89-year-old George H. W. Bush marks another first, and it's not skydiving
Warren Buffett does it.
The pope does it.
And now, even the 41st President of the United States is doing it.
On Tuesday, 89-year-old George H. W. Bush officially launched his personal Twitter account with his first tweet, a post in remembrance of former South African President Nelson Mandela.
Barbara and I wish we could have joined the U.S. delegation honoring President Mandela today. He, and his countrymen, are in our prayers.
— George Bush (@GeorgeHWBush) December 10, 2013
The tweet followed a statement released by the former president's office on Nov. 6, in the wake of the news of Mandela's death.
"Barbara and I mourn the passing of one of the greatest believers in freedom we have had the privilege to know," the statement read in part. "As President, I watched in wonder as Nelson Mandela had the remarkable capacity to forgive his jailers following 26 years of wrongful imprisonment - setting a powerful example of redemption and grace for us all. He was a man of tremendous moral courage, who changed the course of history in his country. Barbara and I had great respect for President Mandela, and send our condolences to his family and countrymen."
Bush is already making a splash in the Twitter community. As of Tuesday afternoon, the former president's account had drawn more than 25,000 followers, and the number has continued to climb. It's early, but so far the senior Bush's account is garnering far more interest than that of his son, 43rd president George W. Bush, whose account remains inactive.
Still, both of the Bush presidents have a long way to go to catch up to former President Bill Clinton, whose Twitter account was launched with some fanfare in April. As of Tuesday, Clinton's account has more than 1.3 million followers.
