(AP) – President Donald Trump has ordered American flags to fly at half-staff for 30 days to honor former President George H.W. Bush.
In a proclamation signed Saturday, hours after Bush died, Trump has also designated Wednesday as a national day of mourning. Trump encourages Americans to gather in places of worship “to pay homage” to Bush’s memory.
He adds: “I invite the people of the world who share our grief to join us in this solemn observance.”
Trump hails Bush as “one of America’s greatest points of light,” a reference to one of Bush’s signature phrases about American civic culture.
Trump has mocked the “points of light” phrase, saying at campaign rallies that “I never quite got that one.”