Trump just tweeted about George H. W. Bush’s death and managed to make it all about himself

Last night, former George H.W. Bush died at age 94. As is always the case when an American president passes, it prompted the country to reflect on his life of service and the role of his legacy in our greater national story.

Due to the current state of the Oval Office and the troglodyte camped out in it, it also inevitably gave Americans a chance to remember when presidents, regardless of their politics, were thoughtful, honorable men.

Shortly after the news broke, President Trump sent out a boilerplate tweet, praising the late President Bush. It was, for once, a semi-appropriate message for the moment, which means that there is a nonzero chance that someone on the president’s staff wrote and sent it out on his behalf. Known for compassion and solemnity, Trump is not.

Of course, it was only a matter of time before the real Trump — the egomaniacal man that the entire world has learned to hate — reared his ugly head. And, true to form, he managed to make the 41st president’s passing somehow about himself and his own wants. You can tell that the two tweets were most likely written by Trump himself given the fact that they start with the words, “I was very much…”

He went on to whine about the fact that he was excited to hold a press conference to discuss the G20 meeting he’s attending in Argentina because of the “great success” he’s had in dealing with foreign leaders. He added that “out of respect” for Bush’s family he will wait until after the funeral to hold the press conference.

If Trump really wanted to respect the family, he wouldn’t be trying to tug the limelight away from George H.W. Bush to the G20. The tweets, while pretending to be gracious, are a transparent attempt to drop the little nugget about his own “great success.” He simply can’t stand anyone other than himself being the focus of the news cycle.

Furthermore, given Trump’s history of diplomatic blunders and his constant alienation of even our closest allies, it’s highly unlikely that his trip to the G20 meeting was anything even approaching a success. At best, we should hope for a slightly mitigated disaster.

President Trump should do the Bush family and the entire country a favor by logging off of Twitter for the rest of day. We could all use a break from his rhetorical garbage spewing and we should be discussing George H. W. Bush, not Trump and his myriad inadequacies.

Follow Rob Haffey on Twitter.