Well, today we're looking at the 41st president of the United States, George Herbert Walker Bush. A lot of times he's called Bush 41 because his son shows up in a couple of administrations later. But sometimes we've been starting with just basic facts about him. And the first question is, what is he known for? Well, he's most known for being president during the Persian Gulf War. He's also famous for his two sons, George W. Bush, who was also president of the United States, and Jeb Bush. governor of Florida. He was born in Massachusetts but grew up in Connecticut. His father was a U.S. senator and a Wall Street executive. His success started early as he was president of a senior class in high school and also captain of the baseball team. When he graduated from high school he had planned to go to Yale University But when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in World War II, he decided to join the Navy. He was only 18 years old when he finished his training, became a Navy pilot, making him the Navy's youngest pilot ever. He flew a number of combat missions with the Navy, including one where his plane was shot down and he was rescued from his floating raft by a submarine in the ocean. Upon leaving the Navy, he attended Yale University where he graduated with honors after just two and a half years. He played first base for the baseball team at Yale and led them to two college World Series. After college, he and his wife Barbara moved to Texas where he worked in the oil industry for many years. Before he became president, he had decided to follow his father into political office. He was first elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1966. After four years, he gave up his seat to run for Senate at President Nixon's request. However, he lost the election. Nixon then appointed him to be ambassador to the United Nations. He served in a number of political positions during the coming years, including chairman of the Republican party, special envoy to China and director of the CIA. During Jimmy Carter's administration, he went back to work in Texas and also began making his plans to run for president. Did run for president in 1980, but fell behind to Ronald Reagan in the Republican primary. However, Reagan chose him to be his running mate and soon he was elected to the vice presidency. After two terms as vice president with Ronald Reagan, he ran for president and won the election in 1988. When he took the office of president, the world was undergoing a major change. The Soviet Union was collapsing and with it communism in Eastern Europe. New nations were forming out of the Soviet Union and the United States began to slowly establish relations with them. In the country of Panama, the leader Manuel Noriega had seized power after losing the democratic elections. He also was known to have helped to traffic the drugs into the United States. In order to capture Noriega and bring the Panama Canal back under stable leadership, The United States invaded Panama and seized Noriega, bringing him back to the United States to stand charges. On August 1st, 1990, Iraq, ruled by the dictator Saddam Hussein, invaded the small, oil-rich country of Kuwait. Led by the United States, a national coalition of forces fought back, Iraqi forces. Saddam's army was soon crushed, and he was forced out of Kuwait. Many restrictions were put on Saddam's government, including regular inspections by the United Nations. The economy began to struggle near the end of his term in office. And so Bush had to go back on his campaign promise of no new taxes in order to try and keep the national deficit down. And as a result, he lost the next election to Bill Clinton. He retired to Texas after leaving the presidency. He worked with fellow former President Bill Clinton to help raise funds for the victims of Hurricane Katrina and the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. He also followed his son's political careers. One son, George W. Bush, became the 43rd president of the United States, while the other son, Jeb Bush, was a longtime governor of Florida. George Herbert Walker Bush died on November 30th, 2018. Some of the fun facts concerning him. As of 2011, George and his wife Barbara had been married for 66 years, the longest of any presidential couple. He celebrated his 85th birthday by going skydiving. In 1993, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. He was the third American president to receive an honorary knighthood. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross Medal while serving as a pilot in World War II. And for a short time, he worked as a professor at Rice University. Well, from the book, The American Presidents by David C. Whitney, we find out some, also some basic facts. George Herbert Walker Bush was born on June 12th, 1924 in Milton, Massachusetts. He was the second son of Prescott Bush Sr. and Dorothy Walker. His father was an executive of U.S. Rubber and a graduate of Yale College. When U.S. rubber moved their headquarters to New York, the young Bush family settled in the exclusive suburb of Greenwich, Connecticut to raise their five children. Summers were spent at the family compound, Walker Point in Kennebunkport, Maine. It was named for Bush's grandfather and great-grandfather, who had purchased the site as a vacation home. The Bush children were sent to exclusive boarding schools for their secondary education. George H.W. Bush attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, where he graduated in 1942. His father would later become a U.S. Senator from Connecticut, serving from 1952 to 1962. A few months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Bush graduated from high school and on his 18th birthday, he traveled to Boston to enlist in the Navy. He enrolled in flight school and was sent to Chapel Hill, North Carolina for pre-flight training. When he got his wings in early 1943, he became one of the youngest pilots in the Navy. He was assigned to a torpedo squadron flying Grumman Avenger bombers in the Pacific. The Navy awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross to the young pilot after he was shot down during a bombing raid on the island of Chichijima. After his plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire during the bombing run, he ordered his crew to bail out and managed to do so himself. Neither one of the other two crew members survived the crash or of the plane into the sea, but Bush was luckier. He found his survival raft and managed to stay afloat until a U.S. submarine in the area picked him up a short time later. He later rejoined his squadron for action in the Philippines and flew 58 combat missions before being sent home for Christmas of 1944. Two weeks later, on January 6, 1945, he married his high school sweetheart, Barbara Pierce. They had met at a Christmas dance three years before and had become engaged before George left for the Pacific and the Japanese surrendered in August before he was to return to another assignment in the Navy. Well, Ian Dale in his book, The Presidents, talks about The most memorable line from George Herbert Walker Bush's acceptance speech at the 1988 Republican National Convention. It contained six words that would later undermine his chances of a second term as president. Read my lips, no new taxes. The line had been controversial. Aides concerned about the looming federal deficit wanted it out, but others like Peggy Noonan, speechwriter for president Ronald Reagan, felt the more urgent need was to define Bush and convince conservatives that the vice president suspected of not being a true conservative was one of them and the line stayed in. Well, the virtues that defined the admiral character of George H.W. Bush, the man were the same ones that left Bush, the politician lacking in definition in the eyes of the public. His mother, arguably the strongest influence on his life, had drilled into her children to be the best, but never to brag about it. Andover, the boarding school that he attended from ages of 13 to 17, impressed its motto upon the young minds, not for self. The code for life in the Bush family was simple, honor, duty, country. And actively promoting himself, therefore, was anathema to Bush. So it was done for him. He was caricatured as wimpy. He, the war hero, As privileged, he, the son that eschewed family patronage to make his own way in West Texas, unlike John F. Kennedy, who was idolized by the liberal press. Bush noted Riley in his diary. And as invisible, popularized by cartoonist Gary Trudeau, a style Bush had chosen as vice president out of loyalty and respect for president Ronald Reagan. He chose his own path and his own style, sometimes stubbornly so, but always according to the code. And when things didn't break his way, he never looked back, only ahead. see in a biography specifically about him entitled George H. W. Bush by Timothy Naftali, talks about his religious roots. And we'll talk about that more as we keep going here. But it says this, the Bushes were high church Episcopalians. They went to church regularly, but they considered a person's relationship to God as indeed one's own emotions to be a private matter. Press, that being his father, and Dottie, his mom, were strict and formal and expected the same from their children. Self-discipline, however, was not synonymous with the lacking a sense of fun. Their home was full of music. Press loved to sing, and for the moment he could walk. Poppy Bush, that's George H.W. Bush was encouraged to play games and to have passion for competition. Both of his parents were good athletes and always played to win. Well, as we drill down a little bit deeper concerning where he was at spiritually in the book by Randall Balmer, God and the White House, a history subtitled How Faith Shaped the Presidency from John F. Kennedy to George W. Bush talks about The fact that although Bush had benefited from evangelical votes in 1988, the embrace had been less than enthusiastic. The new president sought to allay their suspicions. Quote, in this world, I have found no greater peace than that which comes from prayer, no greater fellowship than to join in prayer with others, Bush told the National Prayer Breakfast just a few weeks into his presidency. As a boy growing up each morning, my mother and father would read a Bible lesson to us at the breakfast table. So I just want to thank you for letting me join you at your breakfast table this morning. He concluded, I would not attempt to fulfill the responsibilities I now have without prayer and a strong faith in God. And I'm grateful for the many people who have told me that they are praying for me. Billy Graham, who had prayed at the inauguration, weighed in with bountiful praise and his advice to ignore the petty little comments that some of the wise fourth estate make. I have been extremely proud of the way you have handled the presidency thus far, Graham wrote in a subsequent letter. It is amazing and thrilling. May God bless you and Barbara. What an asset she is. And E. Brand Gustafson, the president of the National Religious Broadcasters assured Bush that you are a, you are our good friend. What goes on and Gary Scott Smith in the book, Religion in the Oval Office, The Religious Lives of American Presidents, mentioned that Bush's faith was very important to him and it helped shape a number of his presidential policies. The Republicans' version of civil religious discourse was clearly Judeo-Christian. He repeatedly referred to an active, all-powerful personal God in a divinely inspired authoritative Bible. One cannot be America's president, Bush repeatedly stated, without a belief in God and the strength that your faith gives to you. He continually exhorted Americans to seek God's aid in dealing with the nation's challenges and problems. No other chief executive argued as often as Bush that the United States was one nation under God and was accountable to him. Only those who understood this fundamental conviction, the Texan insisted, could properly serve as president. Americans, he averred, are one nation under God who were placed on earth to do his work. Prayer, Bush declared, has a place not only in the life of every American, but also in the life of our nation, for we are truly one nation under God. And as one nation under God, we Americans are deeply mindful of both our dependence on the almighty and our obligations as a people he has richly blessed. Liberals don't like it when I say, yes, we're one nation under God, Bush trumpeted, but we are, and we better never forget it. In a biography by John Meacham, called Destiny and Power, the American Odyssey of George Herper Walker Bush. We get a view of one of the difficult times for the president. He's at the debate, not the 1988 election, but the 1992 election. And it describes something that was used as an attack on Bush. The first debate had been held at Washington University nearby where we're at right now in St. Louis. And that was on Sunday, October 11th, 1992. But in Richmond, at a town hall, that style of debate happened on Thursday, October 15th. And all the strange new forces in American politics that had bedeviled Bush for over a year came together in this one harrowing exchange in the Robbins Center at the University of Richmond. A young woman rose from the audience to ask the three candidates a question. How has the national debt personally affected each of your lives? And if it hasn't, how can you honestly find a cure for the economic problems of the common people if you have no experience in what's ailing them? Glancing at the watch he wore on his right wrist, Bush rose to respond. Well, I think the national debt affects everybody. Obviously, it has a lot to do with interest rate. It has. Bush was interrupted by Carol Simpson, the moderator. She's saying you personally, Simpson said. The questioner spoke up again, too. On a personal basis, how has it affected you? Has it affected you personally? Well, I sure it has, Bush said. I love my grandchildren. I want to thank that. Another interruption. How? I want to think that they're going to be able to afford an education, Bush said. I think that that's an important part of being a parent. If the question, if you're maybe, I get it wrong, are you suggesting that if somebody has means that the national debt doesn't affect them? Well, what I'm saying, no, I'm not sure I get it, Bush said, smiling awkwardly. Help me with the question and I'll try to answer it. Then she went on, well, I've had many friends that have been laid off from their job, the questioner said. I know people who cannot afford to pay the mortgage on their homes, their car payment. I have personal problems with the national debt, but how has it affected you? And if you have no experience in it, how can you help us if you don't know what we're feeling? Simpson stepped in to try to help Bush. I think she means more than the recession, the economic problems today the country faces rather than the deficit. Bush valiantly tried one more time saying this, well, you ought to, you ought to be in the White House for a day and hear what I hear and see what I see and read the mail I read and touch the people that I touch from time to time. I was in the Lomax AME church. It's a black church just outside of Washington, DC. And I read in the, in the bulletin about teenage pregnancies, about the difficulty that families are having to meet ends. to make ends meet. I talk to parents. I mean, you've got to care. Everybody cares if people aren't doing well. But I don't think it's fair to say, you haven't had cancer, therefore you don't know what it's like. I don't think it's fair to say, you know, whatever it is, that if you haven't been hit by it personally, but everybody's affected by the debt because of the tremendous interest that goes into paying on that debt. Everything's more expensive. Everything comes out of your pocket and my pocket. So it's sad, but I think in terms of the recession, of course you feel it when you're president of the United States. And that's why I'm trying to do something about it by stimulating the export, investing more, better education systems. Thank you. I'm glad to clarify. Simpson invited Clinton, who had been watching Bush with a virtually wolfish face, to take his turn. He rose and walked directly to the edge of the audience and held the questioner in his gaze. Tell me how it's affected you again. You know people who've lost their jobs and lost their homes. Well, yeah, uh-huh, the woman said agreeing. Well, I've been governor of a small state for 12 years. I've seen what's happened in these last four years and when in my state. When people lose their jobs, there's a good chance I'll know them by their names, Clinton said. When a factory closes, I know the people who ran it. When the businesses go bankrupt, I know them. And I've been out here for 13 months meeting in meetings just like this ever since October with people like you all over America, people that have lost their jobs, lost their livelihood, lost their health insurance. There it all was, the economic concern predominating, the public empathy, the showmanship of politics in the new media age, none of which Bush had come close to mastering. So we see Clinton knew how to talk to the people in ways that would touch their emotions. And George H.W. Bush was not going to play that game. Well, in the book, The Presidents and Their Faith, Grinder and Shaw dig down a little deeper when it came to where he stood spiritually speaking. It says, the rhetoric from Bush is very revealing for throughout his presidency, Bush linked himself closely and consistently, freedom and religion, America's values and God's values. In a speech to the National Association of Evangelicals on March 3rd, 1992, Bush stated, Americans are the most religious people on earth. And we have almost instinctively sensed that God's purpose was bound up with the cause of liberty. Our government was founded in faith. Government must never promote a religion, of course, but it is a duty bound to promote religious liberty. and it must never put the believer at a disadvantage because of his belief. On this occasion, Bush would reiterate his call for a constitutional amendment concerning school prayer, which in essence would overturn the United States Supreme Court ruling in Engel versus Votel from 1962 that prohibited government mandated or sponsored prayer in public schools. A few months later at a prayer breakfast, August 20th, 1992, Bush said, more than ever, I believe with all my heart that one cannot be president of our great country without a belief in God, without the truth that comes on one's knees. For me, prayer has always been important, but quite personal. You know, us Episcopalians, and yet it has sustained me at every point in my life. It goes on to say that prior to his failed presidential bid in 1980, Bush established a resume that was the envy of many other candidates. He served two terms, U.S. House of Representatives from Houston, Ambassador of the United Nations, Republican National Committee Chairman, Special Envoy to the People's Republic of China, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. And then of course, two terms as vice president under Ronald Reagan. What George Bush especially wanted was a good, faithful, decent, tolerant country. One that in essence looked like him in large measure. Lyndon Johnson had envisioned a great society, George Bush and his commencement address at the University of Michigan where LBJ had actually unveiled his great society vision in 1964 in his commencement speech there. That on May 4th, 1991 called for a good society, one built upon the deeds of the many, a society that promotes service, selflessness, action, dare to serve others and future generations will never forget the example you set. Ronald Reagan stated once that he dreamed of America where everyone could get rich. In his 1989 inaugural address, George Bush argued, America is never wholly herself unless she is engaged in high moral principle. We as a people have such a purpose today is to make kinder the face of the nation and gentler the face of the world. My friends, we have work to do. There are the homeless, lost and roaming. There are the children who have nothing, no love, no normalcy. And according to Bush, we are not the sum of our possessions. They are not the measure of our lives. Lastly, as we go a little bit deeper here in the Faith of the Presidents by John M. Wiley, he says, Bush walked a somewhat careful line in regards to religion, the public's where. Some evangelicals were suspicious of him for having once held to pro-choice views of abortion, though he eventually became outspoken in pro-life support. On the one hand, he stated, I felt uncomfortable, very honestly talking about the depth of my religion when I was president. I'm an Episcopalian. I'm kind of an inward guy when it comes to religion. I felt it strongly. I think Lincoln was right. You can't be president without spending some time on your knees, professing your faith and asking God for strength and to save our nation. But I believe strongly in the separation of church and state. I don't believe a president should be advocating a particular denomination or particular religion. And yet I can tell you in direct response to your inquiry that we, in our family, say our prayers every night. Barbara and I do. We say the blessing. It's more than wrote. But Bush elsewhere brought up a very relevant point that combats a secular approach to government and society. He explained, I'm sure we would all agree that we believe in the separation of church and state, but not in the separation of church and morality or moral values and state. While the government must remain neutral towards particular religions, it must not, certainly it need not, remain neutral toward values that Americans support. And this is what makes freedom of religion so complex. Religion is the foundation for values. It's hard to adopt the views that all men are endowed by the Creator with inalienable rights when some religions don't teach that there is a Creator or that there are numerous gods. Clearly, the Bible wouldn't urge Christians to grant the power of government to coerce others into holding certain religious views. But at the same time, This description by Bush overshared values is so critical for a nation. For a couple of centuries, Americans were by and large able to cooperate with one another in matters of freedom of religion, largely because Americans all adopted the outgrowth of the Judeo Christian ethic intertwined with some enlightenment thinkers, such as John Locke, that people have right to worship God according to their conscience. But that right didn't spring up out of thin air. That right was granted to us by God. Otherwise, pure subjectivism ensues and chaos reigns supreme. George H.W. Bush's faith might not be best seen in his frequent references to prayer throughout his speeches and personal writings. Gary S. Smith has cited 220 references to prayer in Bush's public speeches alone. He once argued that a person couldn't be an effective president without prayer. That may be true, but let's go further. Christians in general cannot carry out their duties without prayer. The calling of God to do a work in each of our lives and in the lives of the people of our nation, that is a good prayer.