George H W Bush Presidential Outline
When George H W Bush succeeded Ronald Reagan in 1989 to occupy the White House as the 41st President of the United States, things were dramatically changing in the world around him. At one end of the world, the Communist empire was crumbling, there was no Soviet Union and in Germany the Berlin Wall fell. The Cold War too had ended after nearly four decades. There was new set of nations and Bush stuck to his stand of showing restraint in the country’s policy towards this new group. |
Back home, Bush had a large deficit budget staring at his face and little revenue to fund programs. The Congress was being dominated by the Democrats, and despite his promise during his inaugural address that he would work with Congress, Bush largely depended on his veto power to push legislations. During his four year tenure, Bush vetoed 44 bills. The President was also not on good terms with the then Senate Majority leader. There were huge denials from the Senate on the nomination of John Tower for Secretary of Defense due to charges of inappropriate behavior. Later, Bush settled for Dick Cheney as the Secretary for Defense.
The severe financial crunch forced the President to stay put on major economic programs and instead Bush advocated for volunteerism, reforms on the education sector and anti drug efforts. He disagreed with the Democrats, who suggested raising taxes for the richest Americans to increase revenues, and instead stuck to his stand of cutting back on domestic expenses. Finally, in 1990, Bush relented and backed out on his election campaign promise of ‘no taxes.’ After a brief showdown with the Congress, the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 was enacted to increase taxes which attracted the displeasure of fellow Republicans who felt ‘let down’ by Bush.
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 was a significant development which outlawed discrimination based on disabilities in employment, public places and transportation. Another Act, which followed the Exxon Valdez oil emission in Alaska, the Clean Air Amendments of 1990 improved upon its previous versions in ensuring clean urban air, cutting acid rain and curbing release of industrial toxic chemicals. Also, the same year saw the first environmentalist to head the Environment Protection Agency (EPA).
Americans believed that Bush always focused more on foreign policy. When General Manuel Noriega was threatening the lives of Americans living in the Panama Canal, President Bush sent American troops there to overthrow and bring the General for trial in the U.S on charges of drug trafficking.
And when Iraqi President Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and further threatened to conquer Saudi Arabia, President Bush coerced the U.N and deployed 425,000 American troops to assist the 118,000 troops from allied nations to successfully free Kuwait from Saddam’s clutches.
More Articles :
|
