First Lady Laura Bush talked about PEPFAR and the President’s Malaria Initiative on the Chris Wallace show on Sunday. Watch the clip here. (Note, it may take a few minutes for the full video to load.)

From the interview:

Laura Bush: But many of the policies that I’ve had the chance to visit, like the PEPFAR, the president’s emergency plan for AIDS relief, or the president’s malaria initiative in Africa, are policies that really came from him, I mean, that he felt like the United States could be effective by making sure a whole lot of people in Africa had the chance to get on antiretrovirals and literally save lives.

And my daughter Barbara was in Kenya and Rwanda this week. She went with the World Food Program. And I visited some World Food Program sites and PEPFAR sites.

And she said that when she was introduced, this made her weep. People would say your dad saved my life, because they’re very aware they’re getting antiretrovirals because of the president’s emergency plan which, of course, is funded by the American people, by the American taxpayer.

Chris Wallace: Nancy Reagan once told me that during her husband’s second term, she felt freer to go out to talk about public policy and her views on them, and you seem to be doing the same thing. Why is that?

Laura Bush: Well, I don’t know that it’s — I mean, I think I felt perfectly free during the first term as well to talk about whatever I was interested in. But I also think it took me a while to realize what a platform I had.

You can read the full transcript here.

Yesterday, I was able to band the First Lady and ask her a question about her recent trip to Africa!

At a National Press Club luncheon, Mrs. Bush spoke about her tour through Senegal, Mozambique, Zambia and Mali and the importance of foreign aid initiatives.

The question I submitted, asking what most impressed the First Lady during her trip, was the first asked during the question and answer session. Her reply is below.

MRS. BUSH: Well, I think it was hearing the “Lazarus effect,” I mean, these stories of people who were literally dying and then once they were on antiretrovirals they came back to life. But certainly one of the most moving parts is the work that so many groups are doing on ground in Africa. Bruce’s group, the RAPIDS Consortium, have a donor who has given 23,000 bicycles to Zambia, so that the care-givers that we met can literally go door to door in their neighborhoods and find out who needs help.

One of the reasons PEPFAR and these other programs are effective is because we’re working with people who are already on the ground and who can go door to door. And to hear the stories of these care-givers was really very, very inspiring.

Read the full transcript from the First Lady’s remarks here.

-Sarah Crouthers