‘Today’: All 4 Living Ex-Presidents Tell Jenna Bush Hager Their Hopes for U.S.

Jenna Bush Hager‘s latest Today interview was historic.

In an interview aired on the Tuesday, April 21, episode of Today, Bush Hager sat down for an exclusive conversation with America’s four living former presidents: Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and her father, George W. Bush. During her interviews, Bush Hager asked the former presidents, “As we’re celebrating 250 years of our democracy, what message do you have to Americans?”

Obama replied, “Remember what’s best in us, that the basic principle upon which this country was founded, which is we don’t have rulers. We don’t have kings, monarchs, or aristocracies. We have citizens. And if we hold true to that idea, that we the people have been gifted this chance of self-government, if we pay attention to our responsibilities, and if we extend respect and thoughtfulness to our fellow citizens, even if we disagree with them.”

He went on to state, “If we understand that part of this democratic project is to sort through our differences in peaceful, legal ways, then I’m confident that we’re gonna have another 250-year run that’s going to be just as good.”

Clinton told Bush Hager, “The country will survive as much by the process, by the freedom to speak, by the freedom to vote, by the freedom to be active in politics, as by any particular issue. And because it’s like it is, compromise is essential.”

 

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Biden, for his part, described the U.S. as the “most unique country in the world,” adding, “We really do think democracy is dictated by the rules of the Constitution. And we do believe and react, and when we do, we do well, that all men are created equal.”

As for Bush, he told his daughter that his message to the country is to “consider yourself fortunate to be a part of a great nation.” He continued, “Study our history so you have a better sense for what the future will be like. And be a citizen, not a spectator, and by that, I mean participate in the process, but also love a neighbor like you’d like to be loved yourself.”

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Bush also noted that “one of the beauties of this country is that there are thousands and thousands of citizens who volunteer on a daily basis to help somebody in need.” He shared, “They’re often not heralded, but they make a huge difference, one person at a time. And I would hope people would take a look at our history and realize we’re an imperfect nation trying to be more perfect, but be optimistic about the future of the country.”

Earlier in the interview, Bush Hager asked each former president about their legacy. For Bush, he reflected on the impact of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. “I think historians will analyze that day, America’s response after that day. It was a reminder that the human condition elsewhere matters to the security of this country. It mattered then and it matters now, by the way,” he said. “But I think people want to know how the country responded, and it was overwhelming volunteerism.”

Obama made history as the country’s first Black president, but he said it’s “very hard” for him and his peers to “judge [their] place in history.” He explained, “That’s up to other people. I can speak about what an extraordinary honor it was to serve the American people. I can speak to how inspired I was to hear the stories of folks out there who were doing wonderful things in their communities, helping each other out, being good neighbors. Maybe one thing I am proud of is the fact that I think we upheld the integrity and the honor of the office in how we conducted ourselves and how we ran our administration.”

 

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Clinton, meanwhile, said he was “grateful” to have “had a chance to do what President Kennedy said everyone should want to do: To make maximum use of the talents God gave me, and to do it in a way that benefitted other people. You can get up every day, no matter how bad it is, you can make something good happen for somebody. And that is a gift beyond imagining.”

Biden told Bush Hager that he hopes history views his presidential service in a similar way to Bush and George H.W. Bush, stating, “As generated by making sure everybody got a shot. My dad used to say, ‘Look, Joey, everyone’s entitled to a shot. Everyone’s entitled to a shot, guaranteed.’”

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