[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Pages 15497-15502]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     PRESIDENT BUSH'S 75TH BIRTHDAY

  Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, it would be remarkable for any American to 
celebrate his or her 75th birthday by sky-diving, but it is even more 
remarkable when that person is the former President of the United 
States. I would expect no less however, of former president George 
Bush.
  From the South Pacific to China to the White House, he has been as 
brave and bold in honorably serving his country as he has been in his 
private life. His leadership in holding together the international 
coalition during the Gulf War seems even more remarkable in recent 
years, as other attempts to hold together a Persian Gulf alliance have 
failed.
  Mr. President, I am pleased to join the Senator from Connecticut, Mr. 
Lieberman, in bringing attention to a wonderful story by the 
indefatigable White House Correspondent, Trude Feldman. Few people 
could provide such insight in profiling President George Bush on the 
occasion of his 75th birthday.
  Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, I rise today on behalf of Senator Lugar 
and myself to note the passing of another milestone for former 
President George Bush, a man the State of Connecticut considers a 
native son. President Bush recently celebrated his 75th birthday in his 
typically exuberant fashion, by jumping out of an airplane, just as he 
did on his 70th birthday.
  After such a long and distinguished career of public service--which 
started in the South Pacific, where he put his life on the line for the 
cause of freedom, and which culminated in the Persian Gulf, where he 
put his Presidency on the line to stand up to the brutal aggression of 
Saddam Hussein--it's hard for some to believe that President Bush would 
have the interest, let alone the energy, to pursue his sky-diving habit 
as a septuagenarian.
  But no one has ever accused the man who assembled and led the Gulf 
War coalition to victory of taking the easy way out. And today, much as 
we have grown to appreciate the fortitude and unobtrusive dignity he 
brought to the Presidency, so too can we admire the vitality and vigor 
he has brought to his life outside the Oval Office. He has shown 
himself to be a man for all seasons, not to mention all altitudes.
  Those estimable characteristics were vividly captured in a profile 
recently penned by White House correspondent Trude B. Feldman to 
commemorate President's Bush's birthday. To pay tribute to President 
Bush on the passing of this important milestone, and in the spirit of 
bipartisanship, I would join with Senator Lugar in asking unanimous 
consent to print the full text of Ms. Feldman's article in the Record.
  There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in 
the Record as follows:

               [From the Los Angeles Times International]

                           George Bush at 75

                         (By Trude B. Feldman)

       George Bush, the former President of the United States, 
     just turned 75 years old, and says, ``It doesn't hurt a 
     bit.''
       In an interview to mark the milestone, he adds: ``I am 
     blessed with good health--very good health. Oh, one hip might 
     need replacing and the other might need a little shot of 
     something, but I still fast-walk--13 minutes per mile--enough 
     to get the aerobic effect going, yet not enough to pound the 
     old joints into agony.''
       Nonetheless, prior to his birthday, he took another 
     parachute jump on the grounds of his presidential library at 
     Texas A & M University in College Station, Texas. The next 
     day, he participated in a fund-raising event for his Number 
     One cause--the fight against cancer--that will highlight the 
     role the Houston-based M.D. Anderson Cancer Center has played 
     in that fight. (It was leukemia that took the life of the 
     Bushes' daughter, Robin, in 1953 before her 4th birthday. 
     George Bush's father, Prescott S. Bush, a U.S. senator from 
     Connecticut (1953-62), also died of cancer--of the lung--on 
     Oct. 8, 1972, at age 77.)
       The father of five children--two of whom are the governors 
     of America's second and fourth largest states--George Bush 
     told me: ``Last November, when George W. was reelected 
     governor of Texas and Jeb (John Ellis Bush) was elected 
     governor of Florida, I was happier than when I was elected 
     President of the United States 10 years before.''
       After his Inauguration as the 41st President on Jan. 20, 
     1989, George Bush went to the Oval Office in the White House. 
     In the top drawer of the presidential desk, he found a 
     handwritten note from President Ronald Reagan. On stationery 
     headed ``Don't Let the Turkeys Get You Down,'' the note read 
     ``Dear George, You will have moments when you want to use 
     this stationery. Well, go to it. I treasure the memories we 
     share and wish you the very best. You will be in my prayers. 
     God bless you and Barbara. I will miss our Thursday lunches . 
     . . Ron.''
       As President and Vice President (from 1981 to 1989), the 
     two men ate lunch together every Thursday in the Oval Office 
     and shared each others' views on domestic issues and foreign 
     affairs as well as personal sentiments. To this day, neither 
     one has revealed those conversations. Despite their fierce 
     competition in the presidential primaries in 1980, Mr. Bush 
     had been genuinely loyal to Mr. Reagan in eight years as Vice 
     President.
       Five years ago, while preparing a feature for George Bush's 
     70th birthday, I asked Ronald Reagan about those private 
     lunches. While not disclosing much of the substance of their 
     sessions, he did tell me that Mr. Bush was much more than a 
     silent partner and that his solid advice was always valued.
       ``From those luncheons and from our constant interaction, I 
     got to know him well,'' Ronald Reagan told me. ``He was 
     always informed, understanding and decent. He was also wise, 
     honest and capable.''
       Mr. Reagan added: ``No American Vice President should sit 
     on the sidelines, waiting; he should be like an executive 
     vice president of a corporation--active--and George was all 
     that. He was a part of all we did--during times of crises and 
     times of historic triumphs and achievements.''
       In our interview, Mr. Reagan also recalled: ``As Vice 
     President, George led the task force to cut away excess 
     regulation, saving Americans 600 million man-hours of 
     paperwork a year and making possible millions of new jobs. He 
     also worked with our allies to strengthen NATO; and he helped 
     make possible the new INF (Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces) 
     Treaty. I'd say he helped to make our world much safer.''
       Ronald Reagan noted that Mr. Bush also had launched a 
     successful major offensive against drug smuggling that 
     succeeded in blocking a record 70 tons of cocaine from ever 
     reaching our communities. ``In addition, he handled our Task 
     Force on Terrorism that advised me on policy,'' Mr. Reagan 
     said. ``He was the architect of the plans we put into 
     effect.''
       In defending Mr. Bush's role in the Iran-Contra affair--the 
     crisis that engulfed and

[[Page 15498]]

     threatened his presidency--Mr. Reagan emphasized: ``George 
     had been completely honest. He was supportive of our policy--
     to establish communication with the pragmatic leadership in 
     Iran with the goal of eventually renewing U.S.-Iranian 
     relations. Yes, he had some reservations, but that often 
     happened with other issues. For example, when we discussed 
     and debated any policy at our Cabinet meetings--some Cabinet 
     members still had reservations after I made a decision. But 
     once the decision was made, they supported it. That's what 
     George did--he supported my decision.''
       According to George Bush, who visited with Ronald Reagan 
     two years ago, it was President Reagan who had set the stage 
     for the world to change. ``President Reagan contributed by 
     building a foundation of principles that is solid,'' Mr. Bush 
     remembers, ``and I was proud to build upon that.''
       Born in June 1924, in Milton, Mass., George Herbert Walker 
     Bush was named for his mother's father. George Bush's mother, 
     Dorothy, died of a stroke at age 91. ``Even at 90 she was the 
     moral leader of our family and the idol of our children and 
     grandchildren,'' he recalls. ``I often think of her advice on 
     the fundamentals--to be tolerant, to turn the other cheek, to 
     stand against discrimination and for fair play.'' He credits 
     her with instilling in him a respect for principles and 
     values that motivate him to this day. ``She was the 
     personification of everything that is good, everything that 
     is for our family--the Christian ethic,'' he adds. ``She set 
     examples. She would discipline us, then put her arms around 
     us and love us.''
       The Rev. Billy Graham, who first met George Bush through 
     his relationship with the senior Bushes, describes Dorothy 
     Bush as a ``woman of God, a wonderful Bible student, who 
     constantly emphasized spirituality, honesty and integrity.''
       In an interview, Rev. Graham also told me that George Bush 
     is ``one of the best and most loyal friends I ever had. I 
     admire him for the way he loves his family and friends; for 
     the way he handled his near-death experience in World War II 
     when his plane was shot down; and for his courageous speeches 
     on controversial issues.''
       Describing George Bush as ``one of America's greatest 
     presidents who provided excellent leadership and brought to 
     the office close family ties and strong religious faith,'' 
     Rev. Graham adds that Mr. Bush had also put the presidency on 
     a high level and maintained the dignity of the office that 
     Ronald Reagan bequeathed to him.
       Rev. Graham led the prayers at George Bush's Inauguration 
     for President in 1989 as well as for the swearing-in 
     ceremonies for Gov. George W. Bush in 1995 and Gov. Jeb Bush 
     in 1999.
       While George Bush was the leader of the Free World, his 
     five children knew him as their loving, attentive father--a 
     constant, guiding influence on their lives. They, in turn, 
     have proven to be loving children who did their part to give 
     him a lasting place in history as well as to sustain his 
     pride in them. In addition to the two governor sons--there 
     are Marvin and Neil, both businessmen, and Dorothy (Doro), 
     still the apple of her father's eye.
       At the time of Doro's birth, in August 1959, in Houston, 
     Texas, her father was in the offshore oil-drilling business. 
     Since then, he has been a two-term congressman from Texas 
     (1967-71); U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (1971-73); 
     chairman of the Republican National Committee (1973-74); 
     chief of the U.S. Liaison office in Beijing (1974); director 
     of the Central Intelligence Agency (1976); Vice President of 
     the United States (1981-89), and President of the United 
     States (1989-93).
       Rather than complain about the demands on her peripatetic 
     father's time over the years, Doro expresses pride in his 
     achievements and reflects on their relationship. She says her 
     father has given her a strong sense of security and has 
     enhanced her life. ``No matter how hard he worked in his 
     various jobs, he took time for family, friends and small 
     kindnesses, which really meant so much,'' she adds. ``I'm now 
     the mother of four children, and I try to instill my dad's 
     teachings in them.''
       She says that his high positions did not change him as a 
     father--that he has always had a gentle, personal touch and, 
     to this day, continues to care about the details in each of 
     his children's lives. ``He still writes us special notes,'' 
     she says, ``and his sense of humor and optimistic outlook 
     haven't changed. And now, even on his 75th birthday, he isn't 
     comfortable focusing attention on himself.''
       George Bush says that he has allowed his children to do 
     their own thing. ``Barbara and I decided that they were 
     strong enough to chart their own course, to lead their own 
     lives,'' he says. ``They do not often need fine-tuning advice 
     from their parents.''
       As for Marvin, Neil and Doro, he says, they are good 
     children and happy out of politics. ``George and Jeb, in 
     spite of the ugliness of the times, have decided to get into 
     politics,'' he told me. ``Having two sons as governors is a 
     blessing that I cannot describe. I am proud of them and I 
     don't want to see them hurt in what, unfortunately, has 
     become a mean, intrusive political climate. They are honest 
     and honorable men with wonderful families of their own and 
     with nothing to be ashamed of. But some in the press have 
     literally gone well beyond the bounds of just plain common 
     decency. And, as you know, I have disdain for the policies of 
     destruction.''
       Why, then, I asked, in view of today's destructive 
     atmosphere, does George Bush want his two sons in the 
     political arena?
       ``Because,'' he responds, ``I believe if good and competent 
     people are unwilling to get involved, our whole system of 
     democracy is diminished.''
       When contemplating his legacy, does he think in terms of 
     his two governor sons as being an extension of him?
       ``Regarding George W. and Jeb, I do not think in terms of 
     legacy,'' he replies. ``I just take great pride in two 
     extraordinarily able and strong men who, on their own--
     without their father's help--have already gone a long way.''
       He adds that marrying the mother of his five kids was the 
     best decision he made in his personal life. ``That was 54\1/
     2\ years ago,'' George Bush reminisces. ``I first met Barbara 
     Pierce at a Christmas party, just after Pearl Harbor was 
     attacked. I was 17 and she was 16. The U.S. was at war, so 
     ours was a wartime romance. Ever since, to me, it has been a 
     classic love story.
       ``We found we had much in common, even our sense of humor. 
     When I graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy (a preparatory 
     school in Andover, Mass., on June 4, 1942), I took Barbara to 
     the senior prom.''
       Eight days, later, his 18th birthday, he enlisted in the 
     U.S. Navy as a Seaman Second Class. In 1943, he earned his 
     wings and was commissioned as the youngest naval aviator, 
     assigned to USS San Jacinto in the Pacific.
       At the time of his marriage, on Jan. 6, 1945, a man under 
     21 years of age needed parental consent to marry; a woman 
     over 18 did not. Mr. Bush's brother, Prescott, remembers that 
     19\1/2\-year-old Barbara was ``really ticked'' that her 20\1/
     2\-year-old fiance--a war hero with a Distinguished Flying 
     Cross--had to get his parents' permission to marry. And 
     despite teasing suggestions that two Geminis are usually not 
     compatible--the ``warnings'' still amuse the Bushes. (Mrs. 
     Bush was also born in June--on the 8th.) She recalls that the 
     timing of their wedding was determined by world events, 
     because had it not been for the war, she believes neither 
     family would have consented to their marrying at that young 
     age.
       Today, Mr. Bush admits to many disappointments--personally 
     and in politics, even in the Oval Office--``but none that 
     have shaken our happy marriage.''
       As a boy, George Bush often went to Yankee Stadium (in New 
     York) with his father and had youthful hopes of one day 
     playing first base there. Years later, when baseball great 
     Babe Ruth came to Yale University to present his papers at a 
     ceremony at the stadium, George Bush, as captain of the 
     baseball team, was chosen to receive the papers in behalf of 
     the university. (Mr. Bush graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a 
     degree in economics from Yale in 1948--the year Babe Ruth 
     died.)
       ``Meeting Babe Ruth,'' he recalls, ``was one of the most 
     memorable days of my young life.''
       While George Bush did not go on to a career in baseball, he 
     is, today, one senior citizen who is the personification of 
     the premise that there is life after 40--even after 75. He is 
     in great demand the world over for speaking engagements on 
     all subjects and issues. Since leaving the White House, he 
     has visited some 55 foreign countries. Last week, he was in 
     Korea and Thailand, as well as in Hong Kong, where he spoke 
     at The International Bank of Asia.
       On the lecture circuit, he recently addressed organizations 
     such as the American Medical Association and the American 
     Hotel & Motel Association.
       To what does he attribute his long, happy and healthy life?
       ``Possibly because I was so active,'' he says. ``And I've 
     always been involved in competitive sports.''
       He still revels in fresh-air sports--fishing, swimming, 
     high-speed boating, camping, golf and horseshoes. His passion 
     for pitching horseshoes was once so strong that he built a 
     horseshoe court with two pits on the grounds of the White 
     House when he was its occupant.
       ``Physically, I'm still in good shape and feel young at 
     heart,'' he says, ``but there are things I cannot do anymore, 
     like jogging and tennis (he has played with tennis champs 
     Billie Jean King and Chris Evert). I travel a lot and have 
     tons of energy. Oh, once in a while, I get really tired, but 
     I'm lucky with my physical condition.''
       Does aging bother him?
       ``Not in the least,'' he says. ``I haven't lost interest in 
     events, nor have my body and health deserted me. The only 
     thing about aging that does bother me is that I want to be 
     here on Earth long enough to see my grandkids--all 14 of 
     them--grow up and be happily married, raising their own kids. 
     That would be the best things that could happen to me after a 
     full and happy and lucky life.''
       He says he worries about the decline and disintegration of 
     today's American family. ``I'm convinced that this decline 
     leads to the many social and cultural problems facing our 
     nation,'' he adds. ``Thank God, we have

[[Page 15499]]

     mentors and `other points of light' willing to help the 
     neglected kids, to read to them, to love them. But so many 
     slip through the cracks. When the parents go AWOL, the kids 
     are hurt and our society suffers.''
       Turning to his years in the White House, Mr. Bush says 
     that, as President, one of his best decisions was selecting 
     Colin L. Powell as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 
     (During his years in the highest military position in the 
     Department of Defense, Gen. Powell oversaw 28 crises, 
     including Operation Desert Storm in the 1991 Persian Gulf 
     War.) ``Another important decision, once it became clear we 
     had to fight in Desert Storm, was to put full confidence in 
     the military and not try to second-guess them or change the 
     mission,'' Mr. Bush told me. ``My team and I did the 
     diplomacy, and then, when we had to go to war, we let the 
     military, under the leadership of Gen. Powell; Dick Cheney 
     (Secretary of Defense) and Norman Schwarzkopf (commanding 
     general of the U.S. forces in the Gulf) and others, fight and 
     win.''
       Gen. Powell, also a National Security Advisor in the Reagan 
     White House and now chairman of ``America's Promises--The 
     Alliance for Youth,'' told me: ``I considered George Bush a 
     tremendous Commander in Chief. And as President of the U.S., 
     he brought class, character and dignity to the office.''
       George Bush emphasizes that the decision to commit troops 
     to battles is the most onerous a Chief Executive can make. 
     His most difficult moment in the Oval Office, he recalls, was 
     when he had to decide whether or not to send someone's son or 
     daughter to war. ``To commit one to fight--to put one in 
     harms' way,'' he stresses, ``is the toughest of all calls.'' 
     I did this in Panama, in the Gulf and Somalia, but I did it 
     knowing we were going to give them full support--to enable 
     them to complete their mission, to win and come home.
       ``This we did. I regret that the mission in Somalia changed 
     after I left the White House. I do not like mission creep (an 
     evolution of the mission away from its originally stated 
     purpose). I was proud of our military in all three actions.''
       He adds, ``You know, I miss dealing with our military 
     because I believe in `duty, honor, country.' My own military 
     experience in WW II well equipped me to wrestle with the 
     problems of military action. That also instilled in me a 
     respect for those who do their duty for our country. I was 
     proud to wear our uniform in WW II, and when I was Commander 
     in Chief I took pride in my support of the military.''
       Two years ago, when George Bush jumped from an altitude of 
     12,5000 feet and opened his parachute canopy at 4,000 feet 
     above the Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, he called that feat 
     a great thrill. ``I was alone, at peace,'' he recalls. ``I 
     was floating into the tranquil sands of Yuma.''
       That jump was in keeping with a personal vow to ``some day, 
     do it right'' (jumping from a plane) he made after Sept. 2, 
     1944, when he bailed out of his flaming torpedo bomber near 
     Japanese-held Chichi Jima Island, some 150 miles from Iwo 
     Jima. After five hours in the water, he was rescued by a 
     submarine.
       I asked George Bush if the pilot--recently downed over 
     Serbia in the former Republic of Yugoslavia--brought back 
     memories of when he was shot down as a Navy pilot 55 years 
     ago.
       ``To some degree, yes, it did, because, like this pilot, I 
     was shot down near the enemy,'' he remembers. ``I wasn't sure 
     that I would be rescued. Neither was this pilot sure he would 
     be found. I knew the Navy would go all out to find me. This 
     pilot felt sure his comrades in arms would go the extra mile 
     to rescue him. He prayed, and so did I--so, yes, there are 
     some similarities.''
       If George Bush could have had his life to live again, what 
     would he have done differently?
       ``I would not do anything differently,'' he answers with an 
     air of finality. ``My life has been a good one--satisfying 
     and rewarding. I did not set a grand design for my career. I 
     just tried to do well in each of my jobs and lead a 
     meaningful life.
       ``I also tried to make a difference in the lives of others. 
     I have always cared about the welfare of others.''
       Attesting to Mr. Bush's self-assessment, former Attorney 
     General Dick Thornburgh told me that throughout his 
     presidency, George Bush exhibited an extraordinary 
     sensitivity to questions of law and justice and the 
     protection of the civil rights and civil liberties of all 
     Americans. ``Nowhere,'' Mr. Thornburgh states, ``was this 
     more evident than in President Bush's support for the 
     Americans With Disabilities Act--which he signed into law on 
     July 26, 1990.''
       Mr. Thornburgh, a former governor of Pennsylvania, adds, 
     ``This important civil rights legislation--strongly 
     championed by the President during its considerations by 
     Congress--provides a significant vehicle to secure access to 
     the mainstream of American society for those 54 million 
     Americans with physical, mental and sensory disabilities. 
     (Thornburgh's son, Peter, now 39, was the victim of a car 
     accident in 1960 when he was 4 months old. He suffered 
     serious brain injuries, causing mental retardation.)
       ``In this, as in other endeavors, George Bush's compassion 
     and commitment to justice for all was an inspiration to those 
     of us privileged to serve in his administration.''
       Manifesting his concern for human rights, Mr. Bush visited 
     the infamous Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz in Poland 
     in 1987 when he was Vice President of the United States. He 
     then told me that that visit made him determined not just to 
     remember the Holocaust, but, more important, to strengthen 
     his resolve to renew America's commitment to human rights the 
     world over.
       He quoted Nobel Peace Laureate Elie Wiesel, a Holocaust 
     survivor who this week is in Macedonia, visiting refugees 
     from Kosovo: ``In extreme situations, when human lives and 
     dignity are at stake, neutrality is a sin.''
       Elie Wiesel, now a professor at Boston University, spoke at 
     a recent Millennium Evening at the White House on ``The 
     Perils of Indifference: Lessons Learned From a Violent 
     Century.'' He later told me that in the years he has know 
     George Bush, he always found him to be sensitive to issues 
     related to human rights.
       ``As Vice President, he directed the rescue mission that 
     brought the surviving remnant of Ethiopian Jews to Israel,'' 
     he adds, ``and he was instrumental in enabling a group of 
     Nobel laureates to go to Poland, still under the dictatorship 
     of Gen. Jaruzelski.''
       If he had his presidency to live over, what would George 
     Bush have done differently?
       ``I would like to have been a better communicator so I 
     could have convinced the American people in 1992 that we were 
     not in a depression, that the economy had recovered,'' he 
     says. ``We handed the Clinton Administration a fast-growing 
     economy, but I could not convince the people or the media 
     that this was so.''
       He describes as ``wonderful'' his 12 years in the White 
     House as Vice President and President, but he continues to 
     feel a sense of ``sadness'' that he was not given another 
     four years ``to finish what I had begun.''
       In Rev. Graham's view, George Bush lost that election 
     ``mainly because his campaign people did not work hard 
     enough, and some of his advisors gave him wrong advice. There 
     was also an element of over-confidence due to the favorable 
     polls.''
       Gen. Brent Scowcroft, Mr. Bush's National Security Advisor, 
     still considers it a ``tragedy'' that George Bush lost the 
     1992 election and did not have four more years ``to build the 
     sense of closeness with other foreign leaders--which could 
     have done so much to promote a closer world community.''
       For his part, Mr. Bush continues, that if he had had his 
     way, he would have won the election ``because I would have 
     done a better job of getting out the facts and the benefit of 
     our programs, and I would have gotten more legislation 
     through Congress.
       ``For instance, the economy was better than it had been 
     reported,'' he recalls, ``but the media pounded me on how bad 
     things were. When I said we were not in recession, the press 
     ridiculed me. It turned out that the recession ended in the 
     spring of 1991.''
       If he could turn back the clock, what decisions would he 
     have changed?
       ``Given the way history worked out, raising taxes was not 
     good because it got at my word,'' he recalls. ``People said 
     that I broke my word, and that is a regret. Raising taxes was 
     my worst desision. I lost the election because of the 
     economy. Yet, what I was saying--at the time--about the 
     economy was true.''
       On other decisions, Mr. Bush believes that his wisest was 
     having ``mobilized the world to stand up against aggression'' 
     in the Persian Gulf.
       He describes the start of Iraq's invasion of Kuwait as ``a 
     critical moment in world history.''
       On that night--Jan. 16, 1991--he invited Rev. Billy Graham 
     to the White House for private prayers. The next morning, 
     Rev. Graham conducted a prayer service for the Bush Cabinet, 
     congressional leaders and Marines at a chapel in Ft. Myer, a 
     military compound in Virginia. ``Our prayers were for a short 
     war,'' Rev. Graham says, ``and one that would be followed by 
     a long period of peace in the Mideast.''
       He also told me that George Bush will be remembered in 
     history for having put together a coalition of nations in the 
     Gulf War, and that much of that was due to his own 
     relationship with world leaders. ``He got along well with 
     them,'' he adds, ``and that means a great deal during 
     crises.''
       For his accomplishments, Mr. Bush cites his housing 
     initiatives, his education program--America 2000--and his 
     national energy strategy. He says he was more successful when 
     he was able to work with state governors on issues such as 
     his welfare reform programs, his crime-prevention initiative 
     and the Americans With Disabilities Act. ``MY Administration 
     deserved credit for those initiatives,'' he recalls, ``and we 
     received none.''
       In foreign affairs, Mr. Bush considers among his most 
     significant achievements the START II Treaty, which he signed 
     in Moscow (Jan. 3, 1993) during his last foreign trip as 
     President. He also singles out Desert Storm, the U.N. 
     coalition in 1991 to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi domination.

[[Page 15500]]

       He says he was satisfied with START II, and, in terms of 
     history Desert Storm led to many things, like people talking 
     peace in the Midwest and the U.S. being the sole country to 
     which people turn to solidify their democracies. He notes 
     that his secretary of State, James A. Baker III, initiated 
     the Mideast peace process that began with multilateral talks 
     in Madrid in October 1991. ``We made dramatic strides, which 
     history will record,'' he states. ``You would never believe 
     that Arabs and Israelis would be talking to each other. No 
     one thought we could get that done. Well, at least we got it 
     started, and that happened largely because of Desert Storm.''
       Mr. Bush recalls that he learned much from the courage of 
     Russian President Boris Yeltsin, when, in August 1991, he 
     climbed on a tank to talk to the crowd supporting him against 
     the hard-line Communists. ``I was appreciative of what Mr. 
     Yeltsin said about me being his first and most stalwart 
     supporter.''
       With all of his accomplishments, what continues to trouble 
     George Bush and his associates is the perception that he was 
     a ``wimp.'' In retrospect, how does he view that image?
       ``I never convinced the Washington press corps of what my 
     real heartbeat was about,'' he says. ``I don't think I came 
     through as a caring person, and one with a sense of humor. 
     And the press felt I was posturing to get away from my Ivy 
     League background when I played horseshoes or listened to 
     country music. Some, like Newsweek (in 1988), had me down as 
     `wimp.' Some said I wasn't tough enough. I believe my record 
     in life entitled me to a better assessment than that, but I 
     couldn't get around their misperceptions.''
       According to Rev. Billy Graham, George Bush is ``anything 
     but a wimp--look how he handled the Gulf War. Everyone has 
     faults, but he has fewer than almost any leader I have 
     known.''
       Gen. Scowcroft--co-author with Mr. Bush of ``A World 
     Transformed'' (Knopf, 1998)--puts it this way. ``One 
     misperception is what became known as the `wimp factor.' That 
     was the view that he was unwilling to make tough decisions or 
     stand up for his beliefs. That was a total misperception 
     because he fully demonstrated his decisive manner in the way 
     he, as President, conducted the foreign and military policy 
     of the United States. By the time he became President, he was 
     not only a true foreign policy professional but he knew the 
     leaders of virtually every country. That enabled him to 
     establish a personal diplomacy that I believe is without 
     parallel in the presidency. He communicated directly with an 
     enormous number of foreign leaders. He listened to their 
     problems, explained his views, discussed what U.S. policy 
     was, or should be, thus adding a new and invaluable dimension 
     to America's ability to act and be received as the leader of 
     the world.
       ``Another misperception is that he is a patrician or a blue 
     blood with an aristocratic approach. But that's not so. He is 
     warm, friendly and outgoing. I never saw him, even as 
     President, put on airs or any kind of imperial manner.''
       Further describing George Bush, the man, Gen. Scowcroft 
     says that in the years he has known him, he has ``developed 
     and become broad and deeper, because he is wiling and eager 
     to learn. He was, and is, a patient listener and has a good 
     way of eliciting the views of others on all issues.''
       He adds that, as President, George Bush's judgment was 
     basically instinctive rather than analytical, but that it was 
     based on extensive probing discussions with principal 
     advisors before he made decisions.
       Today, George Bush--looking younger than his age--presents 
     a picture of a man full of vitality and brimming with 
     confidence. He still possesses an innate sense of decency but 
     is a complex personality. He is as tenacious as he is 
     unassuming.
       He singles out two of many turning points in his life: 
     joining the Navy in 1942 and moving from the East Coast to 
     Texas after graduating from Yale. ``These two moves really 
     changed my life in many ways,'' he recalls. ``My move to 
     Texas changed my life because I learned a lot about 
     entrepreneurship and risk-taking.''
       His first job was as a clerk in an oil-equipment company in 
     Odessa, Texas, and he soon rose to become co-founder and 
     president of an oil-drilling company.
       Twenty years ago, as a Republican Presidential candidate, 
     George Bush appeared on the NBC news program `MEET THE PRESS' 
     to explain why he should be elected President of the United 
     States; and how he would make a difference in American life--
     from the Oval Office.
       ``I believe a man can make a difference,'' he pointed out. 
     ``I'd like to re-awaken our sense of pride in ourselves as it 
     applies to our relationships abroad.'' People abroad are 
     wondering, `Does the United States want to lead the free 
     world anymore?'
       He also told the Christian Science Monitor's Godfrey 
     Sperling: ``I want to demonstrate, and help Americans 
     demonstrate--given our strengths--that we can cope and solve 
     problems, particularly our domestic economy. Once we solve 
     these problems, I believe we can offer a better life to 
     everybody in America. So I am motivated by that.
       ``I also want to re-awaken a sense of pride by putting 
     stars in the eyes of our children.''
       How has his philosophy changed over the years?
       ``I am not sure there has been a fundamental change,'' he 
     told me. ``I hope I have become more tolerant of the 
     different opinions of others. I feel even more convinced that 
     the United States of America must stay involved in the world 
     and be the leader.
       ``You know, there was a time during the Cold War days when 
     I had only disdain for Russia and China. That has changed a 
     lot. We must stay engaged with both nations. We must look at 
     the big picture and work closely with both of these powers--
     not doing it their way, but not always bashing them, 
     either.''
       I asked George Bush for his views on the current crisis in 
     Kosovo.
       His response: ``I will not criticize President Clinton and, 
     thus, will say nothing more.''
       Concerning the revelations of surreptitious Chinese 
     espionage allegedly involving four American administrations, 
     Gen. Scowcroft, speaking for the Bush Administration, told 
     me: ``In the four years as President Bush's National Security 
     Advisor, I do not recall an issue of Chinese espionage at the 
     nuclear labs being brought to my attention.''
       Dr. Condoleezza Rice, director of Soviet and East European 
     Affairs, national Security Council in the Bush Administration 
     (1989-91), told me that there is no one who is more deserving 
     of the title `public servant' than George Bush.
       ``I most appreciated his integrity and his devotion to 
     America,'' She adds. ``And I'm especially grateful to him for 
     the way that he handled the end of the Cold War.''
       Dr. Rice, now provost at Stanford University, notes that in 
     the former president's book, ``A World Transformed,'' Mr. 
     Bush describes his final phone conversation with Mikhail 
     Gorbachev only moments before the Soviet president resigned 
     and brought to an end 75 years of Soviet communism.
       ``Mr. Gorbachev was clearly looking for affirmation that 
     this fateful decision would be good for the word.'' Dr. Rice 
     points out. ``Why, might you ask, would the Soviet president 
     call the President of the U.S. at that moment? It speaks 
     volumes about how President Bush had managed difficult 
     issues. He was tough, vigorously pursuing America's interests 
     and skillful in his diplomacy.
       ``His leadership was quite and persistent. But he was also 
     compassionate and humane. He found a way to treat this great, 
     defeated, but still dangerous adversary with respect and 
     dignity. That, more than anything, allowed the Soviet Union 
     to slip quietly into the night--to collapse with a whimper, 
     not a bang. We all owe President Bush a great debt for 
     that.''
       As George Bush's secretary of State, James A. Baker III 
     traveled to 90 foreign countries as the U.S. confronted the 
     unprecedented challenges and opportunities of the post-Cold 
     War era. ``I think history will treat George Bush very, very 
     well,'' Mr. Baker told me. ``He was president at a time of 
     remarkable global changes. The world, as he and I had known 
     it all our adult lives, changed fundamentally with the 
     collapse of communism, the end of the Cold War and the 
     implosion of the Soviet Union.
       ``In addition, during his presidency, America successfully 
     fought the Gulf War and Panama. Through his leadership, 
     Germany was reunified as a member of NATO and Israel and all 
     of her Arab neighbors negotiated face to face for the first 
     time at the Madrid peace conference.
       ``President Bush managed all of this with skill and 
     dexterity. As a result, America was respected by our allies 
     and feared by our adversaries--the way it should be.''
       Secretary Baker adds: ``Another accomplishment was to make 
     the national security apparatus of our nation work the way it 
     should--without the usual rivalries, backbiting and 
     counterproductive leaking to the press. That enabled us to 
     manage properly the historic changes that occurred around the 
     world from 1989 to 1992.''
       Baker, an intimate Bush friend of 40 years, also served in 
     1997 as the personal envoy of U.N. Secretary General Kofi 
     Annan to mediate direct talks between the parties to the 
     dispute over Western Sahara.
       ``Friendships mean a lot to George,'' Jim Baker writes in 
     his book ``The Politics of Diplomacy'' (Putman, 1995). 
     ``Indeed, his loyalty to friends is one of his defining 
     personal strengths. Yet some have suggested it became one of 
     his greatest political weaknesses and that out of concern for 
     their friendship, he stayed loyal for too long to people who 
     hurt his presidency.''
       Gen Scowcroft concurs: ``If I observed any faults, it was 
     perhaps that George Bush was too loyal in that he would 
     support colleagues and associates even after it had become 
     apparent that they were not adequately suited to the jobs 
     they held or were about to hold.''
       In 1974, when Mr. Bush was head of the liaison office in 
     China, it was a restricted period as far as contact with the 
     Chinese leaders was concerned. Nonetheless, he set out to 
     learn about the people and the country. He even studied 
     Chinese. He and Mr. Bush bicycled around Beijing, asked 
     questions, invited the people to their home and developed a 
     real feel for them and their culture.
       In 1976, when Mr. Bush was appointed by President Ford to 
     be director of the Central

[[Page 15501]]

     Intelligence Agency, Gen. Scowcroft was his (Ford's) National 
     Security Advisor. ``I saw how George Bush was learning more 
     and more about foreign policy,'' Gen. Scowcroft says.
       ``It was not so much his foreign policy expertise, although 
     he was well versed as a result of his U.N. and China 
     positions, but what he did in restoring the morale and self-
     respect of the CIA. The morale at CIA was at rock bottom 
     after the congressional investigations of the Pike and Church 
     committees. Even today, Mr. Bush is considered to be the 
     agency's most revered CIA director.''
       One birthday gift George Bush considers especially 
     significant is the 258-acre complex named after him in the 
     Central Intelligence Agency's headquarters in Langley, Va.--
     the first Washington, D.C.-area tribute to him.
       Last October, President Clinton signed legislation 
     authorizing the designation of the George Bush Center for 
     Intelligence, and, in a letter, read by CIA Director George 
     Tenet at the recent dedication ceremony, Mr. Clinton noted 
     that when George Bush assumed his duties as director of the 
     CIA (1976), the Vietnam War had just ended, the Watergate 
     scandal was still an unhealed national wound, and government 
     investigations had exposed abuses of power in connection with 
     intelligence activities.
       ``Many Americans had lost faith in government and asked 
     whether the CIA should continue to exist,'' President Clinton 
     noted. ``George Bush restored morale and discipline to the 
     Agency while publicly emphasizing the value of intelligence 
     to the nation's security, and he also restored America's 
     trust in the CIA and the rest of the intelligence community.
       ``I have been well served by the talented and dedicated men 
     and women who make up the intelligence community that George 
     Bush did so much to preserve and strengthen.''
       The ceremony was attended by former CIA Directors Richard 
     Helms, James Schlessinger, Robert Gates and William Webster. 
     Mr. Tenet hailed George Bush--the only director to have 
     become President of the United States--as a war hero and said 
     that every component of the Agency ``feels indebted to him in 
     some way--because his belief in the fundamental importance of 
     its work never faltered.
       ``He was a staunch defender of the need for human 
     intelligence--for espionage--at a tough time when it really 
     counted.''
       Mr. Tenet also pointed out that each day, the men and women 
     of the CIA provide the President of the United States and 
     other decision-makers the critical intelligence they need to 
     protect American lives and advance American interests around 
     the globe. ``Thanks in great measure to George Bush's 
     leadership, the U.S. no longer confronts the worldwide threat 
     from a rival superpower that we did during the Cold War,'' he 
     stated. ``But, as the 21st century approaches, we must 
     contend with a host of other dangerous challenges--challenges 
     of unprecedented complexity and scope.
       ``The U.S. remains the indispensable country in this 
     uncertain and chaotic world. And time and again, the CIA has 
     proven itself to be the indispensable intelligence 
     organization, helping America build a more secure world for 
     people everywhere.''
       Accepting a model of the sign bearing the name of the 
     compound, George Bush--in his remarks--observed: ``My stay 
     here had a major impact on me. The CIA became part of my 
     heartbeat some 22 years ago, and it has never gone away. I 
     hope it will be said that in my time here, and in the White 
     House, I kept the trust and treated my office with respect.''
       And to the assembled CIA employees, Mr. Bush added: ``Your 
     mission is different now from what it was in my time. The 
     Soviet Union is no more. Some people think, `What do we need 
     intelligence for?'
       ``My answer is that plenty of enemies abound . . . 
     unpredictable leaders willing to export instability or to 
     commit crimes against humanity. Proliferation of weapons of 
     mass destruction, terrorism, narco-trafficking, people 
     killing each other, fundamentalists killing one another in 
     the name of God, and many more.
       ``To combat them, we need more intelligence, not less. We 
     need more human intelligence and more protection for the 
     methods we use to gather intelligence and more protection for 
     our sources, particularly our human sources who risk their 
     lives for their country.''
       Mr. Bush went on to say that even though he is now a 
     ``tranquil guy,'' he has ``contempt and anger for those who 
     betray the trust'' be exposing the names of our 
     (intelligence) sources.
       ``They are, in my view, the most insidious of traitors,'' 
     he asserted. ``George Tenet is exactly right when it comes to 
     the mission of the CIA and the intelligence community. `Give 
     the President and the policy-makers the best possible 
     intelligence product and stay out of the policymaking or 
     policy implementing--except as specifically decreed in the 
     law.''
       George Bush has always been hesitant to talk about 
     himself--even as to how he made a difference as President. 
     ``You ask others,'' he tells me, ``I am not good at talking 
     about myself. That is part of my make-up. Some people say it 
     is lack of character, but I can't blow my own horn. My mother 
     taught me not to brag and she is still watching me.''
       Respecting his penchant for modesty, I did ask others--
     including former American presidents, as well as the current 
     one--for their reflections and comments on George Bush's 
     milestone.
       Former President Gerald R. Ford said: ``President Bush, at 
     75, has earned the highest compliments for his strong and 
     effective military and diplomatic leadership in the Gulf War 
     with Iraq.''
       Former President Jimmy Carter says: ``From one 
     septuagenarian to another, I, of course, wish George Bush a 
     wonderful birthday and many more years of good health and 
     much happiness.
       ``He is a man of integrity who served America with honor. 
     We had a very good relationship while he was in the White 
     House, and even though we did not agree on every issue, he 
     treated me with respect and kindness.
       ``I always shared my invitations to foreign countries with 
     him or with Secretary of State James Baker, and they were 
     supportive of our work at the Carter Center (in Atlanta, 
     Ga).''
       Jimmy Carter adds that he and his wife, Rosalynn 
     ``thoroughly enjoyed'' attending the opening of the Bush 
     Presidential Library. (On Nov. 6, 1997, the library and 
     museum, together with the George Bush School of Government 
     and Public Service, were opened.)
       President William Jefferson Clinton recalls with gratitude 
     his wide-ranging conversations with George Bush four months 
     ago as they flew on Air Force One to and from Jordan for King 
     Hussein's funeral. (Former Presidents Ford and Carter were 
     also aboard.)
       ``George Bush embodies the spirit of public service,'' Mr. 
     Clinton told me. ``For me, he has also been a trusted 
     advisor. While there are many who advise me, at times the 
     greatest counsel comes from one who has shared the pressures 
     and unique experience of serving in the Oval Office--one who 
     knows exactly what you're up against and one who will tell 
     you the truth.
       ``George has often done that, and while I have been the 
     immediate beneficiary of his counsel, people here and abroad 
     have ultimately benefited most of all.''
       Richard Fairbanks, President of the Center for Strategic & 
     International Studies (CSIS), advised Mr. Bush on policy 
     during his 1980 presidential bid. Later, as chief U.S. 
     negotiator for the Mideast peace process, he worked closely 
     with Vice President Bush. Ambassador Fairbanks recalls that 
     George Bush was seen as a pragmatic problem-solver rather 
     than a conceptualizer, ``which is one of the reasons he 
     encountered trouble with his famous statement that he was not 
     comfortable with `the vision thing.' ''
       Mr. Fairbanks, a member of the Council of American 
     Ambassadors, adds that George Bush is a natural leader with 
     real intellectual depth, but he is also a private man, who is 
     ``not comfortable flaunting his thought processes in a public 
     forum.''
       Edwin Meese, counselor to President Reagan (1981-85) and 
     U.S. Attorney General (1985-88), who is now The Ronald Reagan 
     Fellow in Public Policy at The Heritage Foundation, says that 
     he ``thoroughly appreciated the opportunity to work with 
     George Bush as Vice President because he was an invaluable 
     asset to President Reagan and to all of us in the Cabinet.''
       In his 12 years as Vice President and President, George 
     Bush witnessed a number of scandals, including Watergate, 
     Irangate, Iran-Contra and the Savings and Loan bust.
       On his last day in the Oval Office as president I asked him 
     how he would advise incoming President Bill Clinton to 
     prevent similar scandals.
       ``If Governor Clinton asks me, I would tell him to be very 
     conscious of how he works with his staff; and to be sure 
     there are no loose cannons running around the White House,'' 
     Mr. Bush told me during that interview. ``People around a 
     President or Vice President or any high official can make or 
     break his image. So we each need to surround ourselves with 
     competent and caring individuals--men and women of integrity 
     who respect the presidency and live their own lives 
     accordingly.''
       He adds: ``There is a need for revival of ethical behavior, 
     and exemplary conduct must come from officials and leaders. 
     It cannot be legislated.
       ``What mattered to me most in the White House was integrity 
     and responsibility. Public service has been damaged by people 
     who don't have the judgment to place the public's business 
     above their own self interest, and unethical conduct should 
     not be tolerated at any level of government.''
       Mr. Bush went on to say that he was determined--at all 
     times--to treat the office of the presidency with respect and 
     not do anything that would cheapen or diminish it.
       ``I still take pride in the fact that my administration was 
     clean and free of scandal,'' he says. ``We had not been 
     hounded by people using government jobs for personal gain. We 
     came to the White House with high ethical standards and we 
     left with heads high in that regard.''
       And what did George Bush learn from his years in the White 
     House that has made a lasting impact on him?

[[Page 15502]]

       ``I learned that the power to get things done is less than 
     some people believe,'' he remembers. ``Yes, the presidency is 
     magnified out of proportion. You can get some things done, 
     but you can't wave a wand to have everything work the way you 
     want it. The presidency is too complicated.
       ``I also learned that the White House is surrounded by 
     history, and I left there with even more respect for 
     America's principles, more respect for the institution of the 
     presidency, and more respect for the civil servants, 
     including the staff of the executive residence and the 
     uniformed Secret Service officers, who make that magnificent 
     museum of a place into a real home for whoever is President 
     of the U.S. as well as for his family and guests.''
       And since he departed the White House, in 1993, how, in his 
     view, has the presidency evolved?
       ``Like many Americans, I have worried about the recent 
     happenings in and around the White House,'' George Bush told 
     me. ``But the presidency is a vital and strong and resilient 
     institution. Just as (former President) Jerry Ford instantly 
     restored honor to the Executive Mansion--after Watergate--so 
     will whoever is elected President in the year 2000.
       ``Respect for the office is important and character and 
     behavior in that office do count. The office is not too big 
     for any individual, provided he or she can make tough 
     decisions and give credit to bright and experienced people 
     who should surround the Chief Executive.''
       If George Bush could leave but one legacy, he wants it to 
     be a return to the moral compass that must guide America 
     through the next century.
       ``And,'' he adds, ``I hope historians will say that I and 
     my Administration left the world a little more peaceful by 
     the way we handled the unification of Germany, the liberation 
     of Eastern Europe and the Baltics, as well as the way we 
     worked with the Soviet leaders to bring about change there, 
     and to get their support when we had to fight the Gulf War.''
       ``I also hope my legacy will include the Madrid peace 
     conference (1992); our key role in NAFTA, the Brady Plan 
     (plan for debt relief for Latin America), and the way we 
     handled China after Tiananmen Square 10 years ago.
       ``On a personal level, I hope my legacy will be that 
     `George Bush did his best and served America with honor.' ''
       If he could have one wish on this birthday, what would it 
     be?
       ``I am not sentimental,'' he says, ``but, yes, there is a 
     certain special quality to this milestone. For myself, I have 
     no wishes for my birthday. I have everything a man could 
     want. But, for the world, I would wish more peace; and for 
     America, I wish for stronger families and better values.''
       And George Bush's vision for the next century?
       ``I am optimistic about the 21st century,'' he told me. 
     ``With no superpower confrontation on the horizon, I believe 
     the next century can be one of peace--though there will 
     always be regional conflicts. But I, for one, am still 
     hopeful.''
       And to share that hope, he likes to recount the time that 
     his wife, Barbara, was planting a flowering bush. She was 
     instructed to dig a deep bed, fill it with fertilizer and 
     firmly plant the bush by covering it with water and soil.
       ``We were told that the plant would not bloom right away, 
     but that it would, after a year or so, and then for a long 
     time to come,'' he mused. ``Soon, we realized that she was 
     planting that flowering bush for our kids and grandkids and 
     great-grandkids.
       ``So despite the vicissitudes we face now, and will face in 
     the future, I believe that that planting was not in vain. 
     Sure, we have problems in the U.S. and overseas, and the 
     world has the weapons to blow itself up. Yet my inner self 
     tells me that our great-grandkids will be around to enjoy 
     those flowers.''

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