George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush is a former president of the United States.
He was vice president under Ronald Reagan from 1980-1988, then won election as president. Dan Quayle was his running mate.
As president, he successfully expelled the Iraqi invaders from Kuwait in the Gulf War.
He lost reelection to Bill Clinton, who capitalized on a mild recession by saying, "It's the economy, stupid." George H. W. Bush's failure to live up to his "read my lips: no new taxes" pledge also alienated him from his base supporters.
Quotes[edit]
Line in the sand[edit]
A line has been drawn in the sand...Withdraw from Kuwait unconditionally and immediately, or face the terrible consequences.
Unchecked aggression[edit]
Before ordering our troops into battle in Kuwait, I thought long and hard about casualties, or, as our severest critics would put it-“body bags.” But as I pondered that horrible question, I also thought of unchecked aggression, of what would happen if the butcher of Baghdad could emerge the hero. What would that have meant for tomorrow?
My mind always went back to the questions: “What if Hitler’s aggression had been checked earlier on? How many lives would have been saved?”
You state that “recourse to war” could make Saddam a hero and a martyr. Yes, there may be such a risk, but the risk of having him prevail is far worse. He has been the bully in the neighborhood for a long time.
Saddam tried to make the Palestine question the rallying cry, tried to use it to cover up his brutal takeover of Kuwait. I remain determined that he not link the Palestine question, which urgently needs a solution, to the rape of Kuwait.
Source: All the Best, p. 505-7: Letter to Archbishop Cardinal Law , Jan 22, 1991[1]