🎥Frances of Barbara Bush: present Melania, absent President Trump

"I know what he would tell me if he were here: be short and don't be a tearjerker." Jeb Bush conquered the public in this way by remembering the character of his mother Barbara, after his 92-year-old death in recent days. "She said her maternal care towards me and my brothers was a kind dictatorship, but honestly she wasn't always kind," he continued joking in front of the 1500 or so people who flocked to the church for the last homage to the matriarch of the most powerful American political dynasty: wife of the 41st president, George HW Bush, and mother of the 43rd, George W Bush. Both were present, with the latter pushing the father in a wheelchair. In the front row, sitting next to each other, also two other former presidents, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, with their wives. And Melania, representing the family, given that Trump preferred not to participate "in order not to create problems related to the safety device and as a sign of respect for the Bush family and his friends who will take part". The absence of a president at the funeral of a former first lady is not uncommon. Obama also did not attend Nancy Reagan's 2016 funeral or Betty Ford's 2011 funeral. And George W. Bush didn't go to Lady Bird Johnson in 2007. But Trump's forfeit has a political motivation, given that during the electoral campaign he attacked the Bushes hard, starting with Jeb, his challenger in the primary. And he was exchanged with the same coin, also by Barbara, who compared him to a "showman" and wondered how women could vote for him. However, the president tried to keep up appearances by tweeting that he was following the funeral on TV in Mar-a-Lago and that first lady Melania was in Houston "to pay our respects." "Today my thoughts and prayers go to the entire Bush family", he added, also recalling that in the White House a souvenir corner has been set up for the former first lady under his portrait, which he posted on his account . Melania instead issued a statement after the ceremony: “today the world pays a tribute to a woman of indisputable character and graces. It was an honor to go to Houston to pay tribute to Barbara Bush and the extraordinary life she led as a mother, wife and courageous First Lady. ” The funeral, which lasted an hour and a half, took place in St Martin's Episcopal Church in Houston, the largest evangelist church in the United States, the one that the Bush couple had attended since they moved to Houston. Barbara herself had chosen the three people who should remember her. The first was his son Jeb, who drew an intimate and ironic portrait of his mother, emphasizing that he believed in the power of laughter and in the sharing of joy. Then it was the turn of historian John Meacham and his friend Susan Baker, wife of former Secretary of State James Baker, who shared anecdotes about Barbara's sharp tongue, her fierce devotion to family and her charming sense of humor. "She was the first lady of the older generation," said Meacham, who wrote a biography of George HW in 2015. Bush.