by James Mann
Senate Republican leaders seemed to be wavering: David E. Sanger, “In White House, Debate Is Rising on Iraq Pullback,” New York Times, July 9, 2007.
“I want everyone to stay home”: Rice, No Higher Honor, pp. 589–90.
combat forces could be cut back: Ricks, Gamble, p. 248.
“really require the willing suspension of disbelief”: Michael Abramowitz and Jonathan Weisman, “Bush to Endorse Petraeus Plan; Democrats, Some Republicans Seek a Faster Withdrawal,” Washington Post, September 12, 2007.
112 American fatalities … 126 … just 13: http://icasualties.org/Iraq/ByMonth.aspx.
he persuaded himself that a deadline was acceptable: Bush, Decision Points, p. 390.
The Obama forces portrayed McCain as more conservative than Bush: Mann, The Obamians, p. 98.
“it’s a size-ten shoe that he threw”: Sudarsan Raghavan and Dan Eggen, “Bush Ducks Shoe Thrown in Iraq, Continues to Afghanistan,” Washington Post, December 15, 2008.
8: “I’M GOING TO BE ROOSEVELT, NOT HOOVER”
breakfast of cereal and fruit … lunch of carrots, a chopped apple, and a hot dog: Gates, Duty, p. 57; Henry M. Paulson Jr., On the Brink: Inside the Race to Stop the Collapse of the Global Financial System (New York: Business Plus, 2010), p. 424.
Republican National Convention: Baker, Days of Fire, p. 606.
“an otherwise calm fall”: Laura Bush, Spoken from the Heart, p. 419.
“I’m going to be Roosevelt, not Hoover”: Bush, Decision Points, p. 440.
“heart of the country disdain … genuine contempt”: Paulson, On the Brink, pp. 5, 256.
won a series of assurances: Andrew Ross Sorkin, Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System—and Themselves (New York: Viking, 2009), pp. 41–43.
“little chance to make a mark”: Paul Blustein, “Treasury Nominee Has Ties to China,” Washington Post, June 6, 2006.
“most unlikely … simmer down”: Edmund L. Andrews, “Greenspan Says Housing Boom Is Nearly Over,” New York Times, August 28, 2005; Paul Krugman, “Greenspan and the Bubble,” New York Times, August 29, 2005.
“an enormous amount of leverage—and risk”: Paulson, On the Brink, pp. 45–47.
“largely contained”: Ibid., p. 66; Alan Blinder, After the Music Stopped: The Financial Crisis, the Response, and the Work Ahead (New York: Penguin, 2013), p. 88.
a short, V-shaped recession: Paulson, On the Brink, p. 86.
“We’re not going to do a bailout, are we?”: Ibid., p. 92.
“I’m coming to you as an optimistic fellow”: Text of George W. Bush speech to the Economic Club of New York, March 14, 2008.
“You’ll have to explain why it was necessary”: Paulson, On the Brink, p. 113.
“how much it was willing to kick in”: David Wessel, In Fed We Trust: Ben Bernanke’s War on the Great Panic (New York: Crown Business, 2009), p. 147.
seventeen proposals for reform: Bush, Decision Points, p. 455.
“save their ass”: Paulson, On the Brink, p. 144.
foreign governments were weighing in: See Wessel, In Fed We Trust, p. 182.
“We’ll Protect Taxpayers”: John McCain and Sarah Palin, “We’ll Protect Taxpayers from More Bailouts,” Wall Street Journal, September 9, 2008.
“fed up with bailouts”: Paulson, On the Brink, p. 180.
“I’m being called Mr. Bailout”: Wessel, In Fed We Trust, p. 14.
“What the hell is going on?”: Bush, Decision Points, p. 456.
was not going to keep bailing out failing companies: Sorkin, Too Big to Fail, p. 374.
“all hell broke loose”: Bush, Decision Points, p. 457.
“If you are comfortable”: Wessel, In Fed We Trust, p. 196.
He questioned Paulson closely: Paulson, On the Brink, p. 235.
“that was a hell of a lot better than a financial collapse”: Bush, Decision Points, p. 458.
Bush, too, sought to discourage the word: Ibid., p. 454.
“Is that enough?” … single biggest expenditure: Sorkin, Too Big to Fail, pp. 440, 466.
a single Republican in the delegation from Texas: Cheney, In My Time, p. 509.
he found Obama to be thoughtful and supportive, while McCain worried him: Paulson, On the Brink, pp. 226, 278.
“this sucker could go down”: Sorkin, Too Big to Fail, p. 489.
“very much at ease … added nothing of substance”: Cheney, In My Time, p. 509.
“Well, I’ve clearly lost control”: Paulson, On the Brink, p. 299.
“Are you asking me or telling me?”: Ibid., p. 393.
“Just don’t let Citi fail”: Ibid., p. 404.
“I had to safeguard American workers”: Bush, Decision Points, p. 469.
“Just make up your mind”: Ibid., p. 105.
“leaving a good man wounded on the field of battle”: Cheney, In My Time, p. 410.
EPILOGUE
“To know the man is to like the man”: CNN Transcript, George W. Bush Presidential Library Opening, April 25, 2013.
“No president of my party”: Ibid.
world’s largest purchaser of condoms: Bush, Decision Points, 349.
he canceled … a speech in Geneva: Ewen MacAskill and Afua Hirsch, “George Bush Calls Off Visit to Switzerland,” Guardian, February 6, 2011.
“replenish the ol’ coffers”: Robert Draper, Dead Certain: The Presidency of George W. Bush (New York: Free Press, 2007), p. 406.
140 paid talks: Center for Public Integrity, http://www.publicintegrity.org/2011/05/20/4685/after-skipping-ground-zero-event-obama-bush-made-three-paid-speeches.
“I think it’s bad for the country”: James O’Toole, “George W. Bush Avoids Controversy in Visit to Pittsburgh,” Pittsburgh Post–Gazette, November 15, 2013.
“OMG! Pigs fly. I like something about George W. Bush”: Jerry Saltz, “George W. Bush Is a Good Painter,” “Vulture” website of New York magazine, http://www.vulture.com/2013/02/jerry-saltz-george-w-bush-is-a-good-painter.html.
“he was desperate for a pastime”: Mark K. Updegrove, “President George W. and Laura Bush Reflect on the Twins, Bush’s Newfound Passion for Painting, and More,” Parade, April 19, 2013, full website transcript, http://parade.condenast.com/5964/markupdegrove/president-george-w-and-laura-bush-reflect-on-the-twins-bushs-newfound-passion-for-painting-and-more/.
“Painting has changed my life”: Rick Klein, “George W. Bush: Painting Has Changed My Life,” ABC News “The Note” blog, April 24, 2014, http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/04/george-w-bush-painting-has-changed-my-life.
“Six years from now”: Draper, Dead Certain, p. 407.
Harry Truman’s presidency and Gerald Ford’s pardon: Bush, Decision Points, pp. 476–77.
“Somebody has got to be risk-averse”: Gates, Duty, p. 73.
Milestones
1946
Born on July 6 in New Haven, Connecticut.
1948
Father, George H. W. Bush, moves his family to West Texas.
1953
Younger sister Robin dies of leukemia at age four.
1959
The Bush family moves from Midland to Houston, where George W. attends Kinkaid School.
1961
Enters Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts.
1964
Graduates from Andover and enters Yale College. His father runs for the U.S. Senate, but is defeated.
1966
His father wins a seat in Congress.
1968
Graduates from Yale and enters the Texas National Guard.
1970
Finishes active duty in Texas National Guard. Works in his father’s unsuccessful Senate campaign against Lloyd Bentsen.
1972
Moves to Alabama to work on unsuccessful Senate campaign of Winton Blount.
1973
Enters Harvard Business School.
1975
Graduates from business school, visits his
parents in China, moves back to Midland to start a career in the oil business.
1976
Arrested in Kennebunkport for driving under the influence of alcohol.
1977
Creates his first oil company, Arbusto. Declares his candidacy for Congress. Marries Laura Welch in Midland.
1978
Loses the race for Congress after his opponent portrays him as a “liberal Northeast Republican.”
1980
His father is elected vice president.
1981
Becomes the father of twins, Barbara and Jenna.
1986
Turns forty, decides to give up drinking, becomes an evangelical Christian. Arranges the sale of his company to Harken Energy, ending a decade of involvement in the oil business.
1987
Moves to Washington to help run his father’s presidential campaign.
1988
His father is elected the forty-first president of the United States.
1989
Moves from Washington to Dallas. Leads an ownership group that purchases the Texas Rangers baseball team.
1992
His father is defeated for reelection, bringing his political career to an end.
1994
Elected governor of Texas.
1998
On a weekend in Kennebunkport, his father introduces him to Condoleezza Rice, who begins to put together a group of foreign-policy advisers. He wins reelection in Texas and emerges as an early front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. His brother Jeb is elected governor of Florida.
1999
Formally declares his candidacy for president. Several other candidates, including Jack Kemp, Elizabeth Dole, and Dan Quayle, drop out for lack of funds, leaving John McCain as his main rival.
2000
Wins Iowa caucuses but loses New Hampshire primary to McCain. Defeats McCain in South Carolina primary and wins the nomination.
Selects Dick Cheney as his running mate.
November election is disputed and delayed for a month when Democratic nominee Al Gore challenges results from Florida. In the case of Bush v. Gore, Supreme Court votes five to four to reject Gore’s appeal, awarding Florida and therefore the election to Bush.
2001
Sworn in as the forty-third president of the United States.
Wins passage from Congress of first set of tax cuts, reducing taxes on income.
Rejects Kyoto Protocol on climate change.
Bans stem-cell research except for that from existing cell lines.
September 11 attacks on World Trade Center and Pentagon.
American and allied forces attack Afghanistan and force Taliban regime from power but fail to capture Osama bin Laden as he flees the country.
Authorizes National Security Agency to conduct new Terrorist Surveillance Program.
Notifies Russia that the United States will withdraw from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.
Asks Tommy Franks, commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, to develop first war plan for attacking Iraq.
2002
Signs No Child Left Behind legislation.
Says in State of the Union address that Iraq, Iran, and North Korea form an “axis of evil.”
First prisoners arrive at new U.S. facility in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.
Authorizes CIA to use harsh interrogation techniques, including waterboarding, for detainees held at “black sites” overseas.
Signs Sarbanes-Oxley legislation establishing new requirements for corporate boards, management, and accounting firms.
Announces in speech at West Point that United States will take “preemptive action” to safeguard national security.
Wins passage from Congress of Authorization for the Use of Military Force against Iraq.
Republicans gain seats in midterm elections.
U.N. Security Council approves resolution giving Saddam Hussein a “final opportunity” to disclose his nuclear weapons program and to give it up.
2003
In State of Union speech, announces plans for PEPFAR, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.
Colin Powell appears before U.N. Security Council to outline U.S. evidence that Iraq possesses weapons of mass destruction.
Tries but fails to obtain new U.N. Security Council resolution authorizing military action against Iraq.
United States and coalition forces invade Iraq, capture Baghdad; Saddam Hussein flees; Bush announces end of major combat operations before a banner that reads MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.
Wins approval of second set of tax cuts, reducing rates on dividends and capital gains.
Amid widening chaos in Iraq, United Nations representative Sergio Vieira de Mello is killed in the bombing of the U.N.’s Baghdad headquarters.
Congress approves Bush’s proposal for prescription drug benefit under Medicare.
Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi agrees to give up nuclear weapons program.
U.S. forces capture Saddam Hussein.
2004
Photos of American soldiers abusing prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison become public.
Defeats John Kerry to win a second term as president.
Announces that Colin Powell will step down and Condoleezza Rice will replace him as secretary of state.
2005
In second inaugural address, says United States has “the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.”
Proposes far-reaching changes in Social Security to move toward private accounts. Congress declines to act on his proposal.
Iraq holds elections, with large turnout.
Hurricane Katrina strikes Gulf Coast and New Orleans; Bush is slow to respond.
Nominates John Roberts to Supreme Court to replace Sandra Day O’Connor, then nominates Roberts as chief justice of the United States after the death of William Rehnquist. Nominates Harriet Miers as associate justice, but she withdraws her name; nominates Samuel Alito. Roberts and Alito are confirmed.
I. Lewis Libby, Cheney’s chief of staff, is indicted for perjury.
2006
Iraq deteriorates into sectarian strife after bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra.
Appoints Ben Bernanke to be chairman of Federal Reserve Board.
Supreme Court rules in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld that some parts of Bush’s war on terror are illegal or unconstitutional. In response, CIA closes “black sites” and halts some of its harsh interrogation techniques.
Appoints Henry Paulson as new secretary of the treasury.
North Korea conducts first nuclear test.
In midterm elections, Democrats take control of both House and Senate.
Fires Rumsfeld and appoints Robert Gates to take his place as secretary of defense.
Signs agreement for civilian nuclear cooperation with India, opening the way for new strategic relationship between the two countries.
Saddam Hussein is executed.
2007
Orders surge in American forces to Iraq; appoints David Petraeus to take command and to carry out new strategy of counterinsurgency.
Convenes Annapolis conference on the Middle East.
2008
Treasury Department arranges rescue of Bear Stearns.
U.S. government establishes conservatorship over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Lehman Brothers files for bankruptcy; financial system freezes up; stock market plunges.
Treasury Department arranges rescue of AIG.
Congress enacts $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).
Barack Obama is elected America’s forty-fourth president, defeating John McCain.
Convenes first-ever G-20 summit meeting.
Provides funds for short-term bailout of auto industry.
Signs agreement with Iraq on departure of U.S. forces from the country by the end of 2011.
2009
Rejects appeals from Cheney to pardon Libby.
Leaves office and returns to Texas.
Memoir Decision Points is published.
2013
Hacked email accounts show Bush has taken up painting.
Opening of George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum in Dallas.
Selected Bibliography
BOOKS
Baker, Peter. Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House. New York: Doubleday, 2013.
Blinder, Alan. After the Music Stopped: The Financial Crisis, the Response, and the Work Ahead. New York: Penguin, 2013.
Bruni, Frank. Ambling into History: The Unlikely Odyssey of George W. Bush. New York: HarperCollins, 2002.
Bush, Barbara. Barbara Bush: A Memoir. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1994.
Bush, George W. A Charge to Keep. New York: Harper Perennial, 2001.
———. Decision Points. New York: Crown, 2010.
Bush, Laura. Spoken from the Heart. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2010.
Cannon, Carl M., Lou Dubose, and Jan Reid. Boy Genius. New York: PublicAffairs, 2003.
Cheney, Dick. In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir. New York: Threshold Editions, 2011.
