Look Back at Barack Obama and Michelle Obama's Friendship with George W. Bush and Laura Bush in Photos
Look Back at Barack Obama and Michelle Obama's Friendship with George W. Bush and Laura Bush in Photos
Alexandra SchonfeldThu, June 18, 2026 at 4:33 PM UTC
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Credit: AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool
Dating back to Barack Obama's inauguration in 2009, the former president and his wife Michelle Obama have shared some surprisingly funny and candid moments with Obama's predecessor George W. Bush and wife Laura Bush, putting their friendship on display on some of the nation's biggest stages.
From their tradition of exchanging candy to jokes about "just barely" behaving, see how the former presidents and their wives have stayed close over the years.
01 of 09
Passing of the Torch
Lady Michelle Obama and President Barack Obama with President George W. Bush and Laura Bush.Credit: JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty
During Barack Obama's inauguration in 2009, he and his wife Michelle Obama were seen smiling alongside George W. Bush and Laura Bush just after officially taking the oath of office.
Following the inauguration, President Bush's letter to his predecessor was made public, reading in part, "You have just begun a fantastic chapter in your life. Very few have had the honor of knowing the responsibility you now feel. Very few know the excitement of the moment and the challenges you will face."
The Bushes' daughters Laura and Jenna also gave the Obamas' daughters Malia and Sasha a tour of their favorite places in the White House, a visit from which Jenna shared photos years later.
02 of 09
Catching Up
President George W. Bush and Michelle Obama.Credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty
Over the years, their friendship played out in a public forum on multiple occasions — often between Michelle and President Bush, who found themselves seated next to each other at important events.
At the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery civil rights marches in 2015, the two were seen chatting from their places on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama.
Bush told CBS Sunday Morningthat he was surprised by the public's reaction to their good rapport. "The American people were so surprised that Michelle Obama and I could be friends," he said. "I think it's a problem that Americans are so polarized in their thinking that they can't imagine a George W. Bush and a Michelle Obama being friends."
03 of 09
Hand in Hand
President George Bush and Michelle Obama in 2016.Credit: Paul Moseley/Fort Worth Star Telegram/Tribune News Service via Getty
In 2016, Michelle and the former president held hands during a memorial for five Dallas and DART police officers who were killed during a Black Lives Matter protest, at which Bush and Barack Obama both spoke.
"Our values are the same," Michelle said on Today about Bush. "We disagree on policy, but we don't disagree on humanity, we don't disagree about love and compassion. I think that's true for all of us — it's just that we get lost in our fear of what's different."
04 of 09
Embracing Differences
President George W Bush and Michelle Obama.Credit: David Hume Kennerly via Bank of America/Getty
One of the most memorable moments shared between the families came at the 2016 opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. where Michelle and Bush shared a hug.
In 2017, Bush told PEOPLE the hug was "a genuine expression of affection," and added, "She kind of likes my sense of humor. Anybody who likes my sense of humor, I immediately like. ... I needle her a little bit and around her, I'm fairly lighthearted. [The Obamas] are around serious people all the time and we just took to each other."
05 of 09
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"A Simple Gesture"
Credit: CNN
A few years later, a tradition of sorts started between Michelle and the former president when he was seen passing a cough drop to her from his wife, Laura, during Sen. John McCain's 2018 funeral.
Following the then-viral moment, Michelle told the Today show that she "didn't realize at the time that anybody noticed what we were doing."
"President Bush and I, we are forever seat mates because of protocol, that's how we sit at all the official functions so he is my partner in crime at every major thing where all the formers gather," she added. "So we're together all the time, and I love him to death. He's a wonderful man. He's a funny man. And it was a simple gesture."
"He was getting a cough drop from Laura and I looked over and I said 'Hand me a cough drop' and he was like 'Oh, okay,'" she continued. "And I will add that they were old cough drops."
06 of 09
Keeping Tradition
George W. Bush with his wife, Laura. Donald and Melania Trump. Barack and Michelle Obama. Bill and Hillary Clinton.Credit: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty
Later that year, the friends were reunited at the state funeral of former president George H.W. Bush. As George W. greeted the guests, which included President Donald Trump, Melania Trump, Bill and Hillary Clinton and Barack, when he got to Michelle, he appeared to pass her a piece of candy.
07 of 09
A Love Tap
Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty; Pool/AP
As all of the living U.S. presidents gathered to pay tribute to Jimmy Carter, Bush was seen giving Obama a friendly tap on his belly as he scooted by him to his seat.
08 of 09
"Just Barely" Behaving
George W. Bush, Laura Bush and Barack Obama.Credit: Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty
The former presidents were seated together once more at the Jan. 20 inauguration of President Trump, where Obama, who attended without his wife Michelle, joked that Bush "just barely" behaved during the ceremony.
The moment came after the Bushes and Obama were asked ahead of the ceremony if the 43rd president was "going to behave."
"Nope," Obama replied.
09 of 09
Freshly Minted Friends
Credit: AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool
Bush and Michelle had a lighthearted moment at the opening day of the Obama Presidential Library, where he handed her a tin of Altoids in reference to their viral minty moment from years before.
In 2026, Bush spoke to his daughter Jenna Bush Hager on Todayabout what actually transpired at McCain's funeral, and why he thinks it resonated so much.
"I get a little antsy, as I'm sure you know, and I was sitting next to Michelle. That's who I sit next to at funerals," Bush said. "And I was kind of teasing her and stuff, and I slipped her an Altoid. Not as a joke, but I thought she might want one. I got in the car afterwards, and [Jenna] said, 'You're trending.' I didn't know what trending meant."
"It turns out, the country is starved to see a white, center-right Republican and an African American center-left Democrat having fun and being able to converse, not as political figures but as citizens," Bush concluded. "And I intend to continue to try to do that."
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