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George H. W. Bush Quotes (1924-2018)
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About George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was an American politician who served as the 41st president of the United States (1989–93), and the 43rd vice president of the United States (1981–89). A Republican, he previously served as a congressman, an ambassador, and director of Central Intelligence. At 94 years he was the longest-living president and vice president, as well as the last veteran of World War II to hold the presidency. He was married to Barbara Bush, and was the father of George W. Bush. He is also the most recent U.S President who ran for office while a Vice President.
Best George H. W. Bush Quotes
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Explore our curated collection of the most famous and impactful George H. W. Bush quotes.
“This will not stand, this aggression against Kuwait.”
“The American way of life is not up for negotiation. Period.”
Ronald Reagan's 1981 toast to Ferdinand Marcos, praising his commitment to democracy, starkly contrasts with the dictator's later ousting and legacy.
“We love your adherence to democratic principles and to the democratic process.”
During the 1988 presidential campaign, George Bush's defiant assertion of American exceptionalism was interpreted by some as a response to the downing of Iran Air Flight 655.
“I will never apologize for the United States of America. Ever. I don't care what the facts are.”
“Tonight, as I see the drama of democracy unfolding around the globe, perhaps—perhaps we are closer to that new world than ever before.”
“We must act on what we know. I take as my guide the hope of a saint: In crucial things, unity; in important things, diversity; in all things, generosity.”
- George H. W. Bush, Inaugural Address
“There is nothing more fulfilling than to serve your country and your fellow citizens and to do it well. And that's what our system of self-government depends on.”
- George H. W. Bush, Address to the Senior Executive Service
“It just isn't going to work, and it's very interesting that the man who invented this type of what I call a voodoo economic policy is Art Laffer, a California economist.”
At the 1992 Republican Convention, a speaker invoked the family-values contrast between the wholesome Waltons and the subversive Simpsons, hoping to resonate with voters.
“We're going to keep trying to strengthen the American family. To make them more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons.”
“A President is neither prince nor pope, and I don't seek a window on men's souls. In fact, I yearn for a greater tolerance, an easy-goingness about each other's attitudes and way of life.”
- George H. W. Bush, Inaugural Address
“I intend to speak for freedom, stand for freedom and be a patient friend to anyone, East or West, who will fight for freedom.
It seems to me the presidency provides an incomparable opportunity for "gentle persuasion."”
It seems to me the presidency provides an incomparable opportunity for "gentle persuasion."”
- George H. W. Bush, RNC acceptance speech
“And let all Americans remember that no problem of human making is too great to be overcome by human ingenuity, human energy, and the untiring hope of the human spirit. I believe this. I would not have asked to be your President if I didn't.”
- George H. W. Bush, Presidential Economic Address, February 9, 1989
George H. W. Bush Quotes by Topic
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George H. W. Bush on Gulf War 2 quotes
“Tonight in Iraq, Saddam walks amidst ruin. His war machine is crushed. His ability to threaten mass destruction is itself destroyed.”
George H. W. Bush on Social Security (United States) 2 quotes
“And there's one thing I hope we will be able to agree on. It's about our commitments. I'm talking about Social Security. To every American out there on Social Security, to every American supporting that system today, and to everyone counting on it when they retire, we made a promise to you, and we are going to keep it. We rescued the system in 1983, and it's sound again -- bipartisan arrangement. Our budget fully funds today's benefits, and it assures that future benefits will be funded as well. The last thing we need to do is mess around with Social Security.”
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George H. W. Bush on Future 2 quotes
“I do not mistrust the future; I do not fear what is ahead. For our problems are large, but our heart is larger. Our challenges are great, but our will is greater. And if our flaws are endless, God's love is truly boundless. Some see leadership as high drama, and the sound of trumpets calling, and sometimes it is that. But I see history as a book with many pages, and each day we fill a page with acts of hopefulness and meaning. The new breeze blows, a page turns, the story unfolds. And so today a chapter begins, a small and stately story of unity, diversity, and generosity — shared, and written, together.”
George H. W. Bush on Aggression
“This will not stand, this aggression against Kuwait.”
- George H. W. Bush, B)
George H. W. Bush on United States Armed Forces
George H. W. Bush on Education
George H. W. Bush on Democracy
“Tonight, as I see the drama of democracy unfolding around the globe, perhaps—perhaps we are closer to that new world than ever before.”
George H. W. Bush on Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
George H. W. Bush on Hampden-Sydney College
Speaking at Hampden-Sydney College's 1985 commencement, then-Vice President George H.W. Bush lauded the institution's bicentennial legacy of cultivating courageous and insightful leaders driven by liberty.
“Brought into being by love of liberty, as Virginians say, Hampden-Sydney has for two centuries provided its graduates with the courage and the insight to be leaders.”
George H. W. Bush on Conspiracy
“Out of these troubled times, our objective—a new world order—can emerge. Today, that new world is struggling to be born, a world quite different from the one we have known.”
George H. W. Bush on Millennium
“There are no maps to lead us where we are going, to this new world of our own making. As the world looks back to nine decades of war, of strife, of suspicion, let us also look forward—to a new century, and a new millennium, of peace, freedom and prosperity.”
George H. W. Bush on Map
“There are no maps to lead us where we are going, to this new world of our own making. As the world looks back to nine decades of war, of strife, of suspicion, let us also look forward—to a new century, and a new millennium, of peace, freedom and prosperity.”
What George H. W. Bush Said About Others
Discover personal opinions George H. W. Bush shared regarding contemporaries.
George H. W. Bush on Saddam Hussein 3 quotes
“We're dealing with Hitler revisited, a totalitarianism and a brutality that is naked and unprecedented in modern times, and that must not stand!”
George H. W. Bush on Michael Moore 2 quotes
“To have to answer anything about what that slimeball says is just too much.”
George H. W. Bush on Margaret Thatcher 2 quotes
“I'll miss her because I value her counsel. I value her long experience and the wisdom that comes from that experience. She has been an outstanding Prime Minister for the United Kingdom and an outstanding friend to the United States.”
George H. W. Bush on Donald Trump
George H. W. Bush on Arthur Laffer
“It just isn't going to work, and it's very interesting that the man who invented this type of what I call a voodoo economic policy is Art Laffer, a California economist.”
George H. W. Bush on Ted Kennedy
“While we didn’t see eye to eye on many political issues through the years, I always respected his steadfast public service. Ted Kennedy was a seminal figure in the U.S. Senate — a leader who answered the call to duty for some 47 years, and whose death closes a remarkable chapter in that body’s history.”
George H. W. Bush on Abraham Lincoln
“Perhaps nowhere do we learn more about Lincoln even now than in a portrait that I talked about last month off the coast of Malta before meeting Chairman Gorbachev. It is, as this one is, by George Healy, and hangs on the wall of my office upstairs. And in it you see the agony and the greatness of a man who nightly fell on his knees to ask the help of God. The painting shows two of his generals and an admiral meeting near the end of a war that pitted brother against brother. And outside at the moment a battle rages. And yet what we see in the distance is a rainbow — a symbol of hope, of the passing of the storm. The painting's name:The Peacemakers. And for me, this is a constant reassurance that the cause of peace will triumph and that ours can be the future that Lincoln gave his life for: a future free of both tyranny and fear.”
George H. W. Bush on Lyndon B. Johnson
“When Lyndon Johnson -- President Johnson -- spoke here in 1964, he addressed issues that remain with us. He proposed revitalizing cities, rejuvenating schools, trampling down the hoary harvest of racism, and protecting our environment -- back in 1964. He applied the wisdom of his time to these challenges. He believed that cadres of experts really could care for the millions. And they would calculate ideal tax rates, ideal rates of expenditures on social programs, ideal distributions of wealth and privilege. And in many ways, theirs was an America by the numbers: If the numbers were right, America was right. And gradually, we got to the point of equating dollars with commitment. And when programs failed to produce progress, we demanded more money. And in time, this crusade backfired. Programs designed to ensure racial harmony generated animosity. Programs intended to help people out of poverty invited dependency. We should have learned that while the ideals behind the Great Society were noble -- and indeed they were -- the programs weren't always up to the task. We need to rethink our approach. Let's tell our people: We don't want an America by the numbers. We don't want a land of loopholes. We want a community of commitment and trust.”
Quotes About George H. W. Bush
Gain deeper perspective through quotes about George H. W. Bush from others.
Widely quoted remark of an anonymous Texan on George H. W. Bush
Dave Barry on George H. W. Bush
“In 1980 the Democrats were pretty much stuck with Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale, who ran under the slogan "Four More Years?" The Republicans, meanwhile, had a spirited primary campaign season, which came down to a duel between Reagan and George Herbert Walker Norris Wainright Armoire Vestibule Pomegranate Bush IV, who had achieved a distinguished record of public service despite having a voice that sounded like he had just inhaled an entire blimp-load of helium.”
Thomas Boswell on George H. W. Bush
“On Monday in Baltimore, many baseball fans may be tempted to utter a testy little boo when they see yet another politician who seems to be horning in on Opening Day. President George Bush is different. If his First Ball bounces, it was probably a curve. And if he's wearing a glove, it's his own.”
Jim Burris on George H. W. Bush
Denver Bears GM Jim Burris marveled at then-Vice President George H.W. Bush's surprisingly athletic performance at a 1984 MLB Old-Timers' game.
“I just couldn't believe that any politician could look that comfortable out there. [...] It was obvious he had played before. You could just tell, the way he shifted his feet and changed position. He had one difficult fielding chance. He knocked the ball down and threw to the pitcher for the out.”
Niall Ferguson on George H. W. Bush
“Bush was in many ways the maestro president when it came to foreign policy. With extraordinary dexterity, he handled the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of all the communist regimes in Eastern Europe, German reunification and then the Soviet disintegration. On his watch, Nelson Mandela was set free and apartheid consigned to the history books; and Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait was reversed. And yet still the presidency was won by a scandal-prone Southern governor with the banal but brilliant slogan: “It’s the economy, stupid.””
David Harris on George H. W. Bush 2 quotes
“Of all the thousands of rulers, potentates, strongmen, juntas, and warlords the Americans have dealt with in all corners of the world, General Manuel Antonio Noriega is the only one the Americans came after like... the United States Invasion of Panama... The Bush administration might have quashed the wimp rumors, but now it faced the problem of legitimacy, of appearing to be a bully caught in an act of terrorism. It was disclosed that the U.S. Army had prohibited the press, the Red Cross, and other outside observers from entering the heavily bombed areas for three days, while soldiers incinerated and buried the casualties. The press asked questions about how much evidence of criminal and other inappropriate behavior was destroyed, and about how many died because they were denied timely medical attention, but such questions were never answered.”
Molly Ivins "Notes from Another Country" article on George H. W. Bush
“Listening to George Bush, toward the end of his speech, read the poetry written by Ray Price with the gestures scripted by speech coach Roger Ailes, I was struck anew by the elaborate charade of emperor's clothing in which the American press is so supinely complicit. Bush has no more sense of poetry than he does of grammar. After the speech there was much division in the pundit corps over whether Bush had just "hit it out of the park" (both sports and war metaphors were much in vogue) or whether we had just heard a load of nasty political drivel without a single redeeming idea. But all hands were solemnly pretending we had just heard George Bush, the nation's most incoherent speaker, stand up and make a fifty-eight-minute political address. George Bush without a Teleprompter can scarcely produce an intelligible sentence. I've been listening to him since 1966 and must confess to a secret fondness for his verbal dyslexia. Hearing him has the charm and suspense of those old adventure-movie serials: Will this man ever fight his way out of this sentence alive? As he flops from one syntactical Waterloo to the next, ever in the verbless mode, in search of the long lost predicate, or even a subject, you find yourself struggling with him, rooting for him. What is this man actually trying to say? What could he possibly mean? Hold it, I think I see it!...The fact is that unless someone else writes a speech for him, the President of the United States sounds like a border-line moron. But the media sit around pretending that he can actually talk-can convince, inspire and lead us.”
Rachel Johnson on George H. W. Bush 4 quotes
“But setting aside his relative inaction during the recession, Bush’s long record of supporting policies that benefit the wealthy at the expense of average Americans cemented his legacy. He was no patrician statesman whose example can lead us out of our current dark times. Rather, he was a foot soldier for the ruling class who played a substantial role in bringing us to where we are today. His role as a chief architect of U.S. neoliberal trade policy through ushering in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) helped to exacerbate global inequality and fuel the loss of over one million manufacturing jobs in the United States and Canada.”
June Jordan "Thomas was not the Point" on George H. W. Bush
“The President made his move. He nominated a man as different from Thurgood Marshall as George Bush differs from Mahatma Gandhi...Among those who detested Marshall and who generally despise Black men there was a willingness to promote Clarence Thomas because Clarence Thomas was not the point: The point is to homogenize the Supreme Court. If someone with Black skin will serve that purpose, then fine! But we, the people, must not yield to judgment without representation. If we yield, there will be no justice. And without justice, believe me, there will be no peace.”
Naomi Klein on George H. W. Bush
Barack Obama on George H. W. Bush
“I would often surprise people by citing George H. W. Bush as a recent president whose foreign policy I admired. Bush, along with James Baker, Colin Powell, and Brent Scowcroft, had deftly managed the end of the Cold War and the successful prosecution of the Gulf War.”
Disputed Quotes
Quotes attributed to George H. W. Bush that are questionable.
“No, I don't know that atheists should be regarded as citizens, nor should they be regarded as patriotic. This is one nation under God.… I support the separation of church and state. I'm just not very high on atheists.”
About George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was an American politician who served as the 41st president of the United States (1989–93), and the 43rd vice president of the United States (1981–89). A Republican, he previously served as a congressman, an ambassador, and director of Central Intelligence. At 94 years he was the longest-living president and vice president, as well as the last veteran of World War II to hold the presidency. He was married to Barbara Bush, and was the father of George W. Bush. He is also the most recent U.S President who ran for office while a Vice President.