How past presidents have welcomed the Dalai Lama

How past presidents have welcomed the Dalai Lama

How past presidents have welcomed the Dalai Lama, exiled spiritual leader of Tibet’s Buddhists, to Washington:

—George H.W. Bush became the first president to meet with the Dalai Lama in 1991, two years after the Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing. The White House allowed no photos of the meeting.

—Bill Clinton, seeking to reduce Chinese anger, avoided formal visits and instead dropped by the Dalai Lama’s meetings with other officials. Republicans criticized him for not formally receiving the Dalai Lama. First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, now the secretary of state, also met with the Dalai Lama in the White House.

—George W. Bush met several times with the Dalai Lama in private at the White House residence. In 2007, in a hugely symbolic moment, Bush broke with tradition and appeared in public with the Dalai Lama, personally presenting the monk with the Congressional Gold Medal in an elaborate ceremony. In front of TV cameras and Washington’s most powerful lawmakers, the two men laughed and warmly greeted each other. Bush urged China to invite the Dalai Lama for talks; China was enraged.