GEORGE W. BUSH Recent Titles in Greenwood Biographies Halle Berry: A Biography Melissa Ewey Johnson Osama bin Laden: A Biography Thomas R. Mockaitis Tyra Banks: A Biography Carole Jacobs Jean-Michel Basquiat: A Biography Eric Fretz Howard Stern: A Biography Rich Mintzer Tiger Woods: A Biography, Second Edition Lawrence J. Londino Justin Timberlake: A Biography Kimberly Dillon Summers Walt Disney: A Biography Louise Krasniewicz Chief Joseph: A Biography Vanessa Gunther John Lennon: A Biography Jacqueline Edmondson Carrie Underwood: A Biography Vernell Hackett Christina Aguilera: A Biography Mary Anne Donovan Paul Newman: A Biography Marian Edelman Borden GEORGE W. BUSH A Biography Clarke Rountree GREENWOOD BIOGRAPHIES Copyright 2011 by ABC-CLIO, LLC All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Rountree, Clarke, 1958– George W. Bush : a biography / Clarke Rountree. p. cm. — (Greenwood biographies) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-313-38500-1 (hard copy : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-313-38501-8 (ebook) 1. Bush, George W. (George Walker), 1946– 2. United States— Politics and government—2001–2009. 3. Presidents—United States— Biography. I. Title. E903.R68 2010 973.931092—dc22 [B] 2010032025 ISBN: 978-0-313-38500-1 EISBN: 978-0-313-38501-8 15 14 13 12 11 1 2 3 4 5 This book is also available on the World Wide Web as an eBook. Visit www.abc-clio.com for details. Greenwood An Imprint of ABC-CLIO, LLC ABC-CLIO, LLC 130 Cremona Drive, P.O. Box 1911 Santa Barbara, California 93116-1911 This book is printed on acid-free paper Manufactured in the United States of America For my sons, Josh and John, who are heirs to the Bush legacy. This page intentionally left blank CONTENTS Series Foreword ix Acknowledgments xi Introduction xiii Timeline: Events in the Life of George W. Bush xvii Chapter 1 Great Expectations 1 Chapter 2 Growing a Bush in Texas 15 Chapter 3 The Nomadic Years 33 Chapter 4 Governor Bush 53 Chapter 5 A Historic Election Battle 67 Chapter 6 A Compassionate Conservative Becomes a War President 79 Chapter 7 The War against Terrorism 101 Chapter 8 The Iraq War 113 Chapter 9 Squeaking into a Troubled Second Term 131 viii CONTENTS Chapter 10 The Lame Duck 147 Chapter 11 Bush’s Legacy 167 Selected Annotated Bibliography 183 Index 191 SERIES FOREWORD In response to high school and public library needs, Greenwood devel- oped this distinguished series of full-length biographies specifi cally for student use. Prepared by fi eld experts and professionals, these engaging biographies are tailored for high school students who need challeng- ing yet accessible biographies. Ideal for secondary school assignments, the length, format and subject areas are designed to meet educators’ requirements and students’ interests. Greenwood offers an extensive selection of biographies spanning all curriculum-related subject areas including social studies, the sciences, literature and the arts, history and politics, as well as popular culture, covering public fi gures and famous personalities from all time periods and backgrounds, both historic and contemporary, who have made an impact on American and/or world culture. Greenwood biographies were chosen based on comprehensive feedback from librarians and educators. Consideration was given to both curriculum relevance and inherent in- terest. The result is an intriguing mix of the well known and the unex- pected, the saints and sinners from long-ago history and contemporary pop culture. Readers will fi nd a wide array of subject choices from fasci- nating crime fi gures like Al Capone to inspiring pioneers like Margaret x SERIES FOREWORD Mead, from the greatest minds of our time like Stephen Hawking to the most amazing success stories of our day like J. K. Rowling. While the emphasis is on fact, not glorifi cation, the books are meant to be fun to read. Each volume provides in-depth information about the subject’s life from birth through childhood, the teen years, and adulthood. A thorough account relates family background and educa- tion, traces personal and professional infl uences, and explores struggles, accomplishments, and contributions. A timeline highlights the most signifi cant life events against a historical perspective. Bibliographies supplement the reference value of each volume. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank the University of Alabama in Huntsville for granting me a sabbatical to work on this book and related research. I would also like to thank Sandy Towers for her encouragement and invaluable help in bringing this book to fruition. The other editors and staff were very supportive and quick in their work. Family and friends were patient as I rattled on endlessly about our 43rd president, coming to terms with my own understanding of his life and presidency. This page intentionally left blank INTRODUCTION For most of his life, George W. Bush was a person unlikely ever to hold the highest offi ce in the United States. It’s not that he didn’t have the grooming for the job: he went to an exclusive preparatory school, earned a college degree from Yale, and completed a master’s in business administration from Harvard. It’s also not the case that he lacked fam- ily connections: his father had been president of the United States, his grandfather had been a U.S. senator, and many of his relatives were wealthy and powerful people. No, the reason George W. Bush’s rise to the presidency of the United States was such a surprise has to do with the man himself, not his op- portunities. Bush was a weak student who feared fl unking out of prepa- ratory school and who graduated near the bottom of his class at Yale. For much of his life, he drank too much and didn’t seem to have any direction. This self-described nomad moved from one business venture to the next, getting by largely with the help of his family and their friends. He called himself the black sheep of the Bush family, often feeling overshadowed by his father and by his talented and smarter younger brother, Jeb. xiv INTRODUCTION Bush’s story could have ended there—a poor little rich boy (and man) who never took advantage of the opportunities afforded him. But when he was 40, he underwent a remarkable change. Although he had gone to church most of his life, it was only at this point that he had a conversion experience that made him a devoted Christian. He stopped drinking and found direction in his life. He unexpectedly won a po- litical contest against a popular incumbent and became the fi rst Texas governor to be elected to two consecutive terms. Then he set his sights on the White House and bested his father by winning two terms as president of the United States (while his father was limited to one). Despite this impressive turnaround in his life, Bush’s presidency was among the most turbulent and controversial in recent history. It began with an unprecedented election controversy that lasted over a month and ended when the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a halt to vote re- counting in the contested presidential election in Florida. The once-in-a-lifetime election controversy was a harbinger for the unusual events that would continue during Bush’s time in offi ce. The most devastating occurred during Bush’s fi rst year in offi ce when ter- rorists hijacked planes and fl ew them into both World Trade Towers in New York City, as well as the Pentagon and a fi eld in Pennsylvania. More Americans died on September 11, 2001, than died in the Japa- nese attack on Pearl Harbor 60 years earlier. Bush’s response to the ter- rorist attacks involved controversial measures that included warrantless eavesdropping on both foreign enemies and Americans; the opening of an offshore detention facility for so-called enemy combatants at Guan- tánamo Bay, Cuba; the denial of the due process of law for detainees; and enhanced interrogation techniques to extract intelligence, which many people, including President Obama, have labeled torture. While waging a war against terrorist groups in Afghanistan and the government that harbored them, Bush turned his attention to Iraq’s leader, Saddam Hussein. He adopted a new policy of engaging in preventive wars against countries or groups that posed a threat to the United States. He claimed that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction—biological, chemical, or nuclear weapons—which he might deploy against the United States. In 2003, he ordered the invasion of Iraq, deposed Hussein, and occupied the country. However, no weapons of mass destruction were ever found, raising charges that INTRODUCTION xv Bush had hyped the evidence against Iraq as an excuse to invade the oil-rich country. Despite this controversy, Bush was reelected in 2004 in a close con- test with Democrat John Kerry. As the occupation of Iraq dragged on, a massive hurricane devastated New Orleans in 2005. Hurricane Katrina’s biggest damage came in the wake of the storm when levees protecting the low-lying city failed, leaving residents clinging to life on the tops of their fl ooded homes and dead bodies fl oating through the streets of the Big Easy. The local and state governments were overwhelmed, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) failed to take up the slack. Thousands of victims fl eeing the storm waited for days at New Orleans’s massive football stadium, the Superdome, while water and food dwindled.