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George Herbert Walker Bush was born on June 12, 1924 in Milton, Massachusetts. His father Prescott Sheldon Bush was a bank manager who was elected senator in 1952. His mother is Dorothy Walker Bush. George Bush grew up in a family atmosphere with his three brothers and his sister at Greenwich, Connecticut, a suburb of New York, before studying in one of the best private boarding schools of the country.
When George Bush received his degree from the Phillips Academy of Andover, Massachusetts, he was already admitted at Yale, but the United States entered into the Second World War. George Bush joined the Navy and at the age of eighteen and became the youngest naval pilot (from 1942 to 1945). Thus according all evidence, he was the last President of the United States to have fought during the Second World War. In September 2, 1944, during his 58 th mission, his aircraft was shot down by the enemy over Chichi Jima island. Fours hours later, he was rescued in the middle of the Pacific Ocean by the crew of the U. S.
S. Finback, an American submarine, to whom he owes his life. He was decorated with the Distinguished Flying Cross and sent back home. A few months before the end of World War Two he married Barbara Pierce of Rye (New York) on January 6, 1945. He entered Yale and outshone in both at academics and Baseball.
When he left in 1948, George Bush moved from New England to Midland, Texas, after having refused a post in his father's company. At Texas, he worked for Dresser Industries. The old family silver he had served him to create an oil company named Zapata in 1954, which made him rich. In 1959, he settled down in Houston.
Mr. and Mrs. Bush had six children. They are George, Robin (who died of leukemia in 1953), John, Neil, Marvin and Dorothy.
Fortune and family well settled, "Poppy" (Bush's nickname) turned, like his father, toward politics within the ranks of the Republican party which was almost nonexistent in the South. In 1964, he became the President of the Republican party in Harris and the same year, he campaigned for the Senate but without success. After his initial failure, he tried again in 1966 at the House of Representatives in the 7 th district of Houston. He was elected and re-elected in 1968 and convinced his friend Baker to join the Republican party.
James Baker turned out to be an outstanding campaign organizer when George Bush was aiming to get into the Senate in 1970. It was a failure, but the beginning of a long and lasting friendship. During this time, he had no elective function. President Richard Nixon helped him out.
From 1971 to 1973, he was made the Permanent Representative of the United Nations. Then, from 1972 until 1973, he was the President of the Republican party and from 1974 to 1975, he was Ambassador to Beijing (China). At last, from 1976 to 1977, he was the director of the C. I. A.
When in 1976 Jimmy Carter became the President of the United States, George Bush retired, temporarily, from political life. With this exceptional career which defended his cause, his personal fortune acquired in Texas and his origins from New England, he could aspire to become the President of the United States. Thus, he stood for the primary elections for the Republican party in 1980 against Ronald Reagan. He considered him as an old reactionary. James Baker came just in the time to inform George Bush that Reagan was very popular and was going to get the nomination of the party.
So Bush immediately joined with the "Great Communicator." Without holding a grudge, Reagan made him his fellow candidate. This choice surprised a lot of Republicans, because Bush and Reagan were from the opposite wings of the party. George Bush was thus the Vice President for the next years (the mandate was re-elected in 1984). Between 1980 and 1988, he visited about fifteen nations as Reagan's representative.
He directed a fight against terrorism and tried to stop drug smuggling in the south of Florida. He took over as President for a short period when Reagan was shot in March 1981 and also during a surgical intervention necessitating the use of anesthesia. Bush took part in the Republican primaries again in 1988. In particular, he won against Robert Dole. He chose James Danforth Quayle as his running mate and on November 8, 1988 he defeated the democratic candidate Michael Dukakis (54 % of the popular vote - 426 voices of the electoral vote, against 46 % - 111 voices). He is the 1 st Vice-President since Martin Van Buren in 1836 to directly attain the Oval office.
However, the Democrats managed to keep a comfortable lead in both Houses. As a moderate conservative, George Bush did not mark a big rupture in politics led by Ronald Reagan. In his domestic policy, he had to go back on his electoral promises (e. g. the famous Read my lips... no new taxes) due to a growing budgetary deficit.
is favorite domain was external politics. Bush's presidency had been marked by great upheavals in international politics. The fall of communism in Eastern Europe and in the USSR gave the United States an unique role as a world superpower. George Bush also negotiated various disarmament treaties with the Soviet Union (START I and II) respectively signed in 1991 and 1993. In December 1989, he launched a brief American intervention in Panama in order to stop its leader; General Manuel Antonio Noriega involved in diverse drug traffics and threatening the Panama canal. In August 1990, when Iraq decided to invade Kuwait, George Bush sent American military contingent to Saudi Arabia to protect it from all Iraqi intimidation.
He also assembled the biggest coalition of countries against Iraq consisting about 500, 000 soldiers. After Saddam Hussein refused to withdraw its troops from Kuwait, President Bush launched the military action called Desert storm during the night of 16 th and 17 th January 1991, resulting in the Iraqi withdrawal and independence of Kuwait. Last of all, George Bush totally accepted the idea of German reunification in 1990. Despite great popularity after the Gulf war (91 % of favorable opinion), the economical crisis caught up with George Bush and he was defeated by Governor Bill Clinton in November 1992 during the presidential election. Since his departure from the White House, Bush rarely criticized his successor.
Today, two of his sons are in politics: George Walker, 43 rd President of the United States and Jeb, Governor of Florida, the Sunshine State. George Bush is living in Houston, Texas, where he can take advantage of a peaceful and quiet private life.
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Research essay sample on Second World War President Of The United States
