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George Bush

George Herbert Walker Bush was born into a prominent family on June 12, 1924, in Milton. He served during World War II as a Navy pilot. After the war, he graduated from [ct:yaleuniv] in 1948. Moving to Texas, he started an oil company in 1953. He lost a race for the United States Senate in 1964 but was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1966. He lost again for the Senate in 1970. Under Richard M. Nixon and Gerald R. Ford, he held several positions including ambassador to the U.N. and director of the C.I.A.

In 1980, he ran against Ronald Reagan for the Republican nomination for President, but afterwards accepted the vice-presidency. Following eight years as V.P., he defeated Michael Dukakis in 1988 to become President.

The major events of Bush's administration were the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989 and the Gulf War in 1991. Bush was so popular after the war that most observers assumed he would be easily re-elected, but concerns about the economy led to his defeat in the 1992 election by Bill Clinton.