President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump made a surprise visit to the U.S. Capitol Monday night to pay his respects to former President George H.W. Bush, who died on Friday at 94.
The pair entered the Capitol Rotunda, where Bush will lie in state until Wednesday morning, at 8:30 p.m. They stood for in silence in front of the flag-draped casket for about a minute.
Trump then made a salute and Melania raised her hand to her heart before they turned and walked out of the room about two minutes later.
Trump first paid his respects to Bush in a statement posted to Twitter on Friday. “As president, he the stage for the decades of prosperity that have followed,” Trump wrote. “And through all that he accomplished, he remained humble following the quiet call to serve that gave him a sense of direction.”
Bush’s body was flown from his home state of Texas to Washington on Monday on board an Air Force One jet, which was temporarily renamed Special Air Mission 41.
The White House said Saturday that Trump will attend Bush’s state funeral, which will be held Wednesday at the Washington National Cathedral. The funeral will be the first public meeting between Trump and the Bush family since Trump’s inauguration.
After the funeral, Bush’s body will be returned to Houston, Texas where members of the public will be able to pay their respects before Bush is buried alongside his late wife Barbara.
