George H. W. Bush

George H. W. (Herbert Walker) Bush, Republican, was the 41st President of the United States of America, serving from 1989 to 1993.

Before his presidency, Bush was the 43rd Vice President of the United States in the administration of Ronald Reagan. He has also served as the member of the United States House of Representatives for the 7th district of Texas (1967–1971), the United States Ambassador to the United Nations (1971–1973), Chairman of the Republican National Committee (1973–1974), Chief of the United States Liaison Office in the People's Republic of China (1974–1976), and Director of Central Intelligence (1976–1977). He is father of the current president George W. Bush.

Perhaps more importantly than his tenure as president, Bush served in World War II as a naval fighter pilot (the youngest Navy fighter in WWII), where he earned three Silver Stars and the Congressional Medal of Honor. Immediately after the end of the war, General Dwight Eisenhower delivered a famous speech in which he mentioned Bush by name and called him "unquestionably the finest example of a young man that America has today."

His presidency was defined primarily with the 1990 Gulf War He faced a strong challenge from Pat Robertson in 1988 primary due to charges that he was too liberal, and some claim that he lost the presidency in 1992 due to many Republicans defecting to the Ross Perot camp. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest presidents, and in fact was named the best president of the second half of the 20th century in a 1998 poll of major historians _{citation needed}.

Family

George Bush was the son of Prescott Bush, US Senator from Connecticut from 1952-1963.

Upon his return from the war, George Bush married Barbara Pierce. Their marriage later produced six children: George Walker Bush, Pauline Robinson Bush, John Ellis "Jeb" Bush, Neil Mallon Bush, Marvin Bush, and Dorothy Bush Koch.

On Dec. 5, 2006 President George H. W. Bush, addressing Florida lawmakers and others, broke down in tears as he cited his son, Gov. Jeb Bush, as an example of leadership.[1]

The Bush dynasty is generally considered to be one of the greatest american political families, along with the Adams and the Kennedy family.