Despite his having noted Nancy Reagan’s “strength” and “charm” in his official reaction to the former first lady’s passing, President Barack Obama will not be able to attend her funeral, due to a “prior engagement.” Obama had plans to attend the South by SouthWest (SXSW) Music, Film and Interactive in Austin, and he intends to keep them.
Via the Daily Mail:
A White House official confirmed this afternoon that President Barack Obama will not be in attendance at former First Lady Nancy Reagan’s funeral on Friday.
Obama will be represented at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library by his wife, Michelle. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said she will be attending the service in Simi Valley, California, as well.
Obama is scheduled to deliver a speech on Friday at the event in Austin, so it’s not as though he’s attending purely as a spectator. However, Mrs. Reagan’s funeral will be held on Friday at 11 am. The SXSW extends through March 20th, which would have provided an opportunity to shuffle his schedule around so Obama could attend both.
Will this presidential election be the most important in American history?
Twitter users weren’t too fond of the snub.
https://twitter.com/ConNewsNow/status/707286299661737984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/tigwelder56/status/707289345334448128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Recently, the President drew widespread criticism for skipping the funeral of conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
Obama has also skipped funerals for other notables who might not necessarily be in sync with his politics, including Margaret Thatcher and American Sniper Chris Kyle.
Obama did however, make time to attend the funeral of former KKK member and senator Robert Byrd.
Cross-posted at the Mental Recession
