George H. W. Bush: Difference between revisions

| death_place        = Houston, Texas, U.S.

'''George Herbert Walker Bush'''<ref group="lower-alpha">After the 1990s, he became more commonly known as '''George H. W. Bush''', "'''Bush Senior'''," "'''Bush 41'''," and even "'''Bush the Elder'''" to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd U.S. president from 2001 to 2009; previously, he was usually referred to simply as '''George Bush'''.</ref> (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was an American politician, diplomat, and businessman who served as the 41st [[president of the United States]] from 1989 to 1993. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as the 43rd [[vice president of the United States|vice president]] from 1981 to 1989 under [[Ronald Reagan]] and previously in various other [[Federal government of the United States|federal positions]].<ref>{{multiref|{{cite web|url=https://adst.org/2018/12/george-h-w-bush-american-diplomat/ |title=George H.W. Bush, American Diplomat |website=Association for Diplomatic Studies & Training}}|{{cite web|url=https://diplomacy.state.gov/u-s-diplomacy-stories/in-memoriam-george-herbert-walker-bush-1924-2018-veteran-statesman-diplomat/ |title=In Memoriam: George Herbert Walker Bush (1924–2018): Veteran, Statesman, Diplomat |website=Department of State, The National Museum of American Diplomacy|date=December 20, 2018 }}|{{cite web|url=https://afsa.org/george-hw-bush-diplomats-remember |title=George H.W. Bush: Diplomats Remember |website=American Foreign Service Association}}|{{cite web|url=https://study.com/academy/lesson/the-end-of-the-cold-war-desert-storm.html |title=President George H.W. Bush: Foreign Policy |website=Study.com}}|{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/george-hw-bush-stood-out-as-tough-negotiator-on-world-stage/ |title=George H.W. Bush stood out as tough negotiator on the world stage |publisher=CBS News |date=December 3, 2018 |last=Pamela Falk}}|{{cite web|url=https://professorships.jhu.edu/professorship/george-h-w-bush-professorship-of-international-relations/ |title=George H.W. Bush Professorship of International Relations |website=Johns Hopkins University, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies|date=July 14, 2016 }}}}</ref>

After leaving office in 1993, Bush was active in humanitarian activities, often working alongside Clinton. With the victory of his son, George W. Bush, in the [[2000 United States presidential election|2000 presidential election]], the two became the second father–son pair to serve as the nation's president, following [[John Adams]] and [[John Quincy Adams]]. Another son, [[Jeb Bush]], unsuccessfully sought the Republican presidential nomination in the [[2016 Republican Party presidential primaries|2016 primaries]]. Historians generally [[Historical rankings of presidents of the United States|rank]] Bush as an above-average president.

After graduating from Yale, Bush moved his young family to [[West Texas]]. Biographer Jon Meacham writes that Bush's relocation to Texas allowed him to move out of the "daily shadow of his Wall Street father and Grandfather Walker, two dominant figures in the financial world," but would still allow Bush to "call on their connections if he needed to raise capital."{{sfn|Meacham|2015|p=78}} His first position in Texas was an [[oil field]] equipment salesman<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-oct-11-me-bush11-story.html |title=Two Future Presidents Slept Here&nbsp;— latimes |date=October 11, 2005 |access-date=May 17, 2017|newspaper=Los Angeles Times |last1=Chawkins |first1=Steve}}</ref> for [[Dresser Industries]], which was led by family friend Neil Mallon.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=77, 83}} While working for Dresser, Bush lived in various places with his family: [[Odessa, Texas]]; [[Ventura, California|Ventura]], [[Bakersfield, California|Bakersfield]] and [[Compton, California]]; and [[Midland, Texas]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://bush41library.tamu.edu/archives/finding-aids/donated-materials/george-bush#zapata_oil |title=George Bush Collection |publisher=George Bush Presidential Library and Museum |access-date=July 30, 2016}}</ref> In 1952, he volunteered for the successful presidential campaign of [[Republican (United States)|Republican]] candidate Dwight D. Eisenhower. That same year, his father won election to represent Connecticut in the [[United States Senate]] as a member of the Republican Party.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=94–96}}

With support from Mallon and Bush's uncle, [[George Herbert Walker Jr.]], Bush and John Overbey launched the Bush-Overbey Oil Development Company in 1951.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=92–93}} In 1953, he co-founded the [[HRG Group|Zapata Petroleum Corporation]], an oil company that drilled in the [[Permian Basin (North America)|Permian Basin]] in Texas.<ref>{{Cite web |title=National Archives NextGen Catalog |url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/10555130?organizationNaId=10480871 |access-date=May 14, 2023 |publisher=National Archives}}</ref> In 1954, he was named president of the Zapata Offshore Company, a subsidiary which specialized in [[offshore drilling]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Perin |first=Monica |date=April 25, 1999 |title=Adios, Zapata! |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/1999/04/26/story2.html |work=[[American City Business Journals|Houston Business Journal]] |access-date=November 30, 2018}}</ref> Shortly after the subsidiary became independent in 1959, Bush moved the company and his family from Midland to Houston.<ref>Bush, George W. ''41: A Portrait of My Father.'' Crown Publishers, 2014, p. 64.</ref> There, he befriended [[James Baker]], a prominent attorney who later became an important political ally.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=144–146}} Bush remained involved with Zapata until the mid-1960s, when he sold his stock in the company for approximately $1&nbsp;million.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=130–131}}

In 1988, ''[[The Nation]]'' published an article alleging that Bush worked as an operative of the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] (CIA) during the 1960s; Bush denied this claim.<ref>{{cite news |title='63 F.B.I. Memo Ties Bush to Intelligence Agency |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/11/us/63-fbi-memo-ties-bush-to-intelligence-agency.html |agency=Associated Press |work=The New York Times |date=July 11, 1988}}</ref>

[[File:George Herbert Walker Bush and Eisenhower 1.jpg|thumb|left|Former president Dwight D. Eisenhower with Bush]]

By the early 1960s, Bush was widely regarded as an appealing political candidate, and some leading Democrats attempted to convince Bush to become a Democrat. He declined to leave the Republican Party, later citing his belief that the national Democratic Party favored "big, centralized government". The Democratic Party had historically dominated Texas, but Republicans scored their first major victory in the state with [[John G. Tower]]'s victory in a 1961 special election to the United States Senate. Motivated by Tower's victory and hoping to prevent the far-right [[John Birch Society]] from coming to power, Bush ran for the chairmanship of the [[Harris County, Texas|Harris County]] Republican Party, winning election in February 1963.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=112–114}} Like most other Texas Republicans, Bush supported conservative Senator [[Barry Goldwater]] over the more centrist [[Nelson Rockefeller]] in the [[1964 Republican Party presidential primaries]].{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=116–117}}

In 1964, Bush sought to unseat liberal Democrat [[Ralph W. Yarborough]] in [[1964 United States Senate election in Texas|Texas's U.S. Senate election]].{{sfn|Naftali|2007|p=13}} Bolstered by superior fundraising, Bush won the Republican primary by defeating former gubernatorial nominee [[Jack Cox (Texas politician)|Jack Cox]] in a [[run-off election]]. In the general election, Bush attacked Yarborough's vote for the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]], which banned racial and gender discrimination in public institutions and many privately owned businesses. Bush argued that the act unconstitutionally expanded the federal government's powers, but he was privately uncomfortable with the racial politics of opposing the act.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=120–122}} He lost the election 56 percent to 44 percent, though he did run well ahead of Barry Goldwater, the Republican presidential nominee.{{sfn|Naftali|2007|p=13}} Despite the loss, ''The New York Times'' reported that Bush was "rated by political friend and foe alike as the Republicans' best prospect in Texas because of his attractive personal qualities and the strong campaign he put up for the Senate".{{sfn|Meacham|2015|p=133}}

After the 1970 Senate election, Bush accepted a position as a senior adviser to the president, but he convinced Nixon to instead appoint him as the [[U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations]].{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=153–154}} The position represented Bush's first foray into foreign policy, as well as his first major experiences with the Soviet Union and China, the two major U.S. rivals in the [[Cold War]].{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=152, 157–158}} During Bush's tenure, the Nixon administration pursued a policy of détente, seeking to ease tensions with both the Soviet Union and China.{{sfn|Herring|2008|pp=773–775}} Bush's ambassadorship was marked by a defeat on the China question, as the [[United Nations General Assembly]] voted, in [[Resolution 2758]], to expel the [[Republic of China]] and replace it with the People's Republic of China in October 1971.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Austin |first1=Anthony |title=Crushing Defeat for the U.S., or A Blessing In Disguise? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1971/10/31/archives/crushing-defeat-for-the-us-or-a-blessing-in-disguise-enter-peking.html |work=The New York Times |date=October 31, 1971 }}</ref> In the [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971|1971 crisis in Pakistan]], Bush supported an Indian motion at the UN General Assembly to condemn the Pakistani government of [[Yahya Khan]] for waging genocide in [[East Pakistan]] (modern Bangladesh), referring to the "tradition which we have supported that the human rights question transcended domestic jurisdiction and should be freely debated".{{sfn|Saunders|2014|p=39}} Bush's support for India at the UN put him into conflict with Nixon who was supporting Pakistan, partly because Yahya Khan was a useful intermediary in his attempts to reach out to China and partly because the president was fond of Yahya Khan.{{sfn|Saunders|2014|pp=38–39}} In 1972, during a controversy over whether the United States was intentionally bombing civilian hydrological infrastructure in [[Vietnam]], Bush was sent by Nixon to convince [[Kurt Waldheim]] of the United States' position. Bush, who was himself a fighter pilot in the Second World War, was "unwilling to press his assigned case that the dikes had been spared," and told reporters "I think that the best thing I can do on the subject is shut up."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Perlstein |first=Rick |url=http://archive.org/details/nixonlandriseofp0000perl |title=Nixonland : the rise of a president and the fracturing of America |date=2008 |publisher=New York : Scribner |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-7432-4302-5 |pages=707}}</ref>

Upon his ascension to the presidency, Ford [[1974 United States vice presidential confirmation|strongly considered]] Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, and Nelson Rockefeller for the vacant position of vice president. Ford ultimately chose Nelson Rockefeller, partly because of the publication of a news report claiming that Bush's 1970 campaign had benefited from a secret fund set up by Nixon; Bush was later cleared of any suspicion by a special prosecutor.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=176–177}} Bush accepted appointment as Chief of the [[De facto embassy#China and the United States|U.S. Liaison Office]] in the People's Republic of China, making him the de facto ambassador to China.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bush |first1=George H. W. |editor-last1=Engel |editor-first1=Jeffrey A. |title=The China Diary of George H.W. Bush: The Making of a Global President |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jRvdwoKQOgQC&pg=PA36 |date=2011 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-1-4008-2961-3 |page=36}}</ref> According to biographer Jon Meacham, Bush's time in China convinced him that American engagement abroad was needed to ensure global stability and that the United States "needed to be visible but not pushy, muscular but not domineering."{{sfn|Meacham|2015|p=181}}

In January 1976, Ford brought Bush back to Washington to become the [[Director of Central Intelligence]] (DCI), placing him in charge of the CIA.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/about-cia/todays-cia/george-bush-center-for-intelligence/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070612191537/https://www.cia.gov/about-cia/todays-cia/george-bush-center-for-intelligence/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 12, 2007 |title=The George Bush Center for Intelligence |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |date=April 5, 2007 |access-date=September 5, 2011}}</ref> In the aftermath of the Watergate scandal and the Vietnam War, the CIA's reputation had been damaged for its role in various covert operations. Bush was tasked with restoring the agency's morale and public reputation.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=189–193}}{{efn|Biographer Jon Meacham writes that it was widely assumed at the time that Donald Rumsfeld had engineered Bush's appointment as CIA Director since the post was regarded as a "political graveyard". Meacham writes that it is more likely that the key factor in Bush's appointment was that Ford believed Bush would work better with Secretary of State [[Henry Kissinger]] than would [[Elliot Richardson]], his original pick for the CIA post.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=189–193}}}} During Bush's year in charge of the CIA, the U.S. national security apparatus actively supported [[Operation Condor]] operations and right-wing [[military dictatorship]]s in [[Latin America–United States relations|Latin America]].<ref>{{cite news |title=FIFA's Dirty Wars |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/146303/fifas-dirty-wars |magazine=The New Republic |date=December 15, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Quand Pinochet tuait hors du Chili |url=https://www.lexpress.fr/actualite/monde/amerique-sud/quand-pinochet-tuait-hors-du-chili_491779.html |work=L'Express |date=October 30, 1999}}</ref>

Bush defeated Dukakis by a margin of 426 to 111 in the [[Electoral College (United States)|Electoral College]], and he took 53.4 percent of the national popular vote.<ref>{{cite web|title=1988 Presidential General Election Results|url=https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/national.php?year=1988|website=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|access-date=May 21, 2018}}</ref> Bush ran well in all the major regions of the country, but especially in the [[Southern United States|South]].{{sfn|Greene|2015|p=49}} He became the fourth sitting vice president to be elected president and the first to do so since Martin Van Burenin [[1836 United States presidential election|1836]] and the first person to succeed a president from his own party via election since [[Herbert Hoover]] in [[Inauguration of Herbert Hoover|1929]].<ref name="senate"/>{{efn|The 1988 presidential election remains the only presidential election since 1948 in which either party won a third consecutive term.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Silver |first1=Nate |title=The White House Is Not a Metronome |url=https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-white-house-is-not-a-metronome/ |work=FiveThirtyEight |date=July 18, 2013}}</ref>}} In the concurrent [[1988 United States elections|congressional elections]], Democrats retained control of both houses of Congress.{{sfn|Patterson|2005|pp=224–225}}

The U.S. economy had generally performed well since emerging from [[Early 1980s recession in the United States|recession in late 1982]], but it slipped into a mild [[Early 1990s recession in the United States|recession in 1990]]. The unemployment rate rose from 5.9 percent in 1989 to a high of 7.8 percent in mid-1991.<ref name="Accepting the Harsh Truth Of a Blue-Collar Recession, New York Times, Dec. 25, 1991">{{Cite news|last=Lohr|first=Steve|date=December 25, 1991|title=Accepting the Harsh Truth Of a Blue-Collar Recession|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/25/business/accepting-the-harsh-truth-of-a-blue-collar-recession.html|access-date=January 5, 2022|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="Blue-collar Towns Have Highest Jobless Numbers, Hartford Courant, Sept. 1, 1991">[https://www.courant.com/1991/09/01/blue-collar-towns-have-highest-jobless-numbers/ Blue-collar Towns Have Highest Jobless Numbers], ''Hartford Courant'' [Connecticut], W. Joseph Campbell, September 1, 1991.</ref> Large [[United States public debt|federal deficits]], spawned during the Reagan years, rose from $152.1&nbsp;billion in 1989<ref>{{cite news| last=Redburn| first=Tom| title=Budget Deficit for 1989 Is Put at $152.1 Billion : Spending: Congress and the White House remain locked in a stalemate over a capital gains tax cut| date=October 28, 1989| url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-10-28-mn-697-story.html| work=Los Angeles Times| access-date=June 7, 2018}}</ref> to $220&nbsp;billion for 1990;<ref name=NYT10-27-90>{{cite news| last=Uchitelle| first=Louis| title=The Struggle in Congress; U.S. Deficit for 1990 Surged to Near-Record $220.4 Billion, but How Bad Is That?| date=October 27, 1990| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/10/27/us/struggle-congress-us-deficit-for-1990-surged-near-record-220.4-billion-but-bad.html| work=The New York Times| access-date=June 7, 2018}}</ref> the $220&nbsp;billion deficit represented a threefold increase since 1980.{{sfn|Greene|2015|pp=72–73}} As the public became increasingly concerned about the economy and other domestic affairs, Bush's well-received handling of foreign affairs became less of an issue for most voters.{{sfn|Waterman|1996|pp=340–341}} Bush's top domestic priority was to end federal budget deficits, which he saw as a liability for the country's long-term economic health and standing in the world.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=360–361}} As he was opposed to major defense spending cuts{{sfn|Patterson|2005|pp=228–229}} and had pledged not to raise taxes, the president had major difficulties in balancing the budget.<ref name="millercenterdomesticaffairs">{{cite web|url=http://millercenter.org/president/biography/bush-domestic-affairs|title=George H. W. Bush: Domestic Affairs|publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia|access-date=January 18, 2017|date=October 4, 2016}}</ref>

Bush was widely seen as a "pragmatic caretaker" president who lacked a unified and compelling long-term theme in his efforts.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/presidents/george-h-w-bush-1482924.html |title=The Independent George H. W. Bush |work=The Independent |location=UK |date=January 22, 2009 |access-date=September 5, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/54609/michael-howard/the-prudence-thing-george-bush-s-class-act |title=The Prudence Thing: George Bush's Class Act |issue=November/December 1998 |journal=Foreign Affairs |date=November 1, 1998 |access-date=September 5, 2010 |last1=Howard |first1=Michael |volume=77 |pages=130–134 |doi=10.2307/20049135 |jstor=20049135  |issn=0015-7120}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,963342-2,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100108084103/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,963342-2,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 8, 2010 |magazine=Time |title=Where Is the Real George Bush? |date=January 26, 1987 |access-date=May 3, 2010 |first=Robert |last=Ajemian}}</ref> A Bush [[sound bite]], referring to the issue of overarching purpose as "the vision thing", has become a metonym applied to other political figures accused of similar difficulties.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.askoxford.com/worldofwords/quotations/phrasefable/visionthing/?view=uk |title=Quotations : Oxford Dictionaries Online |publisher=Askoxford.com |access-date=July 30, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030204213218/http://www.askoxford.com/worldofwords/quotations/phrasefable/visionthing/?view=uk |archive-date=February 4, 2003}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Listen Up, Mr. President: Everything You Always Wanted Your President to Know and Do |isbn=978-1-4391-4815-0 |last1=Thomas |first1=Helen |first2=Craig |last2=Crawford |publisher=Scribner |url=https://archive.org/details/listenupmrpresid00thom |year=2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/joseph-a-palermo/meg-whitmans-vision-thing_b_300845.html |title=Joseph A. Palermo: Meg Whitman's "Vision Thing" |work=HuffPost |access-date=September 5, 2010 |date=September 26, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.timesargus.com/article/20090929/NEWS02/909290341/1003/NEWS02 |title=It's time to do the 'vision' thing |work=[[Barre Montpelier Times Argus]] |date=September 29, 2009 |access-date=September 5, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130204102054/http://www.timesargus.com/article/20090929/NEWS02/909290341/1003/NEWS02 |archive-date=February 4, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Mazurak |first=Zbigniew |url=http://www.therealitycheck.org/?p=7492 |title=Sarah Palin as a GOP Nominee? |publisher=The Reality Check |access-date=September 5, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://rothkopf.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/10/01/barack_obama_does_not_want_to_become_known_as_the_great_ditherer |title=Obama does not want to become known as 'The Great Ditherer' |first=David |last=Rothkopf |date=October 1, 2009 |work=Foreign Policy |access-date=September 5, 2010 |archive-date=March 26, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140326180923/http://rothkopf.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/10/01/barack_obama_does_not_want_to_become_known_as_the_great_ditherer |url-status=dead }}</ref> His ability to gain broad international support for the [[Gulf War]] and the war's result were seen as both a diplomatic and military triumph,<ref name="white house bio">{{cite book |last1=Freidel |first1=Frank |last2=Sidey |first2=Hugh |title=The Presidents of the United States of America |date=2006 |publisher=White House Historical Association|chapter-url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/george-h-w-bush/ |access-date=February 15, 2017 |chapter=George H. W. Bush}}</ref> rousing bipartisan approval,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://people-press.org/report/182/modest-bush-approval-rating-boost-at-wars-end |title=Modest Bush Approval Rating Boost at War's End: Summary of Findings – Pew Research Center for the People & the Press |publisher=People-press.org |access-date=September 5, 2010|date=April 18, 2003}}</ref> though his decision to withdraw without removing Saddam Hussein left mixed feelings, and attention returned to the domestic front and a souring economy.<ref name="pbs">{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/bush41/program/intro.html |work=American Experience |title=George H. W. Bush |publisher=PBS |date=October 3, 1990 |access-date=September 5, 2010 |archive-date=April 30, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090430215321/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/bush41/program/intro.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> A ''New York Times'' article [[Supermarket scanner moment|mistakenly depicted]] Bush as being surprised to see a supermarket [[barcode reader]];<ref name=Goldberg08>{{cite journal |last=Goldberg |first=Jonah |date=August 22, 2008 |title=The Corner: The Supermarket Scanner Story Cont'd |journal=[[National Review]] |url=http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/167613/supermarket-scanner-story-contd-jonah-goldberg | access-date=June 26, 2017}}</ref><ref name=Rosenthal92>{{cite news |last=Rosenthal |first=Andrew |date=February 5, 1992 |title=Bush Encounters the Supermarket, Amazed |journal=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/02/05/us/bush-encounters-the-supermarket-amazed.html | access-date=November 5, 2015}}</ref> the report of his reaction exacerbated the notion that he was "out of touch".<ref name=Goldberg08 />

Clinton won the election, taking 43 percent of the popular vote and 370 electoral votes, while Bush won 37.5 percent of the popular vote and 168 electoral votes.<ref>{{cite web|title=1992 Presidential General Election Results|url=https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/national.php?year=1992|website=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|access-date=May 22, 2018}}</ref> Perot won 19% of the popular vote, one of the [[List of third party performances in United States presidential elections|highest totals for a third-party candidate]] in U.S. history, drawing equally from both major candidates, according to exit polls.<ref>{{cite news|last=Holmes |first=Steven A. |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE0DB1F3FF936A35752C1A964958260 |title=The 1992 Elections: Disappointment – News Analysis – An Eccentric but No Joke; Perot's Strong Showing Raises Questions On What Might Have Been, and Might Be – |work=The New York Times |date=November 5, 1992 |access-date=September 5, 2010}}</ref> Clinton performed well in the Northeast, the Midwest, and the West Coast, while also waging the strongest Democratic campaign in the South since the 1976 election.{{sfn|Patterson|2005|pp=252–253}} Several factors were important in Bush's defeat. The ailing economy which arose from recession may have been the main factor in Bush's loss, as 7 in 10 voters said on election day that the economy was either "not so good" or "poor".<ref>{{cite news|author=R. W. Apple Jr. |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE5D81439F937A35752C1A964958260 |title=THE 1992 ELECTIONS: NEWS ANALYSIS; The Economy's Casualty – |location=Pennsylvania; Ohio; New England States (Us); Michigan; West Coast; New Jersey; Middle East |work=The New York Times |date=November 4, 1992 |access-date=September 5, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/06/09/BUGBI72U8Q1.DTL&type=business|title=Downside of the Reagan Legacy|work=The San Francisco Chronicle|access-date=April 11, 2008|author=Lazarus, David|date=June 9, 2004}}</ref> On the eve of the 1992 election, the unemployment rate stood at 7.8%, which was the highest it had been since 1984.<ref>{{cite journal | author = WSJ Research | year = 2015 | journal = The Wall Street Journal | title = How the Presidents Stack Up: A Look at U.S. Presidents' Job Approval Ratings (George H.W. Bush) | url=https://online.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/info-presapp0605-31.html | access-date=November 4, 2015}}</ref> The president was also damaged by his alienation of many conservatives in his party.{{sfn|Greene|2015|pp=233–234}} Bush partially blamed Perot for his defeat, though exit polls showed that Perot drew his voters about equally from Clinton and Bush.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|p=521}}

In the [[1994 United States gubernatorial elections|1994 gubernatorial elections]], his sons George W. and Jeb concurrently ran for [[Governor of Texas]] and [[Governor of Florida]]. Concerning their political careers, he advised them both that "[a]t some point both of you may want to say 'Well, I don't agree with my Dad on that point' or 'Frankly I think Dad was wrong on that.' Do it. Chart your own course, not just on the issues but on defining yourselves".{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=546–549}} George W. won his race against [[Ann Richards]] while Jeb lost to [[Lawton Chiles]]. After the results came in, the elder Bush told ABC, "I have very mixed emotions. Proud father, is the way I would sum it all up."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/11/09/us/1994-elections-nation-bushes-texas-elects-george-w-while-florida-rejects-jeb.html |title=The 1994 Elections: The Nation The Bushes; Texas Elects George W. While Florida Rejects Jeb |date=November 9, 1994 |first=Sam Howe |last=Verhovek |work=The New York Times}}</ref> Jeb would again run for governor of Florida in 1998 and win at the same time that his brother George W. won re-election in Texas. It marked the second time in United States history that a pair of brothers served simultaneously as governors.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rosenbaum |first=David E. |date=November 4, 1998 |title=George W. Bush Is Re-elected in Texas; His Brother Jeb Is Victorious in Florida |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/11/04/us/1998-elections-nation-governors-george-w-bush-re-elected-texas-his-brother-jeb.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=November 30, 2018}}</ref>

In his retirement, Bush used the public spotlight to support various charities.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=582–583}} Despite earlier political differences with Bill Clinton, the two former presidents eventually became friends.<ref>{{cite news |last=Healy |first=Patrick |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/19/us/politics/19memo.html |title=A Candidacy That May Test a Friendship's Ties |work=The New York Times |date=May 19, 2007 |access-date=May 22, 2011}}</ref> They appeared together in television ads, encouraging aid for victims of the [[2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami]] and [[Hurricane Katrina]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://abcnews.go.com/WNT/PersonOfWeek/story?id=1446477 |title=People of the Year: Bill Clinton and George H. W. Bush |work=ABC News |date=December 27, 2005 |access-date=September 5, 2010}}</ref> However, when interviewed by Jon Meacham, Bush criticized Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, and even his son George W. Bush for their handling of foreign policy after the September 11 attacks.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/11/george-hw-bush-dick-cheney-donald-rumsfeld-iraq-jon-meacham/414343/|title=George H.W. Bush's Feuds With Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney Go Back 40 Years|first=David A.|last=Graham|date=November 5, 2015|website=The Atlantic}}</ref>

[[File:Five Presidents Oval Office.jpg|upright=1.2|thumb|From left to right: George H.&nbsp;W. Bush, [[Barack Obama]], George W. Bush, [[Bill Clinton]], and [[Jimmy Carter]]]]

On April 17, 2018, Barbara Bush died at the age of 92<ref>{{cite news |last1=Nemy |first1=Enid |title=Barbara Bush, Wife of 41st President and Mother of 43rd, Dies at 92 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/17/us/barbara-bush-dead.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/17/us/barbara-bush-dead.html |archive-date=January 2, 2022 |url-access=limited |url-status=live |newspaper=The New York Times |date=April 17, 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref> at her home in Houston, Texas. Her funeral was held at [[St. Martin's Episcopal Church (Houston)|St. Martin's Episcopal Church]] in Houston four days later.<ref name="houstonchroniclebushfamilyreleases">{{cite news|last1=Kamath|first1=Tulsi|title=Bush family releases details on Barbara Bush's funeral, public visitation|url=https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Funeral-information-for-Barbara-Bush-has-been-12842950.php|access-date=April 18, 2018|work=Houston Chronicle|date=April 17, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Linge|first1=Mary Kay|title=Presidents pay their respects as Barbara Bush is laid to rest|url=https://nypost.com/2018/04/21/presidents-pay-their-respects-as-barbara-bush-is-laid-to-rest/|access-date=April 21, 2018|work=New York Post|date=April 21, 2018}}</ref> Bush, along with former presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush (son), Bill Clinton and First Ladies [[Melania Trump]], [[Michelle Obama]], [[Laura Bush]] (daughter-in-law) and Hillary Clinton attended the funeral and posed together for a photo as a sign of unity.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/barbara-bush-funeral-today-trump-melania-presidents/story?id=54630500|title=Barbara Bush remembered at funeral as 'the first lady of the greatest generation'|work=ABC News|first=Morgan|last=Winsor|date=April 21, 2018|access-date=April 21, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/23/politics/presidents-picture-barbara-bush-funeral-photographer/index.html|title= The story behind that viral photo of the past 4 presidents all in the same place|publisher= CNN|date= April 23, 2018|access-date= May 8, 2020}}</ref>

Polls of historians and political scientists have [[Historical rankings of presidents of the United States|ranked]] Bush in the top half of presidents. A 2018 poll of the [[American Political Science Association]]'s Presidents and Executive Politics section ranked Bush as the 17th best president out of 44.<ref>{{cite news|first1=Brandon|last1=Rottinghaus|first2=Justin S.|last2=Vaughn|title=How Does Trump Stack Up Against the Best — and Worst — Presidents?|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/02/19/opinion/how-does-trump-stack-up-against-the-best-and-worst-presidents.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190310203020/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/02/19/opinion/how-does-trump-stack-up-against-the-best-and-worst-presidents.html/|archive-date=March 10, 2019|newspaper=The New York Times|date=February 19, 2018}}</ref> A 2017 [[C-SPAN]] poll of historians also ranked Bush as the 20th best president out of 43.<ref>{{cite web|title=Presidential Historians Survey 2017|url=https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2017/?page=overall|website=[[C-SPAN]]|access-date=May 14, 2018}}</ref> Richard Rose described Bush as a "guardian" president, and many other historians and political scientists have similarly described Bush as a passive, hands-off president who was "largely content with things as they were".{{sfn|Greene|2015|pp=255–256}} Professor Steven Knott writes that "[g]enerally the Bush presidency is viewed as successful in foreign affairs but a disappointment in domestic affairs."<ref name="knottlegacy">{{cite web|last1=Knott|first1=Stephen|title=George H. W. Bush: Impact and Legacy|url=https://millercenter.org/president/bush/impact-and-legacy|website=Miller Center|publisher=University of Virginia|date=October 4, 2016}}</ref>

According to ''USA Today'', the legacy of Bush's presidency was defined by his victory over Iraq after the invasion of Kuwait and by his presiding over the dissolution of the Soviet Union and [[German reunification]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Remembering Former President George H.W. Bush's life and legacy |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/12/01/live-former-president-george-h-w-bushs-life-and-legacy/2173047002/ |newspaper=USA Today|date=December 1, 2018 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> [[Michael Beschloss]] and [[Strobe Talbott]] praise Bush's handling of the Soviet Union, especially how he prodded Gorbachev in terms of releasing control over the [[satellite state]]s and permitting German unification—and especially a united Germany in NATO.<ref>Michael R. Beschloss and Strobe Talbott, ''At the Highest Levels: The Inside Story of the End of the Cold War'' (Boston, 1993), pp. 470-72.</ref> [[Andrew Bacevich]] judges the Bush administration as "morally obtuse" in the light of its "business-as-usual" attitude towards China after the massacre in [[Tiananmen Square]] and its uncritical support of Gorbachev as the Soviet Union disintegrated.<ref>Andrew J. Bacevich, ''American Empire: The Realities and Consequences of U.S. Diplomacy'' (2002), 64–68, quoted in Sparrow, p. 143.</ref> David Rothkopf argues:

* [https://www.theguardian.com/world/george-bush-senior Collected news and commentary] at ''The Guardian''

* [http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/george_bush//index.html Collected news and commentary] at ''The New York Times''

* [http://topics.wsj.com/person/B/george-hw-bush/5370 Collected news and commentary] at ''The Wall Street Journal'' (paywall)