Bush Pays Tribute to First US President

President Bush has paid tribute to the first U.S. president, George Washington, in celebration of the 275th anniversary of Washington's birth.

Mr. Bush spoke Monday at George Washington's home, Mount Vernon, in Virginia.

The president said George Washington was a champion of liberty and a central figure in the American colonists' struggle for independence from Britain. Mr. Bush said the U.S. continues to stand up to tyranny and terror.

Millions of Americans are getting a day off from work for Monday's observance of Presidents' Day.

February is the birth month of two of the most renowned U.S. presidents - George Washington (1732) and Abraham Lincoln (1809). The holiday was first officially celebrated in 1885 to honor Washington's birthday on February 22. He was the country's first president.

Americans in many states also celebrated Lincoln's February 12 birthday after his assassination just days after the end of civil war in 1865, but it was not a federal holiday.

The U.S. Congress passed an act in 1968 which made the third Monday in February the official observance of Washington's birthday. However, Americans generally consider what has become known as Presidents' Day as a celebration to honor both Washington and Lincoln. - VOA News