House Majority Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina, and former President George Bush, take a selfie before the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021.
(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, Pool)COLUMBIA, S.C. – As they witnessed President Joe Biden take the oath of office on Wednesday, House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said former Republican President George W. Bush lauded him as a “savior” for helping get Biden elected.
The South Carolina Democrat is largely credited with giving Biden the endorsement he needed to shoot to the top of 2020′s large Democratic field and win his party's nomination.
Clyburn, South Carolina’s only Democratic representative in Congress, is the dean of the state’s Democrats and the third-ranking member of the U.S. House.
Clyburn said that his backing of Biden also came up Wednesday during conversations with former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, the party's 2016 nominee.