The U2 frontman also warned President Trump's budget cuts will put progress at risk, meaning "needless infections and lives lost."
by Colin Stutz, Billboard
Since George W. Bush's presidency, Bono and the former head of state have developed somewhat of an unlikely friendship over their shared mission to fight the global HIV/AIDS epidemic and save the lives in Africa.
On Friday, the U2 frontman shared a photo with Bush taken at the former president's ranch in Crawford, Texas, applauding his righteous work and warning against the current president's proposed budget. In turn, Bush returned the praise with some kind words of his own.
"More than 11 million people are alive today thanks to this man's creation of PEPFAR, the U.S. AIDS program that has been saving lives and preventing new HIV infections for over 10 years, with strong support from political leaders right, left, and center. That progress is all at risk now with President Trump's budget cuts, which will mean needless infections and lives lost," Bono wrote on the Instagram page of his ONE campaign non-profit, which works to fight extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa.
Bush replied with a post of his own, sharing the same photo and saying, "Bono is the real deal. He has a huge heart and a selfless soul, not to mention a decent voice."
The 43rd U.S. president went on to say that his wife Laura Bush and her were grateful for Bono's visit and the opportunity to discuss the work of The Bush Center, ONE, the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which Bush launched during his presidency in 2003, and "and our shared commitment to saving lives in Africa."
See Bono's post below and Bush's here.
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Original article: http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/rock/7809579/bono-george-w-bush-photo-fighting-aids-trump
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