George Herbert Walker Bush
Official White House portrait, ca. 1989
Born: 12 June 1924, Milton, Massachusetts
The Bush family moved to Greenwich, Connecticut soon after his birth, he attended Greenwich Country Day school there. He "prepped" at Phillips Academy at Andover, Massachusetts, graduating in 1942 and immediately joining the Navy. He flew 58 combat missions including one in which his plane was hit, he delivered his bombs on target with one engine on fire before ditching, spent four hours on a life raft, and the next month on a lifeguard submarine rescuing other pilots. He married Barbara Pierce and went to Yale where he finished his degree in two and a half years, then moved to West Texas to work in the oil industry. He started as a sales clerk, ended as president of an independent driller. He ran for the Senate in 1966, lost, was elected to the House from the 7th District in '68, was asked by Nixon to give up that seat and run again for the Senate, and was made Ambassador to the UN in '70, something of a consolation prize. At the height of the Watergate scandal Bush became chairman of the National Republican Committee, he formally asked Nixon to resign the next year. Gerald Ford appointed him envoy to China (no formal relations including ambassadors was in place at the time) and Director of Central Intelligence before running for president in '80. Losing to Ronald Reagan he accepted the second spot on the ticket and was vice president for two terms, then was elected president in '88. His one-term presidency saw the fall of the Berlin Wall, the end of the USSR, the first Gulf War, and an economy that cost him reelection.
Biography from Wikipedia and the White House
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George H. W. Bush quotes:
Quotes found : 45 — (15 per page, this is page 1 of 3) 1 2 3 Next
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- A campaign is a disagreement, and disagreements divide. But an election is a decision, and decisions clear the way for harmony and peace. I mean to be president of all the people. permalink
George H. W. Bush - A new breeze is blowing, and a nation refreshed by freedom stands ready to push on. There is new ground to be broken, and new action to be taken. There are times when the future seems thick as a fog; you sit and wait, hoping the mists will lift and reveal the right path. But this is a time when the future seems a door you can walk right through into a room called tomorrow. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Inaugural address (20 January 1989) - A President is neither prince nor pope, and I don't seek a window on men's souls. In fact, I yearn for a greater tolerance, an easy-goingness about each other's attitudes and way of life. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Inaugural address (20 January 1989) - America is never wholly herself unless she is engaged in high moral principle. We as a people have such a purpose today. It is to make kinder the face of the Nation and gentler the face of the world. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Inaugural address (20 January 1989) - America needs to be a lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like the Simpsons. permalink
George H. W. Bush - But let me tell you, this gender thing is history. You're looking at a guy who sat down with Margaret Thatcher across the table and talked about serious issues. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Competence is the creed of the technocrat who makes sure the gears mesh but doesn't for a second understand the magic of the machine. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Acceptance speech at 1988 Republican National Convention (18 August 1988) - Equality begins with economic empowerment. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Acceptance speech at 1988 Republican National Convention (18 August 1988) - Even though I'm a tranquil guy now at this stage of my life, I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the identity of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious of traitors. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Speech at CIA headquarters (26 April 1999) - Gulf Lesson One is the value of airpower. permalink
George H. W. Bush - I am not one who flamboyantly believes in throwing a lot of words around. permalink
George H. W. Bush - I can tell you this: If I'm ever in a position to call the shots, I'm not going to rush to send somebody else's kids into a war. permalink
George H. W. Bush - I come before you and assume the Presidency at a moment rich with promise. We live in a peaceful, prosperous time, but we can make it better. For a new breeze is blowing, and a world refreshed by freedom seems reborn; for in man's heart, if not in fact, the day of the dictator is over. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Inaugural address (20 January 1989) - I come before you and assume the Presidency at a moment rich with promise. We live in a peaceful, prosperous time, but we can make it better. For a new breeze is blowing, and a world refreshed by freedom seems reborn; for in man's heart, if not in fact, the day of the dictator is over. The totalitarian era is passing, its old ideas blown away like leaves from an ancient, lifeless tree. A new breeze is blowing, and a nation refreshed by freedom stands ready to push on. There is new ground to be broken, and new action to be taken. permalink
George H. W. Bush - Inaugural address (20 January 1989) - I do not like broccoli and I haven't liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I'm President of the United States and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli. permalink
George H. W. Bush - News conference (22 March 1990)
Quotes found : 45 — (15 per page, this is page 1 of 3) 1 2 3 Next
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