Michael Gerson, a former speechwriter for former President George W. Bush and a Washington Post columnist who commented on conservative politics and faith at the paper for more than two decades, died on Thursday at a hospital in Washington, according to an obituary in the Post.
Gerson was 58, and the cause of death was related to complications with cancer.
An evangelical Christian and writer, Gerson joined the Bush campaign in 1999 and helped craft the former president’s speeches with a heavy influence of religion and morality.
According to the Post, Gerson had a strong bond with Bush, who was also religious.
In a statement Thursday, Bush said he was “heartbroken” after learning of the death of Gerson.
“He was a great writer, and I was fortunate he served as my chief speechwriter and a trusted advisor for many years,” Bush said. “His brilliant mind was enhanced by his big heart. As a result, Mike harnessed the power of the pen to not just write about good policy, but drive it.”
Gerson helped Bush craft well-known and powerful speeches in the wake of several events during his presidency.
There were also softer moments. In Bush’s first inaugural address, Gerson described democracy as the “seed upon the wind, taking root in many nations.”
He was also responsible for the famous Bush line in a campaign speech pledging to end “the soft bigotry of low expectations” in the education of minority and low-income students.
After the 9/11 attacks, Gerson’s writing contributed to a number of speeches from Bush as Americans struggled to cope with the tragedy.
“Just three days removed from these events, Americans do not yet have the distance of history,” Bush said on Sept. 14, 2001. “But our responsibility to history is already clear: to answer these attacks and rid the world of evil.”
In the Sept. 14 speech, Bush also sought to comfort Americans, saying “grief and tragedy and hatred are only for a time” in a speech that brought together Gerson’s trademark beliefs on morality and religion.
“Goodness, remembrance, and love have no end,” Bush said. “And the Lord of life holds all who die, and all who mourn.”
But Gerson also helped push the Bush administration toward the 2003 invasion of Iraq based on the false allegations at the time that the Middle Eastern nation possessed weapons of mass destruction.
According to the Post, Gerson never expressed regret for pushing the U.S. toward invading Iraq, saying in a 2007 memoir it was essential for the U.S. to fight against terrorism.
Gerson joined the Post in 2007 and wrote twice-weekly columns, including those critical of former Presidents Obama and Trump.
Gerson was born in Belmar, N.J., on May 15, 1964. In addition to his columns, Gerson also wrote several books.