Obama Skips Reagan Funeral, But Still Uses Ceremony To Talk About Himself

President Obama declined an invitation to an invitation for Nancy Reagan's funeral Friday to instead attend the hipster tech confab SXSW, but he addressed the former First Lady's passing in his weekly radio address today. Rather than focusing on her life and work, his commentary largely centered around his work increasing taxpayer financing of stem-cell research, an area he shared common cause with Reagan.

"When I signed an order to resume federal stem cell research, I was proud that she was one of the first phone calls I made," Obama said.

Obama also pitched two other administration programs:

That’s why, last year, my administration announced the Precision Medicine Initiative to advance our ability to tailor health care and treat diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s by accounting for individual differences in people’s genes, environments, and lifestyles. ...

Last month, we took new actions to foster more collaboration between researchers, doctors, patients, data systems, and beyond to accelerate precision medicine. And more than 40 organizations stepped up with new commitments in this cutting-edge field. We’ve also launched the BRAIN initiative to revolutionize our understanding of how the human brain works.

"I’ve never been more optimistic that we will one day find a cure for devastating diseases like Alzheimer’s," Obama continued. "And I can think of no better way to honor our former First Lady’s legacy than by working together, as one nation, toward that goal."