VP Mike Pence offers nation's condolences to family of President George HW Bush
WASHINGTON -- Ceremonies for the late President George H.W. Bush began on Monday before he is laid to rest in College Station, Texas. ABC7 News will provide live coverage of the ceremony in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, where Bush will lie in state through Wednesday.
MORE: George HW Bush funeral plans, legacy, look back at his life
8:35 p.m.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump have paid their respects to former President George H.W. Bush at the U.S. Capitol.
The nation's 41st president is lying in state at the Capitol Rotunda. The Trumps stood in front of the casket Monday evening with their eyes closed for a few moments.
After Trump saluted the casket, the pair walked out.
Trump skipped an earlier service at the Capitol, where Bush was eulogized by Vice President Mike Pence, among others.
Trump plans to attend Bush's state funeral Wednesday at Washington National Cathedral.
Trump has a fractured relationship with the Bush family, whom he has repeatedly criticized. But he has praised Bush since his passing as "just a high-quality man who truly loved his family" and a "terrific guy" who will be missed.
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8:30 p.m.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump have arrived at the U.S. Capitol to pay their respects to former President George H.W. Bush.
The body of the nation's 41st president is lying in state at the U.S. Capitol until Wednesday morning.
Trump skipped an earlier service at the Capitol, where Bush was eulogized by Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Paul Ryan, among others.
Trump plans to attend Bush's state funeral Wednesday at Washington National Cathedral.
Trump is not expected to speak at the service and has a fractured relationship with the Bush family. But he has praised Bush since his passing as "just a high-quality man who truly loved his family" and a "terrific guy" who will be missed.
Bush died Friday at his home in Houston. He was 94.
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8:15 p.m.
Several hundred people have gathered in downtown Houston for a memorial to former President George H.W. Bush, a beloved figure in his adopted hometown.
The ceremony Monday night took place in front of Houston's City Hall, bathed in lights of red, white, and blue.
City organizers encouraged Houston residents to wear their boldest socks in a nod to Bush's well-known sartorial tradition.
Michael Meaux (moh), who worked in the U.S. State Department for Bush's son, former President George W. Bush, wore a pair of hot-pink socks that he laughingly said he had owned for a long time but had never worn before.
The Houston resident called Bush "the last gentleman president that we've had."
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5:50 p.m.
Vice President Mike Pence has offered the nation's condolences to the family of the late former President George H.W. Bush.
He also thanked Bush's family for sharing "this special man" with the country and the world.
The vice president says Bush left America and the world "more peaceful, prosperous and secure."
He spoke of first meeting Bush as a 29-year-old entering politics and of a letter his son, an enlisted Marine, received from Bush. Pence's son had just completed a landing on the USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier and Pence wrote to Bush. Bush sent a signed photograph and letter.
Pence spoke at a ceremony in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, where Bush will lie in state through Wednesday.
Bush died Friday at his home in Houston. He was 94.
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5:40 p.m.
Vice President Mike Pence says former President George H.W. Bush's example will always inspire and his lifetime of public service will be enshrined in the hearts of the American people.
Pence says Bush never failed to answer the call to serve his country.
Pence is speaking in the Capitol Rotunda as lawmakers, Supreme Court justices and former members of his administration pay their respects to the nation's 41st president.
Bush also served as vice president for two terms under President Ronald Reagan. Pence says Bush joked there was "nothing substantive to do at all" going into that job.
But Pence says Bush set the standard as "a sound counselor and loyal adviser to an outsider who came to Washington, D.C., to shake things up, cut taxes, rebuild the military, and together they did just that."
5:30 p.m.
House Speaker Paul Ryan praised George H.W. Bush as a "great patriot," and also the first president he had been able to cast a ballot for as a young man.
Ryan said Monday, "Here lies a great man."
The Wisconsin Republican was delivering remarks during a ceremony at the Capitol Rotunda where Bush will lie in state, an honor reserved for few. The former president died Friday.
Ryan says Bush's character was "second to none."
He says Bush lived his life with "a fundamental decency that resonates across generations."
Ryan says Bush's presidential campaign in 1988 first drew him to politics. He said Bush showed other political leaders that "how we live is as important as what we achieve."
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5:20 p.m.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is comparing the "steady hand" with which President George H.W. Bush kept his bomber under control when it was shot down during World War II with the way he guided the country.
McConnell says Bush "kept us on course" as the Kentucky Republican delivered a eulogy for the late president at a ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda on Monday. Bush's flag-covered casket lay in state as McConnell spoke.
Bush's aircraft was shot down in 1944 over the Pacific. He completed his bombing mission before bailing out.
McConnell says Bush "kept us flying high and challenged us to fly higher still" as he steered the U.S. through the end of the Cold War and Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait.
4:40 p.m.
The casket carrying the remains of George H.W. Bush has arrived at the U.S. Capitol for the nation to begin its formal farewell to the 41st president.
His remains arrived Monday afternoon at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington aboard an aircraft that often serves as Air Force One. Former President George W. Bush, the eldest of the four Bush sons, and his wife, Laura, along with brother Neil Bush and his family, were aboard the plane for the trip from Houston.
Following a short service Monday afternoon, the president's remains will lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda until Wednesday morning.
Bush died Friday in Houston at age 94. An invitation-only funeral service is set for Wednesday at Washington National Cathedral. President Donald Trump is among the dignitaries who plan to attend.
RELATED: Funeral, burial plans for Pres. George H.W. Bush
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4:10 p.m.
The body of former President George H.W. Bush is heading toward the U.S. Capitol following a brief ceremony at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington.
Bush's flag-draped casket was unloaded from the presidential plane and brought to a hearse by an honor guard as a military band played "Hail to the Chief."
Bush's son, former President George W. Bush, descended from the plane with his wife, Laura, and other family members. Others including Jeb Bush were already waiting on the tarmac.
Bush will lie in state in the U.S. Capitol rotunda for a ceremony and public visitation from Monday through Wednesday. An invitation-only funeral service will follow at Washington National Cathedral before his casket returns to Houston for burial.
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3:25 p.m.
A military aircraft carrying the remains of former President George H.W. Bush has arrived at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington, as the nation's capital prepares to honor the 41st president.
A formation of Navy sailors and Air Force personnel stood at attention as the plane touched down. The sailors assembled were from the USS George H. W. Bush, the Navy's newest aircraft carrier. A group of about 100 civilian dignitaries and well-wishers also were on hand.
Bush will lie in state in the U.S. Capitol rotunda for a ceremony and public visitation from Monday through Wednesday. An invitation-only funeral service will follow at Washington National Cathedral before his casket returns to Houston for burial.
President Donald Trump, who will attend the funeral service in Washington, has ordered the federal government closed Wednesday for a national day of mourning.
12:10 p.m.
A military aircraft carrying the remains of former President George H.W. Bush has taken off and is flying from Houston to Washington for official mourning ceremonies, including a state funeral.
Pallbearers carried Bush's casket from a hearse across the tarmac to a presidential plane commonly known as Air Force One. For the task of transporting Bush's body on Monday, the plane has been renamed Special Air Mission 41, the number being a reference to Bush's place in the roster of America's presidents.
A military band played "Hail to the Chief." An American flag and one with the presidential seal flew nearby.
Bush's son former President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura Bush, were among those relatives and Bush friends who walked to the aircraft shortly after the body was loaded aboard.
George H.W. Bush died Friday in Houston at age 94.
VIDEO: Pres. Bush's service dog, Sully, at funeral home
11:45 a.m.
George H.W. Bush's remains have made the journey from a Houston funeral home to Ellington Field, where a presidential aircraft will carry them to Washington for a state funeral.
Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush, one of George H.W. Bush's grandsons, was among more than 100 invited guests seeing off Bush's remains on Monday. The guests are set to witness a ceremony including a military band and a 21-gun salute.
Angela Savage one of the people who stood outside the funeral home to watch the passing of the hearse carrying Bush's casket as it headed to Ellington Field. She called it "a once-in-a-lifetime kind of event."
Savage describes what she saw as "amazing and very respectful," adding, "I feel like that's what he deserves."
Bush died Friday in Houston at age 94.
11:25 a.m.
More than 100 invited guests have gathered at Houston's Ellington Field for a ceremony to send off the casket of former President George H.W. Bush to Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland.
The guests stood next to the tarmac at Ellington Field on Monday and awaited the arrival of the hearse with Bush's casket.
The guests and Bush family members are to attend a ceremony that will include a military band and a 21-gun salute.
The guests stood near the U.S. military plane that's more commonly known as Air Force One. For the task of transporting Bush's body, the plane has been renamed Special Air Mission 41, the number being a reference to Bush's place in the roster of America's presidents.
Bush died Friday in Houston at age 94. An invitation-only funeral service is set for Wednesday at Washington National Cathedral.
10:45 a.m.
A hearse carrying the casket of former President George H.W. Bush has left a Houston funeral home.
The casket was draped in an American flag and was carried by six pallbearers on Monday morning. It was placed into a hearse headed to Houston's Ellington Field, where a presidential aircraft waited to carry Bush's body to Washington for a state funeral.
The hearse was part of a motorcade escorted by Houston police officers on motorcycles.
Bush died Friday in Houston at age 94.
RELATED: Moving cartoon reunites Bush 41 with Barbara and daughter
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10:35 a.m.
A spokeswoman confirms former President Jimmy Carter plans to attend the state funeral for former President George H.W. Bush.
Rosalynn Carter will not attend. The 91-year-old former first lady has limited her travels in recent months.
With Bush's death, Jimmy Carter becomes the oldest living former president, at age 94. Both men were born in 1924, Bush on June 12, Carter on Oct. 1.
Bush served as CIA director when Carter first ran for president 1976. Carter replaced Bush with Stansfield Turner.
Four years later, Bush joined the Ronald Reagan Republican ticket that routed Carter in the 1980 presidential election.
Bush died Friday in Houston at age 94. An invitation-only funeral service is set for Wednesday at Washington National Cathedral.
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10:20 a.m.
Secret Service personnel who had been assigned to protecting George H.W. Bush are serving as honorary pallbearers as his remains begin making their way from Houston to a state funeral in Washington.
The former president's spokesman, Jim McGrath, tweeted Monday that for "this first movement in Houston" members of "the current SecretService Bush Protective Division will serve as honorary pallbearers."
Bush died at his Houston home on Friday at age 94. His remains are scheduled to arrive at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland on Monday afternoon and later will begin lying in state at the U.S. Capitol.
On Wednesday morning, a motorcade will take the remains to a state funeral at the National Cathedral.
MORE: Bush 41's letter to Clinton: A gracious note for the ages
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9:20 a.m.
Houston is honoring George H.W. Bush with a City Hall tribute and urging people who attend to dress in colorful socks, a nod to one of the former president's favorite fashion accessories.
Mayor Sylvester Turner is hosting Monday evening's event featuring music and community leaders in front of City Hall. Turner tweeted that those in attendance should "wear their own colorful socks."
Bush often sported bright socks, sometimes with loud, unusual patterns. He died Friday at his Houston home at age 94, and his body is heading to Washington for a state funeral.
Spokesman Jim McGrath tweeted Monday that Bush "will be carried to his final rest" wearing gray socks saluting the Armed Forces and paying "tribute to his lifetime of service," starting as an 18-year-old "naval aviator in war."
VIDEO: 21 gun salute for Pres. George H.W. Bush
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1:35 a.m.
George H.W. Bush is set to embark on his final tour of Washington as a nation prepares to bid farewell to its 41st president.
His remains will arrive in Washington on Monday, and he will lie in state at the Capitol through Wednesday. An invitation-only funeral service is set for Wednesday at Washington National Cathedral, to be attended by President Donald Trump and other dignitaries.
Bush will then be returned to Houston for burial Thursday at his presidential library at Texas A&M University.
He will be laid to rest alongside Barbara Bush, his wife of 73 years who died in April, and Robin Bush, the daughter who died of leukemia at age 3.
Bush was president from 1989 to 1993. He died Friday in Houston at age 94.
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