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George W. Bush
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| George Walker Bush | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 20, 2001 |
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| Vice President | Dick Cheney |
| Preceded by | Bill Clinton |
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46th Governor of Texas
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| In office January 17, 1995 – December 21, 2000 |
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| Lieutenant | Bob Bullock Rick Perry |
| Preceded by | Ann Richards |
| Succeeded by | Rick Perry |
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| Born | July 6, 1946 New Haven, Connecticut |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Laura Bush |
| Children | Barbara Pierce Bush & Jenna Welch Hager |
| Residence | White House (official) Crawford, Texas (private) |
| Alma mater | Yale University Harvard Business School |
| Occupation | Businessman (oil, baseball) |
| Net Worth | $8–21 million (USD)[1] |
| Religion | United Methodist[2][3] |
| Signature |  |
| Website | The White House |
| Military service | |
| Service/branch | Texas Air National Guard |
| Years of service | 1968-1973 |
| Rank | First Lieutenant |
George Walker Bush (/ˈdʒɔɹdʒ ˈwɑkɚ ˈbʊʃ/ ; born July 6, 1946) is the forty-third and current President of the United States of America. He served as the forty-sixth Governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000 and is the eldest son of former American President George Herbert Walker Bush and Barbara Bush. He was inaugurated as President on January 20, 2001 and his current term is scheduled to end at noon EST (17:00 UTC) on Tuesday, January 20, 2009.[4]
After graduating from college, Bush worked in his family's oil businesses. He made an unsuccessful run for the United States House of Representatives in 1978. He co-owned the Texas Rangers baseball team before defeating Ann Richards to become Governor of Texas in 1994. In a close and controversial election Bush, who lost the nationwide popular vote but won the electoral vote, was elected to the Presidency in 2000 as the Republican candidate.
Bush signed into law a $1.35 trillion tax cut program in 2001.[5] After the September 11 terrorist attacks, Bush ordered an invasion of Afghanistan and in October 2001 announced a global War on Terrorism in order to overthrow the Taliban, destroy Al-Qaeda, and to capture Osama bin Laden. Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002. In March 2003, Bush and the Congress asserted Iraq was in possession of weapons of mass destruction and ordered the invasion of Iraq.[6] Aboard the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln on May 1, 2003, Bush gave the Mission Accomplished speech, proclaiming, "in the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed."[7]
Bush ran for re-election against the Democratic Party's nominee, Senator John Kerry in 2004. Kerry debated Bush's handling of the Iraq War and domestic issues.[8] Bush was re-elected on November 2, 2004 garnering 50.7% of the popular vote to his opponent's 48.3%.[9]
After his re-election, Bush received increasingly heated criticism and began losing support from his Republican base largely due to his stance on illegal immigration and government spending.[10][11][12] During his two terms he has had both the highest and the lowest domestic Gallup poll approval ratings of American Presidents, ranging from around 90% immediately after the September 11, 2001 attacks, to 23% in June 2008.[1][13] Worldwide opinions of Bush are widely less favorable[14] with the exception of a few countries, notably Israel.[citation needed]
Childhood to mid-life
Born in New Haven, Connecticut on July 6, 1946, Bush was the first child of George H. W. Bush and Barbara Bush (born Pierce). He was raised in Midland and Houston, Texas, with his four siblings, Jeb, Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy. Another younger sister, Robin, died from leukemia at the age of three in 1953.[15] Bush's grandfather, Prescott Bush, was a U.S. Senator from Connecticut, and his father served as U.S. President from 1989 to 1993.
During his 2000 presidential campaign, Vanity Fair magazine and The New York Times reported that Bush, as a child, was not accepted for admission by St. John's School in Houston, Texas, a prestigious private school.[16] In the two years following, Bush attended The Kinkaid School, the private school from which St. John's had broken away.[16] Bush later attended his father's alma mater, Phillips Academy. Ironically, Bush, then the Governor of Texas, served as the commencement speaker at St. John's Academy in 1995.[17]
Bush attended the all-boys school Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, where he played baseball and during his senior year was the head cheerleader.[18] Following in his father's footsteps, Bush attended Yale University, where he received a Bachelor's degree in history in 1968.[19] As a college senior, Bush became a member of the secretive Skull and Bones society, although, by his own characterization, he was an average student.[20]
Texas Air National Guard
At the height of the Vietnam War, Bush was accepted into the Texas Air National Guard in May 1968, despite scoring the lowest acceptable passing grade on the pilot's written aptitude test.[21][22][23] This was at a time when more than ten thousand Air National Guard personnel, many fighter pilots, were called to active duty to serve in Vietnam.[24] After training, he was assigned to duty in Houston, flying Convair F-102s out of Ellington Air Force Base.[25] Critics allege Bush was favorably treated because of his father's political standing, citing his lack of combat service and his irregular attendance.[26] The United States Department of Defense released all the records of Bush's Texas Air National Guard service, which remain in its official archives.[22] Though not accepted to the University of Texas School of Law in 1970,[27] he accepted a transfer to the Alabama Air National Guard in 1972 to work on a Republican senate campaign, and in October 1973 he was discharged from the Texas Air National Guard, almost eight months early without being called to active duty to serve in Vietnam, to attend Harvard Business School.[28] While at Harvard, Bush completed his six-year service obligation in the inactive reserve.[29]
During this time Bush had multiple accounts of substance abuse.[30] In one instance, Bush was arrested near his family's summer home in Kennebunkport, Maine for driving under the influence of alcohol at the age of thirty on September 4, 1976. He pled guilty, was fined US$150, and had his Maine driver's license suspended until 1978.[31] Bush then attended Harvard University, where he earned his MBA,[32] and entered the oil industry in Texas not long afterward.
Marriage and family
In 1977, he was introduced by friends at a backyard barbecue to Laura Welch, a schoolteacher and librarian. Bush proposed to her after a three-month courtship and they were married on November 5 of that year.[33] The couple settled in Midland, Texas. Bush left his family's Episcopal Church to join his wife's United Methodist Church.[2] In 1981, Laura Bush gave birth to twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara;[33] they graduated from high school in 2000 and from the University of Texas at Austin and Yale University, respectively, in 2004.
Bush gave up alcohol in 1986 and credits his decision to stop drinking to his wife.[34] She is also credited with possessing a stabilizing effect on his private life.[33] While Governor of Texas, Bush said of his wife, "I saw an elegant beautiful woman who turned out not only to be elegant and beautiful, but very smart and willing to put up with my rough edges, and I must confess has smoothed them off over time."[33]
Early career
In 1978, Bush ran for the U.S. House of Representatives from the 19th Congressional District of Texas. His opponent, Kent Hance, portrayed him as being out of touch with rural Texans; Bush lost the election by 6,000 votes.[35] He returned to the oil industry, becoming a senior partner, or chief executive officer, of several ventures, such as Arbusto Energy,[36] Spectrum 7, and, later, Harken Energy.[37] These ventures suffered from the general decline of oil prices in the 1980s that had affected the industry and the regional economy. Additionally, questions of possible insider trading involving Harken have arisen, though the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) investigation of Bush concluded that he did not have enough insider information before his stock sale to warrant a case.[38]
To work on his father's campaign for the U.S. presidency Bush moved his family to Washington, D.C. in 1988.[39] Returning to Texas after the successful campaign, he purchased a share in the Texas Rangers baseball franchise in April 1989, where he served as managing general partner for five years.[40] He actively led the team's projects and regularly attended its games, often choosing to sit in the open stands with fans.[41] The sale of Bush's shares in the Rangers in 1998 brought him over US$15 million from his initial US$800,000 investment.[42]
Elected positions
Governor of Texas
As Bush's brother Jeb sought the governorship of Florida, Bush declared his candidacy for the 1994 Texas gubernatorial election. Winning the Republican primary easily, Bush faced popular Democrat incumbent Governor Ann Richards.
Bush's campaign advisers were Karen Hughes, Joe Allbaugh, and Karl Rove.
Richards vetoed a bill allowing Texans to obtain permits to carry concealed weapons. Bush pledged to sign it (after he won the election, did so.)[43] Following his debates with Richards, his popularity grew; he won the general election with 52 percent against Richards' 47 percent.[44]
Bush used a budget surplus to push through Texas's largest ever tax-cut of two billion dollars.[44]
Bush extended government funding for organizations providing education, alcohol and drug use and abuse prevention, and reduction of domestic violence, so long as those organizations are religious. He proclaimed June 10, 2000 to be Jesus Day in Texas, a day on which he "urge[d] all Texans to answer the call to serve those in need."[45]
In 1998, Bush won re-election with nearly 69 percent of the vote.[46] Within a year, he had decided to seek the Republican nomination for the presidency.
2000 Presidential candidacy
In 2000, Bush sought his own bid for President of the United States while still Governor of Texas.
Primary
Bush's campaign was managed by Rove, Hughes and Allbaugh, as well as by other Texas political associates.
In a televised Republican presidential debate held in Des Moines, Iowa on December 13, 1999, all of the participating candidates were asked "What political philosopher or thinker do you most identify with and why?" The other candidates cited former presidents and other political figures, but Bush responded, "Christ, because he changed my heart."
During the political campaign Bush labeled himself a "compassionate conservative," and in reference to the scandals and impeachment of President Bill Clinton, promised to "restore honor and dignity to the White House."[47]
Bush was endorsed by a majority of Republicans in thirty eight state legislatures. After winning the first contest, the Iowa caucus, he lost the second contest, the New Hampshire primary to U.S. Senator John McCain of Arizona. Bush picked up eleven of the next sixteen primaries and clinched the Republican nomination.
In a Gallup poll those who said they "attend church weekly" gave him 56% of their vote in 2000, and 63% of their vote in 2004.[48]
General election
On July 25, 2000, Bush surprised some observers by asking the Halliburton corporation's chief executive officer Dick Cheney, a former White House Chief of Staff, U.S. Representative, and Secretary of Defense, to be his Vice Presidential running mate. Cheney was then serving as head of Bush's Vice-Presidential search committee.
While stressing his successful record as governor of Texas, Bush's campaign criticized[49] the Democratic nominee, incumbent Vice President Al Gore, over gun control and taxation.
Bush controversially won the 2000 election. The closeness of the outcome, as well as reports of votes being miscounted, led to a recount in Florida. Two initial counts went to Bush, but that outcome was tied up in courts for a month until reaching the U.S. Supreme Court. On December 9, in the Bush v. Gore case, the Court reversed a Florida Supreme Court ruling ordering a third count, and stopped an ordered statewide hand recount based on the argument that the use of different standards among Florida's counties violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The machine recount stated that Bush had won the Florida vote by a margin of 537 votes out of six million cast.[50] The famous episode pushed terms such as "hanging chad" into the popular lexicon.
Bush received 271 electoral votes to Gore's 266.[51] However, he lost the popular vote by more than half a million votes,[50] making him one of a handful of presidents elected without at least a plurality of the popular vote.
2004 Presidential candidacy
Bush commanded broad support in the Republican Party and did not encounter a primary challenge. He appointed Kenneth Mehlman as campaign manager, with a political strategy devised by Rove.[52] Bush outlined an agenda that included a strong commitment to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a renewal of the USA PATRIOT Act, making earlier tax cuts permanent, cutting the budget deficit in half, promoting education, as well as reform in tort law, reforming Social Security, and creation of an ownership society.
The Bush campaign advertised across the U.S. against Democratic candidates, including Bush's emerging opponent, Massachusetts Senator John Kerry. Kerry and other Democrats attacked Bush on the war in Iraq, perceived excesses of the USA PATRIOT Act and for allegedly failing to stimulate the economy and job growth. The Bush campaign portrayed Kerry as a staunch liberal who would raise taxes and increase the size of government. The Bush campaign continuously criticized Kerry's seemingly contradictory statements on the war in Iraq, and claimed Kerry lacked the decisiveness and vision necessary for success in the war on terrorism. Bush carried 31 of 50 states for a total of 286 Electoral College votes.
Bush won the popular vote with 50.7% of the vote to his opponent's 48.3%.[53] The last president to win an absolute majority(>50%) (as opposed to a plurality, meaning "the most votes" but under 50%) of the popular vote had been Bush's father in the 1988 election prior the 2004 contest. In addition, it was the first time since Herbert Hoover's election in 1928 that a Republican president was elected alongside re-elected Republican congressional majorities in both houses. Bush's 2.5% margin of victory was the narrowest for a victorious incumbent President up for re-election since Woodrow Wilson's 3.1% margin of victory against Charles Evans Hughes in the 1916 contest.
Presidency
Domestic policy
Economic policy
Facing opposition in the Congress, Bush held town hall-style public meetings across the U.S. in 2001 to increase public support for his plan for a US$1.35 trillion tax cut program — one of the largest tax cuts in U.S. history. Bush and his economic advisers argued that unspent government funds should be returned to taxpayers. With reports of the threat of recession from Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, Bush argued that such a tax cut would stimulate the economy and create jobs.[54] Others, including the Treasury Secretary at the time Paul O'Neill, were opposed to some of the tax cuts on the basis that they would contribute to budget deficits and undermine Social Security.[55]
Under the Bush Administration, real GDP has grown at an average annual rate of 2.5 percent,[56] considerably below the average for business cycles from 1949 to 2000.[57][58] The Dow Jones Industrial Average has grown by about 30 percent since January 2001.[59] Unemployment originally rose from 4.2 percent in January 2001 to 6.3 percent in June 2003, but subsequently dropped to 4.5 percent in July 2007.[60] Inflation-adjusted median household income has been flat while the nation's poverty rate has increased.[61] By August 2007, the national debt had risen to US$8.98 trillion dollars, an increase of over 70% from the start of the year 2000 when the debt was 5.6 trillion dollars. [62][63]
A survey done by the American Research Group showed that as of April 2008, 22% of Americans approved of President Bush's effect on the economy. The perception of President Bush's effect on the economy, however, is significantly affected by partisanship with 67% of Republicans and 1% of Democrats approving of his performance.[64]
Another significant part of the Bush economic plan was the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005.
Education and health
Since entering office, President Bush has undertaken a number of educational priorities. He increased funding for the National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health in his first years of office, and created education programs to strengthen the grounding in science and mathematics for American high school students. Funding for the NIH was cut in 2006, the first such cut in 36 years, due to rising inflation.[65]
One of the administration's early major initiatives was the "No Child Left Behind Act", which aimed to measure and close the gap between rich and poor student performance, provide options to parents with students in low-performing schools, and target more federal funding to low-income schools. This landmark education initiative was signed into law by President Bush in early 2002.[66] Many contend that the initiative has been successful, as cited by the fact that students in the U.S. have performed significantly better on state reading and math tests since Bush signed "No Child Left Behind" into law.[67] Critics argue that it is underfunded[68] and that NCLBA's focus on "high stakes testing" and quantitative outcomes is counterproductive.[69]
In 2007, Bush opposed and vetoed State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) legislation which was added by the Democrats onto a war funding bill and passed by Congress. The SCHIP legislation would have significantly expanded federally-funded health care benefits and plans to children of some low-income families from about 6 million to 10 million children. It was to be funded by an increase in the cigarette tax.[70] Bush viewed the legislation as a move toward the liberal platform of socialized health care, and claimed that the program could benefit families making as much as US$83,000 per year who would not have otherwise needed the help.[71]
Social services and Social Security
Bush promoted increased deregulation and investment options in social services, leading Republican efforts to pass the Medicare Act of 2003, which added prescription drug coverage to Medicare and created Health Savings Accounts, which would permit people to set aside a portion of their Medicare tax to build a "nest egg". The retired persons lobby group AARP worked with the Bush Administration on the program and gave their endorsement. Bush said the law, estimated to cost US$400 billion over the first 10 years, would give the elderly "better choices and more control over their health care".[72]
Bush began his second term by outlining a major initiative to reform Social Security, which was facing record deficit projections beginning in 2005. Bush made it the centerpiece of his agenda despite contrary beliefs in the media and in the U.S. Congress, which saw the program as the "third rail of politics," with the American public being suspicious of any attempt to change it. It was also widely believed to be the province of the Democratic Party, with Republicans in the past having been accused of efforts to dismantle or privatize it. In his 2005 State of the Union Address, Bush discussed the allegedly impending bankruptcy of the program and attacked political inertia against reform. He proposed options to permit Americans to divert a portion of their Social Security tax (FICA) into secured investments, creating a "nest egg" that he claimed would enjoy steady growth. Despite emphasizing safeguards and remaining open to other plans, Bush's proposal was criticized for its high cost, and Democrats attacked it as an effort to partially privatize the system, and for leaving Americans open to the whims of the market. Bush embarked on a 60-day national tour, campaigning vigorously for his initiative in media events ("Conversations on Social Security") in a largely unsuccessful attempt to gain support from the general public.[73] Despite energetic campaign by Bush to promote his Social Security reform plan, by May 2005 the public support for the Bush proposal declined substantially[74] and the House GOP leadership decided not to put Social Security reform on the priority list for the remainder of their 2005 legislative agenda.[75] The proposal's legislative prospects were further diminished by the political fallout from the Hurricane Katrina in the fall of 2005.[76] In the run-up to the 2006 congressional elections, the Republican leadership in Congress put the hot-button issue of the Social Security reform on the back burner. No substantive legislative action was taken on this issue in 2006. After the Democrats gained control of both houses of the Congress as a result of the 2006 mid-term elections, the prospects of any further congressional action on the Bush proposal appeared to be dead for the remainder of his term in office.
Environmental policy
Upon arriving in office in 2001, Bush did not support the Kyoto Protocol, an amendment to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change which seeks to impose mandatory targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Bush asserted he would not support it because the treaty exempted 80 percent of the world's population[77] would have cost tens of billions of dollars per year,[78] and was based on his personal opinion regarding the uncertainty of the science of climate change.[79] He also cited that the Senate had voted 95–0 in 1997 on a resolution expressing its disapproval of the protocol.
In 2002, Bush announced the Clear Skies Initiative,[80] aimed at amending the Clean Air Act to reduce air pollution through the use of emissions trading programs. It was argued, however, that this legislation would have weakened the original legislation by allowing higher levels of pollutants than were permitted at that time.[81] The initiative was introduced to Congress, but failed to make it out of committee.
President Bush believes that global warming is real[82] and has said that he has consistently noted that global warming is a serious problem, but he asserted there is a "debate over whether it's manmade or naturally caused".[83] In his 2007 State of the Union Address, Bush renewed his pledge to work toward diminished reliance on foreign oil by reducing fossil fuel consumption and increasing alternative fuel production.[84] During his 2008 State of the Union Address, he announced that the U.S. would commit US$2 billion over the next three years towards a new international fund to promote clean energy technologies and fight climate change, saying, "along with contributions from other countries, this fund will increase and accelerate the deployment of all forms of cleaner, more efficient technologies in developing nations like India and China, and help leverage substantial private-sector capital by making clean energy projects more financially attractive." He has also announced plans to reaffirm the United States' commitment to work with major economies and through the United Nations to complete an international agreement that will slow, stop, and eventually reverse the growth of greenhouse gases; he stated, "this agreement will be effective only if it includes commitments by every major economy and gives none a free ride."[85]
The Bush Administration's stance on global warming has remained controversial in the scientific and environmental communities. Many accusations have been made against the administration, such as those by the Director of NASA's Goddard Institute James Hansen,[86] and former United States Department of Energy official Joseph Romm, for misinforming the public and having not done enough to reduce carbon emissions and deter global warming.[87]
In 2006 Bush declared the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands a national monument, creating the largest marine reserve to date. The Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument comprises 84 million acres (340,000 km²) and is home to 7,000 species of fish, birds and other marine animals, many of which are specific to only those islands.[88] The move was hailed by conservationists for "its foresight and leadership in protecting this incredible area."[89]
Stem cell research and first use of veto power
Federal funding for medical research involving the creation or destruction of human embryos through the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institutes of Health has been forbidden by law since the Republican Revolution of 1995.[90] Bush has said that he supports stem cell research, but only to the extent that human embryos are not destroyed in order to harvest additional cells.[91] On August 9, 2001, Bush signed an executive order lifting the ban on federal funding for the 71 existing "lines" of stem cells,[92] but the ability of these existing lines to provide an adequate medium for testing has been questioned. Testing can only be done on twelve of the original lines, and all of the approved lines have been cultured in contact with mouse cells, which makes it unlikely the FDA would approve them for administration to humans.[93] On July 19, 2006, Bush used his veto power for the first time in his presidency to veto the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act. The bill would have repealed the Dickey Amendment, thereby permitting federal money to be used for research where stem cells are derived from the destruction of an embryo.[94]
Immigration
In 2006, going beyond calls from conservatives to secure the border, Bush demanded that Congress allow more than twelve million illegal immigrants to work in the United States with the creation of a "temporary guest-worker program." The president does not support amnesty for illegal immigrants,[95] but argues that the lack of legal status denies the protections of U.S. laws to millions of people who face dangers of poverty and exploitation, and penalizes employers despite a demand for immigrant labor.
The president urged Congress to provide additional funds for border security, and committed to deploying 6,000 National Guard troops to the United States-Mexico border.[96] In May-June 2007 Bush strongly supported the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 which was written by a bipartisan group of U.S. senators with the active participation of the Bush administration.[97] The bill envisioned a legalization program for undocumented immigrants, with an eventual path to citizenship; establishing a guest worker program; a series of border and work site enforcement measures; a reform of the green card application process and the introduction of a point-based "merit" system for green cards; elimination of "chain migration" and of the diversity Green Card Lottery; and other measures. Bush contended that the proposed bill did not amount to amnesty.[98]
A heated public debate followed, which resulted in a substantial rift within the Republican Party; the majority of the conservative base opposed it because of its legalization or amnesty provisions.[99] The bill was eventually defeated in the Senate on June 28, 2007, when a cloture motion failed on a 46-53 vote.[100] President Bush expressed disappointment upon the defeat of one of his signature domestic initiatives.[101] The Bush administration later proposed a series of immigration enforcement measures that do not require a change in law.[102]
Civil liberties and terrorist detainees
Following the events of September 11, Bush issued an executive order authorizing the NSA to monitor communications between suspected terrorists outside the U.S. and parties within the U.S. without obtaining a warrant pursuant to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act,[103] maintaining that the warrant requirements of FISA were implicitly superseded by the subsequent passage of the Authorization for Use of Military Force.[104] The program proved to be controversial, as critics of the administration, as well as organizations such as the American Bar Association, claimed it was illegal.[105] In August 2006, a U.S. district court judge ruled that the Terrorist Surveillance Program was unconstitutional,[106] but the decision was later reversed.[107] On January 17, 2007, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales informed U.S. Senate leaders that the program would not be reauthorized by the president, but would be subjected to judicial oversight.[108]
On October 17, 2006 Bush signed into law the Military Commissions Act of 2006,[109] a bill passed in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision on Hamdan v. Rumsfeld,[110] which allows the U.S. government the ability to prosecute unlawful enemy combatants by military commission rather than the standard trial. The bill also denies them access to habeas corpus and, while barring torture of detainees, allows the president to determine what constitutes torture.[109]
On March 8, 2008, Bush vetoed H.R. 2082, a bill that would have expanded Congressional oversight over the intelligence community and banned the use of waterboarding as well as other forms of enhanced interrogation techniques, saying that "[t]he bill Congress sent me would take away one of the most valuable tools in the war on terror."[111]
President Bush has consistently stated that the United States does not torture. Bush can authorize the CIA to use the simulated-drowning method under extraordinary circumstances.[112] The CIA once considered certain enhanced interrogation techniques, such as waterboarding, legally permissible.[113] The CIA has exercised the technique on certain key terrorist suspects and were given permission to do so from a memo from the Attorney General. While the Army Field Manual argues "that harsh interrogation tactics elicit unreliable information",[113] the Bush administration states that these enhanced interrogations have "provided critical information" to preserve American lives.[114][115]
Hurricane Katrina
One of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history, Hurricane Katrina, struck early in Bush’s second term. Katrina formed in late August during the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season and devastated much of the north-central Gulf Coast of the United States, particularly New Orleans.[116]
Bush declared a state of emergency in Louisiana on August 27,[117] and in Mississippi and Alabama the following day;[118] he authorized the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to manage the disaster, but his announcement failed to spur these agencies to action.[119] The eye of the hurricane made landfall on August 29, and New Orleans began to flood due to levee breaches; later that day, Bush declared that a major disaster existed in Louisiana,[120] officially authorizing FEMA to start using federal funds to assist in the recovery effort. On August 30, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff declared it "an incident of national significance,"[121] triggering the first use of the newly created National Response Plan. Three days later, on September 2, National Guard troops first entered the city of New Orleans.[122] The same day, Bush toured parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama and declared that the success of the recovery effort up to that point was "not enough."[123]
As the disaster in New Orleans intensified, critics claimed that the president was misrepresenting his administration's role in what they saw as a flawed response. Leaders attacked the president for having appointed perceived incompetent leaders to positions of power at FEMA, notably Michael D. Brown;[124] it was also argued that the federal response was limited as a result of the Iraq War[125] and President Bush himself did not act upon warnings of floods.[126][127][128] Bush responded to mounting criticism by accepting full responsibility for the federal government's failures in its handling of the emergency.[122]
Midterm dismissal of U.S. attorneys
During Bush's second term, a controversy arose over the Justice Department's midterm dismissal of seven United States Attorneys.[129] The White House maintains the U.S. attorneys were fired for poor performance.[130] Attorney General Alberto Gonzales would later resign over the issue, along with other senior members of the Justice Department.[131][132] The House Judiciary Committee issued subpoenas for advisors Harriet Miers and Josh Bolten to testify regarding this matter, but Bush directed Miers and Bolten to not comply with those subpoenas, invoking his right of Executive Privilege; Bush has maintained that all of his advisers are protected under a broad Executive Privilege protection to receive candid advice. The Justice Department has determined that the president's order was legal.[133] In November 2007, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Patrick Leahy (VT-D), stated that the Executive Privilege claim was strange considering "the President had no involvement in these firings."
Although Congressional investigations have focused on whether the Department of Justice and the White House were using the U.S. Attorney positions for political advantage, no official findings have been released. On March 10, 2008, the Congress filed a federal lawsuit to enforce their issued subpoenas.[134]
Public views and perception
Bush began his presidency with approval ratings near 50%.[135] Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, Bush gained an approval rating of greater than 85%, maintaining 80–90% approval for four months after the attacks. Since then, his approval ratings and approval of his handling of domestic and foreign policy issues have steadily dropped. Bush has received heavy criticism for his handling of the Iraq War, his response to Hurricane Katrina, and to the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse, NSA warrantless surveillance of terrorists or individuals suspected of involvement with terrorist groups, Scooter Libby/Plamegate, and Guantanamo Bay detainment camp controversies.[136] Additionally, critics have decried his frequent use of signing statements, contending that they are unconstitutional.[137]
The minority of Americans support Bush, citing his steadfast support for the Iraq War. A March 13, 2008 poll by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press reported that 53% of Americans — a slim majority — believe that "the U.S. will ultimately succeed in achieving its goals" in Iraq.[138] That figure is up from 42 percent in September 2007 and the highest it has been since 2006.[138]
In the 2004 elections, 95–98% of the Republican electorate approved of him. This support has since somewhat waned, however, due mostly to a minority of Republicans' frustration with him on issues of spending, illegal immigration, and Middle Eastern affairs.[139]
Bush's approval rating has been below the 50% mark in AP-Ipsos polling since December 2004.[140] Polls conducted in 2006 showed an average of 37% approval ratings for Bush;[141] the lowest for any second term president in this point of term since Harry S. Truman in March 1951, when his approval rating was 28%,[140][142] which contributed to what Bush called the "thumping" of the Republican Party in the 2006 mid-term elections.[143] Throughout 2007, Bush's approval rating hindered in the mid-thirties percentile,[144] although in a Reuters poll of October 17, 2007, Bush received a lower approval rating of 24%,[145] the lowest point of his presidency.[146] In response to the numbers, during a February 10, 2008 interview on Fox News Sunday Bush stated, "I frankly don't give a damn about the polls".[147] By April 2008, Bush's disapproval ratings were the highest ever recorded in the 70-year history of the Gallop poll for any president, with 69% of those polled disapproving of the job Bush was doing as president and 28% approving.[148]
Many professional historians have regarded Bush's presidency as below average, according to several surveys. A 2006 Siena College poll found that 744 professors of history judged Bush's presidency as follows: Great: 2%; Near Great: 5%; Average: 11%; Below Average: 24%; Failure: 58%;[149] other polls conducted by the History News Network (HNN) resulted in similar outcomes. The historian who organized the HNN polls caveated the results: "It is in no sense a scientific sample of historians. The participants are self-selected, although participation was open to all historians. Among those who responded are several of the nation’s most respected historians, including Pulitzer and Bancroft Prize winners."[150] In response to the "worst president" accusations,[151][152] Bush said, "to assume that historians can figure out the effect of the Bush administration before the Bush administration has ended is... in my mind... not an accurate reflection upon how history works."[147]
Calls for Bush's impeachment have been made by various groups and individuals, with their reasons usually centering on the NSA warrantless surveillance controversy,[153] the Bush administration's justification for the war in Iraq,[154] and alleged violations of the Geneva Conventions.[155] Most polls have shown a plurality of Americans do not support impeachment.[156] Dennis Kucinich, a Democrat from Ohio, introduced articles of impeachment on the floor of Congress against President Bush on June 9, 2008.[157] House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said, however, that impeachment is "off the table".[157]
Bush's intellectual capacity has been satirized by the media,[158] comedians, and other politicians.[159] Detractors tended to cite linguistic errors made by Bush during his public speeches, which are colloquially termed as Bushisms.[160]
In 2000 and again in 2004, Time magazine named George W. Bush as its Person of the Year, a title awarded to someone who, "for better or for worse, … has done the most to influence the events of the year."[161]
Within the United States Military, the president was strongly supported at one time.[162] In the 2004 elections, 73% of military personnel said that they would vote for Bush with 18% for Kerry.[162] According to Peter Feaver, a Duke University political scientist who has studied the political leanings of the U.S. military, members of the armed services supported Bush because they found him more likely to prosecute the War in Iraq than Kerry.[162]
Foreign policy
During his campaign for election as president, Bush's foreign policy platform included support for a stronger economic and political relationship with Latin America, especially Mexico, and a reduction of involvement in "nation building" and other small-scale military engagements. The administration pursued a national missile defense.[163] Bush was president on September 11, 2001, when terrorists hijacked passenger aircraft and flew them into the World Trade Center, killing roughly 3,000 people. In response, Bush launched the War on Terror, invading Afghanistan and later Iraq.
Bush began his second term with an emphasis on improving strained relations with European nations. He appointed long-time adviser Karen Hughes to oversee a global public relations campaign. Bush lauded the pro-democracy struggles in Georgia and Ukraine. In March 2006, he visited India, leading to renewed ties between the two countries, particularly in areas of nuclear energy and counter-terrorism cooperation.[164] Midway through Bush's second term, it was questioned whether Bush was retreating from his freedom and democracy agenda, highlighted in policy changes toward some oil-rich former Soviet republics in central Asia.[165]
September 11, 2001
The September 11 terrorist attacks were a major turning point in Bush's presidency. That evening, he addressed the nation from the Oval Office, promising a strong response to the attacks but emphasizing the need for the nation to come together and comfort the families of the victims. On September 14, he visited Ground Zero, meeting with Mayor