Presidency of George H. W. Bush

Presidency of George H. W. Bush January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993
Cabinet	See list
Party	Republican
Election	1988
Seat	White House
← Ronald Reagan Bill Clinton →
Seal of the president
Library website

This article is part of a series about George H. W. Bush
Family Electoral history Pre-vice presidency U.S. Representative for Texas's 7th U.S. Ambassador U.N. China Chair of the RNC Director of Central Intelligence 43rd Vice President of the United States Transition Tenure Reagan administration first inauguration second inauguration Reagan assassination attempt Deregulation 41st President of the United States Presidency timeline Transition Inauguration Policies Environmental Foreign international trips Pardons Appointments Cabinet Judiciary Thomas Tenure Thousand points of light foundation Invasion of Panama Gulf War Operation Restore Hope NAFTA Timeline '89 '90 '91 '92–'93 Presidential campaigns 1980 primaries convention 1988 primaries convention "No new taxes" debates election 1992 primaries convention debates election Vice presidential campaigns 1980 selection convention election 1984 convention election Post-presidency Presidential library Bibliography Awards and honors Bush School of Government Death and state funeral
v t e

George H. W. Bush's tenure as the 41st president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 1989, and ended on January 20, 1993. Bush, a Republican from Texas and the incumbent vice president for two terms under President Ronald Reagan, took office following his victory over Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis in the 1988 presidential election. His presidency ended following his defeat in the 1992 presidential election to Democrat Bill Clinton, after one term in office. Bush was the father of the 43rd president, George W. Bush.

International affairs drove the Bush presidency, which navigated the end of the Cold War and a new era of U.S.–Soviet relations. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Bush successfully pushed for the reunification of Germany in close cooperation with West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, overcoming the reluctance of Gorbachev. He also led an international coalition of countries which invaded and defeated Iraq after it invaded Kuwait in the Gulf War. On a smaller scale he directed a military invasion to overthrow a dictator in Panama. Bush signed the North American Free Trade Agreement, which created a trilateral trade bloc consisting of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In domestic affairs, Bush faced a large federal budget deficit that had grown to threefold since 1980. Despite insisting he was pledged to not raise taxes, Bush agreed to a budget with the Democratic-controlled Congress that raised taxes and cut spending. Bush appointed two Supreme Court justices, David Souter, who eventually became a member of the Court's liberal bloc, and Clarence Thomas, who became one of the most conservative justices of his era.^{[citation needed]}

In the aftermath of allied victory in the Gulf War, Bush was widely considered to be likely to win re-election, but Clinton defeated Bush in large part by focusing on the economy.^{[citation needed]} Despite his defeat, Bush left office with a 56 percent job approval rating, and he remained popular with the public until his death in 2018. Historians generally view Bush as a passive, hands-off president who was "successful in foreign affairs but a disappointment in domestic affairs."^{[citation needed]} In polls of historians and political scientists, Bush is generally ranked as an average or above-average president.