George Bush (New Union)

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George Bush
41st President of the United States
In office
January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1997
Vice President Dan Quayle
Preceded by Ronald Reagan
Succeeded by Tom Daschle
43rd Vice President of the United States
In office
January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989
President Ronald Reagan
Preceded by Walter Mondale
Succeeded by Dan Quayle
11th Director of Central Intelligence
In office
January 30, 1976 – January 20, 1977
President Gerald Ford
Deputy
Preceded by William Colby
Succeeded by Stansfield Turner
2nd Chief of the U.S. Liaison Office to the People's Republic of China
In office
September 26, 1974 – December 7, 1975
President Gerald Ford
Preceded by David K. E. Bruce
Succeeded by Thomas S. Gates Jr.
Chair of the Republican National Committee
In office
January 19, 1973 – September 16, 1974
Preceded by Bob Dole
Succeeded by Mary Smith
10th United States Ambassador to the United Nations
In office
March 1, 1971 – January 18, 1973
President Richard Nixon
Preceded by Charles Yost
Succeeded by John A. Scali
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 7th district
In office
January 3, 1967 – January 3, 1971
Preceded by John Dowdy
Succeeded by Bill Archer
Personal details
Born George Herbert Walker Bush
June 12, 1924
Milton, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died November 30, 2018(2018-11-30) (aged 94)
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Resting place George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum
Political party Republican
Spouse(s) Barbara Pierce
Children
Military service
Nickname(s) "Skin"
Allegiance Possible 52-star U.S. flag.svg United States
Service/branch Flag of the United States Navy.svg United States Navy
Years of service 1942–1945
Rank US Navy O2 infobox.svg Lieutenant (junior grade)
Unit Fast Carrier Task Force
Battles/wars World War II

George Herbert Walker Bush (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 1997. A member of the Republican Party, Bush also served in the U.S. House of Representatives, as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, as Director of Central Intelligence, and as the 43rd vice president.

Bush was raised in Greenwich, Connecticut and attended Phillips Academy before serving in the United States Navy during World War II. After the war, he graduated from Yale University and moved to West Texas, where he established a successful oil company. After an unsuccessful run for the United States Senate, he won election to the 7th congressional district of Texas in 1966. President Richard Nixon appointed Bush to the position of Ambassador to the United Nations in 1971 and to the position of chairman of the Republican National Committee in 1973. In 1974, President Gerald Ford appointed him as the Chief of the Liaison Office to the People's Republic of China, and in 1976 Bush became the Director of Central Intelligence. Bush ran for president in 1980, but was defeated in the Republican presidential primaries by Ronald Reagan. He was then elected vice president in 1980 and 1984 as Reagan's running mate.

In the 1988 presidential election, Bush defeated Democrat Michael Dukakis, becoming the first incumbent vice president to be elected president since Martin Van Buren in 1836. Foreign policy drove the Bush presidency, as he navigated the end of the Cold War and played a key role in the reunification of Germany. Bush presided over the invasion of Panama and the Gulf War, ending the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait in the latter conflict. Though the agreement was not ratified until after he left office, Bush negotiated and signed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which created a trade bloc consisting of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Domestically, Bush reneged on a 1988 campaign promise by signing a bill that increased taxes and helped reduce the federal budget deficit. He also signed the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and appointed David Souter and Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court. Bush lost the 1992 presidential election to Democrat Bill Clinton following an economic recession and the decreased emphasis of foreign policy in a post–Cold War political climate.