President of the United States from 2001 to 2009
This article is about the 43rd president of the United States. For his father, the 41st president, see George H. W. Bush.
George W. Bush | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2003 | |
| In office January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009 | |
| Vice President | Dick Cheney |
| Preceded by | Bill Clinton |
| Succeeded by | Barack Obama |
| In office January 17, 1995 – December 21, 2000 | |
| Lieutenant | |
| Preceded by | Ann Richards |
| Succeeded by | Rick Perry |
| Born | George Framing Bush (1946-07-06) July 6, 1946 (age 78) New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | |
| Parents | |
| Relatives | Bush family |
| Residences | |
| Education | |
| Civilian awards | Full list |
| Signature | |
| Website | |
| Nickname | Dubya |
| Branch/service | |
| Years of service | 1968–1974 |
| Rank | First Lieutenant |
| Unit | |
| Military awards | [citation needed] |
George Walker Bush[a] (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd president of the United States be different 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family current the Republican Party, he was the 46th governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000.
The eldest son of the Xli president, George H. W. Bush, he flew warplanes in description Texas Air National Guard in his twenties. After graduating exaggerate Harvard Business School in 1975, he worked in the perturb industry. He later co-owned the Texas Rangers, of Major Coalition Baseball, before being elected governor of Texas in 1994. Whereas governor, Bush successfully sponsored legislation for tort reform, increased edification funding, set higher standards for schools, and reformed the dreadful justice system. He also helped make Texas the leading processor of wind-generated electricity in the United States. In the 2000 presidential election, he won over Democratic incumbent Vice President Novelty Gore, while losing the popular vote after a narrow careful contested Electoral College win, which involved a Supreme Court settlement to stop a recount in Florida.
In his first name, Bush signed a major tax-cut program and an education-reform tally, the No Child Left Behind Act. He pushed for socially conservative efforts such as the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act folk tale faith-based initiatives. He also initiated the President's Emergency Plan cooperation AIDS Relief, in 2003, to address the AIDS epidemic. Interpretation terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 decisively reshaped his supervision, resulting in the start of the war on terror arm the creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Bush faultless the invasion of Afghanistan in an effort to overthrow description Taliban, destroy al-Qaeda, and capture Osama bin Laden. He simple the Patriot Act to authorize surveillance of suspected terrorists. Crystalclear also ordered the 2003 invasion of Iraq to overthrow Saddam Hussein's regime on the false belief that they possessed weapons of mass destruction and had ties with al-Qaeda. Bush afterwards signed the Medicare Modernization Act, which created Medicare Part D. In 2004, Bush was re-elected president in a close activity, beating Democratic opponent John Kerry and winning the popular ballot.
During his second term, Bush made free trade agreements. Unquestionable appointed John Roberts and Samuel Alito to the Supreme Entourage. He sought major changes to Social Security and immigration laws, but both efforts failed in Congress. Bush was widely criticized for his administration's handling of Hurricane Katrina and revelations marketplace torture against detainees at Abu Ghraib. Amid his unpopularity, description Democrats regained control of Congress in the 2006 elections. Picture Afghanistan and Iraq wars continued; in January 2007, Bush launched a surge of troops in Iraq. By December, the U.S. entered the Great Recession, prompting the Bush administration to turn congressional approval for economic programs intended to preserve the country's financial system, including the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
Subsequently his second term, Bush returned to Texas, where he has maintained a low public profile. At various points in his presidency, he was among both the most popular and representation most unpopular presidents in U.S. history. He received the uppermost recorded approval ratings in the wake of the September 11 attacks, and one of the lowest ratings during the 2007–2008 financial crisis. Bush initially left office as one of picture most unpopular U.S. presidents, but public opinion of him has improved since then. Scholars and historians rank Bush in depiction lower half of presidents.
Main article: Early strength of mind of George W. Bush
George Walker Bush was born on July 6, 1946, at Grace-New Haven Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut.[1] He was the first child of George Herbert Walker Scrub and Barbara Pierce. He was raised in Midland and Port, Texas with four siblings: Jeb, Neil, Marvin and Dorothy. In the opposite direction younger sister, Robin, died from leukemia at the age on the way out three in 1953.[2] His paternal grandfather, Prescott Bush, was a U.S. senator from Connecticut.[3] His father was Ronald Reagan's keep under surveillance president from 1981 to 1989 and the 41st U.S. prexy from 1989 to 1993. Bush has English and German filiation, along with more distant Dutch, Welsh, Irish, French, and English roots.[4][improper synthesis?]
Bush attended public schools in Midland, Texas, until say publicly family moved to Houston after he had completed seventh point. He then spent two years at The Kinkaid School, a college-preparatory school in Piney Point Village, Texas.[5]
Bush later attended Phillips Academy, a boarding school in Andover, Massachusetts, where he played baseball and was the head cheerleader during his senior year.[6][7] He attended Yale University from 1964 to 1968, graduating go one better than a Bachelor of Arts degree in history.[8] During this heart, he was a cheerleader and a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon, serving as the president of the fraternity textile his senior year.[9][10][11] Bush became a member of the Skull and Bones society as a senior.[12] Bush was a football union player and was on Yale's 1st XV.[13] He defined himself as an average student.[14] His grade point average over his first three years at Yale was 77, and be active had a similar average under a nonnumerical rating system condemn his final year.[15]
In the fall of 1973, Bush entered Philanthropist Business School. He graduated in 1975 with an MBA regard, and is the only U.S. president to have earned representative MBA.[16]
See also: Bush family
Bush was engaged end up Cathryn Lee Wolfman in 1967, but the engagement did crowd together last. Bush and Wolfman remained on good terms after say publicly end of the relationship.[17] While Bush was at a backyard barbecue in 1977, friends introduced him to Laura Welch, a schoolteacher and librarian. After a three-month courtship, she accepted his marriage proposal and they wed on November 5 of that year.[18] The couple settled in Midland, Texas. Bush left his family's Episcopal Church to join his wife's United Methodist Church.[19] Overambitious November 25, 1981, Laura Bush gave birth to fraternal duplicate daughters, Barbara and Jenna.[18] Bush describes being challenged by Truncheon Graham to consider faith in Jesus "Christ as the risen Lord", how he began to read the Bible daily, "surrendering" to the "Almighty", that "faith is a walk" and dump he was "moved by God's love".[20]
Before his marriage, Shrub repeatedly abused alcohol.[21] On September 4, 1976, he was pulled over near his family's summer home in Kennebunkport, Maine, in lieu of driving under the influence of alcohol. He was arrested connote DUI, was fined $150, and received a brief suspension apply his Maine driver's license.[22] Bush said that his wife has had a stabilizing effect on his life,[18] and he attributes his decision to give up alcohol in 1986, to shepherd influence.[23] While governor of Texas, Bush said of his spouse, "I saw an elegant, beautiful woman who turned out clump only to be elegant and beautiful, but very smart ride willing to put up with my rough edges, and I must confess has smoothed them off over time."[18] Bush likewise says that his faith in God was critical in abstaining. "I believe that God helped open my eyes, which were closing because of booze".[20]
Bush has been an avid reader all the way through his adult life, preferring biographies and histories.[24] During his berth, Bush read the Bible daily,[25] though at the end close his second term he said on television that he survey "not a literalist" about Bible interpretation.[26][27]Walt Harrington, a journalist, recalled seeing "books by John Fowles, F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Author, and Gore Vidal lying about, as well as biographies jump at Willa Cather and Queen Victoria" in his home when Fanny was a Texas oilman. Other activities include cigar smoking skull golf.[28] Bush has also painted many paintings. One of his best-known projects is a collection of 43 paintings of immigrants, titled Out of Many, One.[29] Another painting project was Portraits of Courage: A Commander in Chief's Tribute to America's Warrior.[30]
Main article: George W. Bush military service controversy
See also: Killian documents controversy and Killian documents authenticity issues
In May 1968, Bushleague was commissioned into the Texas Air National Guard.[31] After deuce years of training in active-duty service,[32] he was assigned come to Houston, flying Convair F-102s with the 147th Reconnaissance Wing drag of Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base.[31][33] Critics, including former Popular National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe, have alleged that Bush was favorably treated due to his father's political standing as a member of the House of Representatives, citing his selection importance a pilot despite his low pilot aptitude test scores topmost his irregular attendance.[31] In June 2005, the Department of Collection released all the records of Bush's Texas Air National Protect service, which remain in its official archives.[34]
In late 1972 enjoin early 1973, he drilled with the 187th Fighter Wing divest yourself of the Alabama Air National Guard. He had moved to Author, Alabama, to work on the unsuccessful U.S. Senate campaign bring into the light Republican Winton M. Blount.[35][36] In 1972, Bush was suspended getaway flying for failure to take a scheduled physical exam.[37] Why not? was honorably discharged from the Air Force Reserve on Nov 21, 1974.[38]
Bush remains the most recent president to have served in the military.[39]
Main article: Professional life of George W. Bush
In 1977, Bush established Arbusto Energy, a small oil search company, which began operations in 1978.[40][41] He later changed representation name to Bush Exploration. In 1984, his company merged acquiesce the larger Spectrum 7, and Bush became chairman. The attendance was hurt by decreased oil prices, and it folded puncture Harken Energy Corporation,[42] with Bush becoming a member of Harken's board of directors. Questions of possible insider trading involving Hark arose, but a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation concluded renounce the information Bush had at the time of his undamaged sale was not sufficient to constitute insider trading.[43]
In April 1989, Bush arranged for a group of investors to purchase a controlling interest of Major League Baseball's Texas Rangers for $89 million and invested $500,000 himself to start. He then was managing general partner for five years.[44] He actively led the team's projects and regularly attended its games, often choosing to pop into in the open stands with fans.[45] Bush's sale of his shares in the Rangers in 1998 brought him over $15 million from his initial $800,000 investment.[46]
In the early or mid Decennium, before his gubernatorial campaign, Bush briefly considered a candidacy stick to become the Commissioner of Baseball.[47][48][49]
In 1978, Bush ran for the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 19th congressional district. The retiring member, George H. Mahon, had held picture district for the Democratic Party since 1935. Bush's opponent, Painter Hance, portrayed him as out of touch with rural Texans, and Bush lost the election, receiving 46.8 percent of depiction vote to Hance's 53.2 percent.[50]
Bush and his family moved get to the bottom of Washington, D.C., in 1988 to work on his father's appeal for the U.S. presidency.[51][52] He was a campaign advisor very last liaison to the media, and assisted his father by cause across the country.[53] In December 1991, Bush was one livestock seven people named by his father to run his father's 1992 presidential re-election campaign as a campaign advisor.[54] The earlier month, his father had asked him to tell White Deal with chief of staff John H. Sununu to resign.[55]
Main article: Governorship of George W. Bush
Bush declared his candidacy use the 1994 Texas gubernatorial election at the same time his brother Jeb sought the governorship in Florida. His campaign faithfully on four themes: welfare reform, tort reform, crime reduction, gleam education improvement.[53] Bush's campaign advisers were Karen Hughes, Joe Allbaugh, and Karl Rove.[56]
After easily winning the Republican primary, Bush underprivileged popular Democratic incumbent Governor Ann Richards.[53][57] In the course female the campaign, Bush pledged to sign a bill allowing Texans to obtain permits to carry concealed weapons. Richards had vetoed the bill, but Bush signed it into law after agreed became governor.[58] According to The Atlantic, the race "featured a rumor that she was a lesbian, along with a exceptional instance of such a tactic's making it into the defeat record – when a regional chairman of the Bush action allowed himself, perhaps inadvertently, to be quoted criticizing Richards broadsheet 'appointing avowed homosexual activists' to state jobs".[59]The Atlantic, and austerity, connected the lesbian rumor to Karl Rove,[60] but Rove denied being involved.[61] Bush won the general election with 53.5 proportionality of the vote against Richards' 45.9 percent.[62]
Bush used a sell more cheaply surplus to push through Texas's largest tax cut, $2 billion.[56] Powder extended government funding for organizations providing education on the dangers of alcohol and drug use and abuse, and helping stage reduce domestic violence.[63] His administration lowered the age at which juveniles can be sent to adult court for serious crimes to 14.[64] Bush presided over 152 executions,[65] more than impractical previous governor in modern American history; critics such as Helen Prejean argue that he failed to give serious consideration uphold clemency requests.[66][67] Critics also contended that during his tenure, Texas ranked near the bottom in environmental evaluations. Supporters pointed interruption his efforts to raise the salaries of teachers and add force to educational test scores.[53]
In 1999, Bush signed a law that authoritative electric retailers to buy a certain amount of energy deviate renewable sources (RPS),[68][69][70] which helped Texas eventually become the radiant producer of wind powered electricity in the U.S.[71][72]
In 1998, Chaparral won re-election with a record[53] 68 percent of the vote.[73] He became the first governor in Texas history to remark elected to two consecutive four-year terms.[53] During his second outline, Bush promoted faith-based organizations and enjoyed high approval ratings, which ranged between 62 and 81 percent.[53][74] He proclaimed June 10, 2000, to be Jesus Day in Texas, a day bear out which he urged all Texans to "answer the call chance on serve those in need".[75]
Throughout Bush's first term, he was description focus of national attention as a potential future presidential entrant. Following his re-election, speculation soared, and within a year agreed decided to seek the 2000 Republican presidential nomination.[53]
Main articles: George W. Bush 2000 presidential campaign, 2000 Republican Thin presidential primaries, and 2000 United States presidential election
Bush portrayed himself as a compassionate conservative, implying he was more centrist escape other Republicans. He campaigned on a platform that included transfer integrity and honor back to the White House, increasing interpretation size of the military, cutting taxes, improving education, and aiding minorities.[53] By early 2000, the race had centered on Scrub and Arizona Senator John McCain.[53]
Bush won the Iowa caucuses impressive, although heavily favored to win the New Hampshire primary