Bono visits George W Bush at his Texas ranch

The former US president describes the U2 frontman as ‘the real deal’

Former US president George W Bush has described Bono as "the real deal" having met the U2 frontman on Friday.

Bono stopped off at Mr Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, a few hours before the band's concert in the AT&T Stadium in Dallas.

Mr Bush posted a picture of the pair on Instagram stating: “Bono is the real deal. He has a huge heart and a selfless soul, not to mention a decent voice.

“@laurawbush and I are grateful he came to the ranch to talk about the work of @thebushcenter, @onecampaign, @PEPFAR, and our shared commitment to saving lives in Africa.”

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PEPFAR, the US president’s emergency plan for aids relief, was launched during the Bush administration in 2003 to “address the HIV/Aids pandemic that threatened to wipe out an entire generation on the continent of Africa”.

Bono is the co-founder of ONE Campaign, an advocacy organisation aimed at tackling poverty and disease particularly in Africa.

The picture of the pair was also posted on ONE Campaign’s Instagram account on Friday with the following comments attributed to Bono.

“More than 11 million people are alive today thanks to this man’s creation of PEPFAR, the US Aids program that has been saving lives and preventing new HIV infections for over 10 years, with strong support from political leaders right, left and center.

“That progress is all at risk now with President Trump’s budget cuts, which will mean needless infections and lives lost.”

U2 continue their Joshua Tree Tour at Soldier Field in Chicago next Saturday while they play Croke Park on July 22nd.

Sarah Burns

Sarah Burns

Sarah Burns is a reporter for The Irish Times