LDS Church officials to meet with Bush

By Lisa Riley Roche
Deseret News
Published: Wednesday, May 21, 2008 2:01 p.m. MDT
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President Bush will meet with the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during his fundraising trip to Utah next week, a church spokesman said Wednesday.

It will be the president's first meeting with the new leaders, sustained in February after the death of LDS Church President Gordon B. Hinckley. Bush last met with LDS Church leaders in August 2006, when he was here to address American Legion convention.

The meeting is tentatively scheduled for May 29, according to LDS Church spokesman Scott Trotter. That's the day after Bush is set to appear at fundraisers in Salt Lake City and Deer Valley for the GOP's presumptive presidential nominee, John McCain.

Those fundraisers are set to begin at noon with a $10,000-a-person lunch at the Grand America Hotel downtown, followed by a $500-a-person afternoon reception at the hotel and then, a $70 per person,$100-a-couple early evening reception at the Deer Valley home of Mitt Romney.

Romney, who beat McCain in Utah's Feb. 8 GOP presidential primary before dropping out of the race for the White House in February, is hosting the events with Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., a longtime McCain supporter.

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The White House has yet to confirm the president's schedule, but it appears the president will be staying overnight. That could be at Romney's vacation home, although during his 2006 visit to Utah, Bush spent the night at the Grand America Hotel.

E-mail: lisa@desnews.com

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