George Bush
George Bush (1924), US statesman and 41st president of the US (1989-93). The son of a wealthy Republican family, Bush worked in the oil industry before entering politics in the 1960s. He was director of the CIA (1976-77) and vice-president to Ronald Reagan (1981-89). As president, he was chiefly interested in foreign affairs. He negotiated major arms reductions with the Soviet Union and in 1990-91 responded to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait by assembling a US-led multinational force to fight the second Gulf War. Despite these successes, he failed to deal with the US’s mounting economic problems, a factor that contributed to his defeat by Bill Clinton in the 1992 presidential elections.
