Read my lips: no new taxes

"Read my lips: no new taxes."

Bush delivering the famous line at the 1988 convention

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
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"Read my lips: no new taxes" is a phrase spoken by American presidential candidate George H. W. Bush at the 1988 Republican National Convention as he accepted the nomination on August 18. Written by speechwriter Peggy Noonan, the line was the most prominent sound bite from the speech. The pledge not to tax the American people further had been a consistent part of Bush's 1988 election platform, and its prominent inclusion in his speech cemented it in the public consciousness.

The line later hurt Bush politically. Although he did oppose the creation of new taxes as president, the Democratic-controlled Congress proposed increases in existing taxes as a way to reduce the national budget deficit. Bush negotiated with Congress for a budget that met his pledge, but was unable to make a deal with a Senate and House that was controlled by the opposing Democrats. Bush agreed to a compromise, which increased several existing taxes as part of a 1990 budget agreement.

In the 1992 presidential election campaign, Pat Buchanan repeatedly cited the pledge as an example of a broken promise in his unsuccessful challenge to Bush in the Republican primaries. In the general election, Democratic nominee Bill Clinton, running as a moderate, also cited the quotation and questioned Bush's trustworthiness.^[1] Bush lost his bid for re-election to Clinton, prompting many to suggest his failure to keep the "no new taxes" pledge as the primary reason for his defeat.^[2]