This posting probably won’t win me a lot of friends but it is my opinion.
Born into privilege and a tradition of service, Bush was a son of a senator, celebrated World War II combat pilot, student athlete, Texas oilman, Republican congressman, national party chairman, pioneering diplomat and head of the CIA. After his own 1980 presidential campaign came up short, he served two terms as Ronald Reagan’s vice president before reaching the pinnacle of political power by winning the 1988 presidential election. His winning the presidency was the result of a nasty campaign against Michael Dukakis that implied Dukakis was sympathetic to criminals (Willy Horton was released from prison and committed a killing while on weekend furlough). His lack of empathy for the unemployed during his run for a second term resulted in his loss to Bill Clinton.
During his presidency, Bush skillfully handled foreign affairs during a tumultuous time for the nation. Just months into his first term, he responded to the dissolve of the Soviet Union and oversaw the U.S. military’s removal of Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega from power. Not long after, Bush responded to then Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait (August 1990), creating a national coalition and leading a military strike to drive Hussein out of the oil-rich country. Bush’s handling of the invasion in Kuwait is largely viewed as his greatest presidential success.
He will not go down in history as a great president for two primary reasons. His promise “No new taxes” was not kept and at the end of his term in office the economy was in tatters.
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