HOUSTON – One of the most shared photos since the death of President George H.W. Bush is of his service dog, Sully, lying by his casket Monday. It has been retweeted more than 70,000 times. When online news site Slate posted an article with the headline "Don't Spend your Emotional Energy on Sully H.W. Bush" people went ballistic.
President George H.W Bush got Sully, a yellow lab service dog, in June, shortly after first lady Barbara Bush died. The late president was confined to a wheelchair and suffering with symptoms of Parkinson's Disease. The animal had been with him for just six months.
No one tried to hide that fact, but a reporter from Slate wrote "Sully was not the late president's lifelong companion" and that "the photograph is not proof that Sully is a particularly 'good boy.'"
The reporter wrote, "it says almost nothing other than the fact that Sully was, at one point in the same room as the casket of his former boss."
People reacted strongly.
Elliott Harding tweeted:
John Passantino tweeted:
Josh Jordan lashed out:
That Sully was only with George H.W. Bush for six months makes him sleeping next to his casket all the more amazing, you soulless monster. https://t.co/hWzR0eUwGc
— Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) December 4, 2018
And Vivienne Finch wrote:
Sully was also the name of an absolute hero pilot who saved many lives on the Hudson River piloting a plane where he only was with passengers for a few hours. The time spent doesn’t matter as much as the service and love.
— v. finch (@vfinch) December 4, 2018
George W. Bush announced that Sully is heading to his next assignment: Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland.