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President ?Barack Obama Attends ?South By Southwest In Austin To Talk Technology, Not Attending Former First Lady Nancy Reagan’s Funeral

By Stephen Jordan
Published on: 09:12 PST, Mar 11, 2016

President Barack Obama is attending South by Southwest 2016, reports the Daily Mail, serving as the keynote speaker and will be discussing how technology is important in improving American civic life. Obama is the first sitting president to attend the South By Southwest festival, which within the last 30 years has become a beacon for discussing technology of the future. Obama opted to attend the festival instead of attending the funeral of former First Lady Nancy Reagan. First Lady Michelle Obama and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton are attending the memorial service being held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on Friday.

“Mrs. Reagan was a woman of incredible strength and grace,” Michelle Obama stated. “She was a passionate advocate for so many important issues. Through the examples she set both during her time in the White House and beyond, Mrs. Reagan reminded us of the importance of women’s leadership at every level of our society.”

President Obama has received plenty of backlash and criticism over his decision to not attend Mrs. Reagan’s memorial service. There are many conservatives who feel that this is a very disrespectful decision to make and have called the president out on this. However, it has never really been traditional for sitting presidents (Republican or Democrat) to attend the memorial services of former First Ladies. Ronald Reagan himself did not attend the memorial service of former First Lady Bess Truman, and Obama also did not attend Betty Ford’s funeral. According to ABC News, President Obama did say that Nancy Reagan “will be missed,” before he left for SXSW.

“I had the opportunity to meet Mrs. Reagan once,” Obama stated. “Obviously, she was already advanced in age but could not have been more gracious and more charming to myself and Michelle when we first came into office.” Nancy Reagan first met President Barack Obama back in 2009 when she attended the White House as he was signing the Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission Act.

South by Southwest provides President Obama an opportunity to discuss the future of technology, something that he is quite passionate about, so his presence at this year’s festival is not too surprising. Prior to this, the president has had numerous dinners with a number of technology moguls and has received help with both of his presidential campaigns through the wealth of Silicon Valley.

Obama has discussed an interesting idea with some of his closest advisers, one that would commence once Obama officially leaves office. The president apparently wants to create something of a high-tech presidential center so that visitors can experience his legacy through technology. This idea would also help encourage a better use of technology in society in general. In an effort to make federal government agencies better responsive to the needs of customers, President Obama has made attempts at bringing engineers and tech executives into government.

“Indeed, this might be President Obama’s most important accomplishment as the First Tech President: establishing a lasting legacy of service that will carry on long after he leaves office,” Jason Goldman, the chief digital officer for the White House, said.

President Obama bid his farewell at the White House as he boarded Marine One, which took him to Air Force One for his flight to SXSW in Austin, Texas. For the keynote interview, Obama sat down with Texas Tribune editor-in-chief Evan Smith. Obama’s speech has playfully been referred to as the “State of the Taco” on social media, in reference to Obama enjoying Texan foods.

The first day of SXSW Interactive is filled with stormtroopers, who looked like they had just walked off the set of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Along with the president of the United States attending this year, a bunch of celebrities, tech leaders, and film directors will also be attending. First Lady Michelle Obama is going to deliver a keynote speech next week, March 16, as part of South by Southwest’s music section, and she will be discussing her Let Girls Learn initiative.

[Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for SXSW]

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