Bush set for upbeat farewell address

President Bush will not dwell on legacy-building in his farewell address, senior aides said Thursday, but he will express his appreciation to the American people for the chance to serve as president.

Senior adviser Ed Gillespie told reporters that Bush’s 13-minute address from the White House’s East Room will not focus on looking back or defending the more controversial aspects of his administration, but that the president would instead express thanks, talk about future challenges and recognize people who are “examples of grace and courage and compassion.”

{mosads}Gillespie said Bush will again express his best wishes to President-elect Obama, and that the remarks will be “optimistic and future-oriented.”

“It’s reflective of the experiences and shared experiences with the American people,” Gillespie said. “It is, in terms of talking about the challenges for the future, it is optimistic based on what he has seen in the character and the strength of the American people; and, obviously, talks about his hopes for our country and the next president and for the American people.”

But Bush will talk about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

“It is a presidency, obviously, at a time of great consequence and a lot of major events,” Gillespie stated.

However, the adviser noted that Bush will not re-fight any battles with his critics, and Thursday night’s speech will serve as an “end point, a punctuation mark” on the legacy speeches and interviews Bush has done in recent weeks.

“All that is out there,” he said. “I think for historians, they can judge. That’s what historians do … that’s not the nature of this speech.”

Bush will have on hand a small audience of people he intends to recognize, similar to audience members the president mentioned during his State of the Union speeches.

Gillespie and White House press secretary Dana Perino noted that the speech is Bush’s last public event before Inauguration Day, when he will greet the Obamas at the White House.

Bush still has one more radio address to tape Friday morning and he will then head to Camp David for one last weekend there.

The advisers said Bush has grown more reflective in recent days — Perino acknowledged that the president has been “sad in some ways” — but he has remained focused on the tasks at hand.

“Look, the president is being reflective at times, but … when he said sprint to the finish, he absolutely meant it,” Perino said. “And while he might not be tired, I think all of us — some of us are trying to struggle to keep up with him.

“But he is, you know, sad in some ways.”

A number of offices in the White House traditionally leave something for their successors, including the president. Perino will leave a note in the press secretary’s flak jacket for incoming press secretary Robert Gibbs.

Presidents traditionally leave a note for their successor in a drawer of the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office. Perino said Bush will compose his note to Obama on the morning of the Inauguration.

While Gillespie said Bush will not make his farewell remarks about his legacy, he was asked how the president would like to be remembered.

“I think [he] would like to be remembered as someone who has stood by his principles, someone who made decisions based on the best interests of the American people …,” he stated. “I think that people will acknowledge that he’s been willing to make tough decisions as president and not kick the can down the road.”

Perino’s last scheduled press briefing is set for Friday morning.