Laura: Dubya Wants Low Profile

The AP reports:

Former President George W. Bush's decision not to appear at ground zero with President Barack Obama after the death of Osama bin Laden is consistent with his desire keep a low public profile, former first lady Laura Bush said Thursday.

"He's made the real decision not to enter into politics or the public eye," Laura Bush told The Associated Press on Thursday.

Bush said she and her husband were out to dinner Sunday night when they received word that Obama wanted to speak with him. The former president went home to take the call informing him that U.S. military forces had killed Osama bin Laden in a raid of his compound in Pakistan, she said.

"We're very, very proud of our military and our intelligence services. It was risky and it was dangerous for our members of the military," she said at a Dallas elementary school after announcing grants from her foundation for school libraries.

The former president congratulated Obama and military and intelligence personnel in a statement Sunday night, calling bin Laden's death "a victory for America."

She said Bush feels that acting presidents alone should preside over such official ceremonies as the one held Thursday at ground zero. She told the AP that her husband declined an invitation to attend Thursday's event in New York because "that's for President Obama to do at this point."

Earlier this week, George Bush's spokesman, David Sherzer, said the former president appreciated the offer to attend the ground zero event but choses to remain out of the spotlight during his post-presidency.