George W. Bush on why he wasn't fazed by SNL impressions: 'I love humor'

Former President George W. Bush said it never bothered him "at all" when comedians imitated him during his presidency, telling late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel on Thursday that "the best humor is when you make fun of yourself."

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"I love humor," he said Thursday on "Jimmy Kimmel Live." He told the host that he even had a favorite impersonator -- comedian Steve Bridges, who played the 43rd president multiple times before his death in 2012.

"He was very, very funny," Bush said. "I did a White House Correspondents Dinner and Bridges and I came out together, and I would say something, and then Bridges would say, kind of, 'This is what he really meant.'"

Bush frequently provided fodder for late-night comedy shows and impressionists with linguistic stumbles and highly visible snafus during his presidency. Comedian Will Ferrell was particularly well-known for his impression of Bush on "Saturday Night Live."

"You want to hear something terrible?" Bush asked Kimmel. "I had dinner with Lorne Michaels, the head of 'Saturday Night Live.' He said, 'I put a great speechwriter on you, and he came up with strategery.' And I said, 'Wait a minute, I said strategery.'"

The two went back and forth, Bush said.

"I said, 'Let me ask you this: Did he come up with 'misunderestimate?'" he asked, quoting a famed "Bushism" from a 2000 speech in Arkansas.

President Donald Trump has frequently complained about Alec Baldwin's impression of him on "Saturday Night Live." He announced last week that he will break tradition and skip this year's White House Correspondents Dinner.

Cox Media Group