Former president George H.W. Bush has responded after
an actress alleged that he touched her inappropriately while he was sitting in
his wheelchair during a photo op that took place a few years ago.
In a now deleted Instagram post published on her
verified account Tuesday, actress Heather Lind wrote that she was
"disturbed today by a photo I saw of President Barack Obama shaking hands
with George H. W. Bush in a gathering of ex-presidents organising aid to states
and territories damaged by recent hurricanes."
"I found it disturbing because I recognize the
respect ex-presidents are given for having served," Lind wrote. "And
I feel pride and reverence toward many of the men in the photo."
Lind did not mention the name of the event where the
alleged touching took place, nor did she specify in her post the manner in
which she was touched. She said in her caption that she was there with the
Bushes to promote a TV show.
"But when I got the chance to meet George H. W. Bush four years ago to
promote a historical television show I was working on, he sexually assaulted me
while I was posing for a similar photo," the post went on to say. "He
didn't shake my hand. He touched me from behind from his wheelchair with his
wife Barbara Bush by his side. He told me a dirty joke. And then, all the while
being photographed, touched me again."
The former president's spokesman Jim McGrath issued a
statement to CNN Wednesday about the allegation.
"President Bush would never — under any
circumstance — intentionally cause anyone distress, and he most sincerely
apologizes if his attempt at humor offended Ms. Lind," the statement said.
McGrath issued a second statement later Wednesday to
provide context.
"At age 93, President Bush has been confined to a
wheelchair for roughly five years, so his arm falls on the lower waist of
people with whom he takes pictures," McGrath said. "To try to put
people at ease, the president routinely tells the same joke — and on occasion,
he has patted women's rears in what he intended to be a good-natured manner.
Some have seen it as innocent; others clearly view it as inappropriate. To
anyone he has offended, President Bush apologizes most sincerely."
The internet was quick to circulate a picture of Bush
and wife Barbara, both of whom appear in the photo flanked by a group of actors
featured in the TV series, "TURN: Washington's Spies." Lind, an
actress on the show, is seen standing to the left of Bush in the photo.
CNN has reached out to Lind to confirm that the image
being circulated is the one she was referencing and to ask why the post was
deleted. Lind has not responded to CNN's request for comment.
The photo appears on AMC's official site, with a
caption that indicates it was taken at a private screening for the show hosted
by the Bushes.
