Obama to skip Nancy Reagan funeral for festival

President Obama (Credit: Zerohedge stock)

President Obama has decided not to attend former First Lady Nancy Reagan's funeral on Friday, announcing he will instead attend an event in Texas, the South by Southwest Interactive Festival.

He is due to be interviewed at the venue on how technology companies can help solve problems around the world, the New York Post reported.

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First Lady Michelle Obama is still going to attend the funeral, and serve as a keynote speaker at the same SXSW event her husband is attending, the newspaper reported.

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It's not entirely uncommon for presidents and former presidents to skip out on first lady funerals. As the New York Post noted, neither Obama nor former President Bill Clinton attended former First Lady Betty Ford's funeral in 2011 – though former President George W. Bush did, along with Rosalyn Carter, Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton and Nancy Reagan.

Clinton's campaign announced she will also attend Reagan's funeral, set for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif.

Obama's decision to skip Reagan's funeral comes just after he also opted out of attending Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's funeral.