Of all the men who have served as President, it seems unlikely that any of them loved birthdays more than former President George W. Bush. To mark President Donald Trump’s June birthday, our #TBT series has been highlighting other moments from previous presidential birthdays.
The only way to appreciate the full scope of Bush’s love of birthdays is to look at several case studies. In the CNN Politics Instagram post above, you can see photos of Bush celebrating before and during his presidency.
George W. Bush was born on July 6, 1946. (Someone has a birthday coming up!) Bush clearly learned to love birthdays from an absolute pro. His father, former President George H.W. Bush, went skydiving to mark his 75th, 80th, 85th and 90th birthdays.
In the first photo above, you can see then-President Bush blowing out candles on a simple cake on his 60th birthday during a visit to Chicago. The main thing that stands out about this image is the President’s form. Look at how prepared he is to make a wish and blow out all of the candles in one breath! Clearly six decades will teach you a thing or two about how to approach a birthday cake.
Bush’s love of birthdays extends beyond his own big day. In the second photo, you can see the President licking icing off his fingers after presenting Sen. John McCain with a birthday cake for the senator’s 69th birthday in 2005.
Vice President Dick Cheney’s 61st birthday was also an occasion for someone to have their cake while Bush ate it, too. Everyone else in the photo is smiling and posing while Bush 43 digs into a piece of cake, living his best life.
Growing up, the birthday kid always got the first piece. In Washington, that honor goes to the President.
The Presidents Bush are not the only ones in their family who enjoy a birthday celebration. Days before the 2000 election, then-candidate George W. Bush celebrated his wife Laura’s 54th birthday onboard his campaign airplane.
Any guesses as to what she may have wished for that year?
Former President George W. Bush will celebrate his 71st birthday this year. And whether it’s on a tarmac, an airplane, on the road or at the office, he has shown us that birthdays are worth celebrating no matter where you are.
