Former President George W Bush has broken his silence on Donald Trump.

And fellow Republican or not – it’s clear he has a different world view to the current president of the United States.

Mr Bush says “we all need answers” on the extent of contact between President Donald Trump’s team and the Russian government.

In an interview on NBC’s Today show on Monday, Mr Bush said he would trust Senate Intelligence panel Chairman Richard Burr to decide if a special prosecutor is necessary.

George W Bush with, from left, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, former president Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton and his wife Laura at Donald Trump’s inauguration. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty

But, Mr Bush said: “I think we all need answers … I’m not sure the right avenue to take. I am sure, though, that that question needs to be answered.”

Mr Bush also defended the media’s role in keeping leaders in check, noting “power can be addictive”.

Asked about President Trump’s statements that the media were “the enemy of the people”, Mr Bush noted that an independent press was “indispensable to democracy”.

“We need an independent media to hold people like me to account.

“Power can be very addictive and it can be corrosive, and it’s important for the media to call to account people who abuse their power, whether it be here or elsewhere.

“One of the things I spent a lot of time doing was to convince a person like Vladimir Putin, for example, to accept the notion of an independent press.

“It’s kind of hard to tell others to have an independent, free press when we’re not willing to have one ourselves.”

Mr Bush was also asked whether President Trump’s promises to unify the US had been borne out in his words and actions.

He said: “First of all there’s only been one month in office. He’s got four years. Secondly, I think you have to take the man for his word that he wants to unify the country and we’ll see whether he’s able to do so.”

Michelle Obama embraces George W Bush at the dedication of the National Museum of African American History. Photo: Astrid Riecken/Getty

Speaking on Mr Trump’s infamous travel ban, which was struck down by judges and is expected to be re-issued in a different form by the Trump administration this week, Mr Bush said he was “for an immigration policy that is welcoming and upholds the law.”

NBC was one of the sections of the “FAKE NEWS media” Mr Trump denounced as “the enemy of the American People” in a tweet on February 17.