, Man' George W. Bush twitter:description: She gave him a hug, he gave her a mint, and they've been friends forever twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5fc27a81d4409563/6988bcd07cdbac30d7d57579/george-bush-michelle-obama-e1542216023837.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Michelle Obama on Her Bond With 'Beautiful, Funny, Kind, Sweet Man' George W. Bush > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. 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The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Nov 14, 2018 3:35 PM UTC  Former US President George W. Bush receives a hug from US First Lady Michelle Obama as they attend the opening ceremony for the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture on September 24, 2016 in Washington, D.C. / AFP / ZACH GIBSON (Photo credit should read ZACH GIBSON/AFP/Getty Images) Former US President George W. Bush receives a hug from US First Lady Michelle Obama as they attend the opening ceremony for the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture on September 24, 2016 in Washington, D.C. / AFP / ZACH GIBSON (Photo credit should read ZACH GIBSON/AFP/Getty Images) ZACH GIBSON—AFP/Getty Images by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Nov 14, 2018 3:35 PM UTC Former First Lady Michelle Obama is opening up about why so many people seem to be interested in her [close cross-party bond](http://time.com/5421736/michelle-obama-george-bush-candy/) with former President George W. Bush. Obama discussed her friendship with Bush in an interview with Bush’s daughter, Jenna Bush Hager, on [NBC’s _Today_ show](https://www.today.com/video/michelle-obama-opens-up-about-family-and-finding-her-voice-1370244163793?v=railb&) Wednesday. Obama is promoting her new memoir [_Becoming_](http://time.com/5453215/malia-barack-michelle-prom/). Bush Hager began the discussion by telling Obama that her father is on a first-name basis with the former first lady. > [](https://twitter.com/TODAYshow/status/1062699002691510273) “I got a text from my dad this morning that said, ‘Send Michelle my love.’ I was like, ‘Don’t you call her Mrs. Obama?’ He’s like, ‘No, I call her…Michelle,’ and I thought, you know, it’s so interesting how people are so interested in y’all’s friendship. I mean that hug was, like, the hug that went around the world. I do love that picture,” Bush said. “That’s your dad…you know your dad. You know?” Obama responded. In September 2016, cameras captured Obama and the former Republican president sharing a warm embrace at the dedication of the National Museum of American History and Culture. When asked why people have an appetite for moments like that, Obama had plenty to share. “Because I think the political discourse, the way it’s shown in the media, is…all the nasty parts of it. You know? Because I guess we’ve become a culture where the nasty sells. So people are just gonna keep feeding that. We’re all Americans. We all care about our family and our kids, and we’re trying’ to get ahead. And that’s how I feel about your father. You know? He’s a beautiful, funny, kind, sweet man.” Obama went on to say that she and Bush have not let their political differences get in the way of their relationship. “And I don’t know that I agree with him on everything. But the truth is much more complicated and complex than that. And I’d love if we as a country could get back to the place where we didn’t demonize people who disagreed with us. Because that’s essentially the difference between Republicans and Democrats.” Here, you can watch Wednesday’s [full one-on-one interview between Michelle Obama and Jenna Bush](https://www.today.com/video/michelle-obama-opens-up-about-family-and-finding-her-voice-1370244163793?v=railb&). The friendship was also on full display at John McCain’s funeral, when viewers caught a [sweet mint exchange](http://time.com/5384902/george-bush-michelle-obama-candy-mccain-funeral/). > [](https://twitter.com/ahammsportsgeek/status/1035912380457332737) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5454153/michelle-obama-on-george-w-bush/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5454153/michelle-obama-on-george-w-bush/"},"headline":"Michelle Obama on Her Bond With 'Beautiful, Funny, Kind, Sweet Man' George W. 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