who was attorney general when goerge bush 41 ended his presidency

When did George W Bush end his presidency?

Dec 16, 2016 · Barbara Bush: Vice President: J. Danforth Quayle: Secretary of State: James A. Baker (1989–1992) Secretary of State: Lawrence Eagleburger (1992–1993) Secretary of Defense: Richard B. Cheney (1989–1993) Secretary of the Interior: Manuel Lujan (1989–1993) Attorney General: Richard L. Thornburgh (1989–1991) Attorney General: William P ...

When did George H W Bush take office?

Mar 02, 2019 · William Barr confirmed as attorney general People who worked with Barr in his last go-round say he’s not afraid to make an unpopular decision. “He made tough decisions when it …

Who succeeded George W Bush?

Bush nominee Raymond Kethledge would later be appointed to the seat. At the end of the 109th Congress, a new controversy arose over William Myers and three other Bush court of appeals nominees who had not been specifically mentioned in the Gang deal but were still subject to its provisions: Terrence Boyle, William J. Haynes, II and Michael B. Wallace. These nominations …

When did George W Bush become the 43rd President?

Oct 07, 2016 · Supreme Court halts recount. In a 5-4 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court stops the recount of votes in several contested Florida counties. The Democratic candidate, Vice President Albert Gore Jr., concedes the election, leaving Governor George W. Bush of Texas, the Republican candidate, as President-elect.

Who was attorney general during the George W Bush administration?

John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and former politician who served as the 79th U.S. Attorney General in the George W. Bush Administration, Senator from Missouri, and Governor of Missouri. He later founded The Ashcroft Group, a Washington D.C. lobbying firm.

Who was George Herbert Walker's secretary of state?

James BakerJames Baker IIISucceeded byDonald Regan61st United States Secretary of StateIn office January 25, 1989 – August 23, 1992PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush39 more rows

How did George HW Bush lose the presidency in 1992?

Bush lost the 1992 presidential election to Democrat Bill Clinton following an economic recession, his turnaround on his tax promise, and the decreased emphasis of foreign policy in a post–Cold War political climate.

Who was Bush senior secretary defense?

Donald RumsfeldOfficial portrait, 200113th and 21st United States Secretary of DefenseIn office January 20, 2001 – December 18, 2006PresidentGeorge W. Bush55 more rows

When was George HW Bush president?

January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993George H. W. Bush / Presidential term

Is George HW Bush still alive?

November 30, 2018George H. W. Bush / Date of death

Who ran for president in 1992 and 1996?

Incumbent Democratic President Bill Clinton defeated former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, the Republican nominee, and Ross Perot, the Reform Party nominee. Clinton and Vice President Al Gore were re-nominated without incident by the Democratic Party.

Who won 1988 election?

In the 1988 presidential election, Republican Vice President George H. W. Bush defeated Democratic Governor Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts. Bush won the popular vote by just under eight points, and won 426 of the 538 electoral votes.

Who did George HW Bush run against in 1992?

ResultsPresidential candidatePartyRunning mateVice-presidential candidateBill ClintonDemocraticAl GoreGeorge H. W. Bush (Incumbent)RepublicanDan QuayleRoss PerotIndependentJames Stockdale7 more rows

Who was the 41st president of the United States?

For his son, the 43rd president, see George W. Bush. For other people, see George Bush (disambiguation). George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was an American politician, diplomat, and businessman who served as the 41st president of the United States ...

What is George Bush's honor?

In 1999, the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, was named the George Bush Center for Intelligence in his honor. In 2011, Bush, an avid golfer, was inducted in the World Golf Hall of Fame. The USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77), the tenth and last Nimitz -class supercarrier of the United States Navy, was named for Bush. Bush is commemorated on a postage stamp that was issued by the United States Postal Service in 2019.

What country did Saddam Hussein conquer?

Faced with massive debts and low oil prices in the aftermath of the Iran–Iraq War, Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein decided to conquer the country of Kuwait, a small, oil-rich country situated on Iraq's southern border. After Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, Bush imposed economic sanctions on Iraq and assembled a multi-national coalition opposed to the invasion. The administration feared that a failure to respond to the invasion would embolden Hussein to attack Saudi Arabia or Israel, and wanted to discourage other countries from similar aggression. Bush also wanted to ensure continued access to oil, as Iraq and Kuwait collectively accounted for 20 percent of the world's oil production, and Saudi Arabia produced another 26 percent of the world's oil supply.

Where was George Bush born?

George H. W. Bush at his grandfather's house in Kennebunkport, c. 1925. George Herbert Walker Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts on June 12, 1924. He was the second son of Prescott Bush and Dorothy (Walker) Bush.

What was the first step towards a free trade agreement between the United States and Canada?

President Reagan had intended it as the first step towards a larger trade agreement to eliminate most tariffs among the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The Bush administration, along with the Progressive Conservative Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, spearheaded the negotiations of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico. In addition to lowering tariffs, the proposed treaty would affected patents, copyrights, and trademarks. In 1991, Bush sought fast track authority, which grants the president the power to submit an international trade agreement to Congress without the possibility of amendment. Despite congressional opposition led by House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt, both houses of Congress voted to grant Bush fast track authority. NAFTA was signed in December 1992, after Bush lost re-election, but President Clinton won ratification of NAFTA in 1993. NAFTA remains controversial for its impact on wages, jobs, and overall economic growth.

When did Gorbachev become President of the Soviet Union?

Gorbachev clung to power as the President of the Soviet Union until December 1991, when the Soviet Union dissolved. Fifteen states emerged from the Soviet Union, and of those states, Russia was the largest and most populous. Bush and Yeltsin met in February 1992, declaring a new era of "friendship and partnership".

Who was the President of the United States from 1989 to 1993?

Air Medal (3) Presidential Unit Citation. George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was an American politician, diplomat, and businessman who served as the 41st president of the United States from 1989 to 1993.

What was the main issue of the Bush administration?

Terrorism had emerged as an important national security issue in the Clinton administration, and it became one of the dominant issues of the Bush administration. In the late 1980s, Osama bin Laden had established al-Qaeda, a militant Sunni Islamist multi-national organization that sought to overthrow Western-backed governments in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, and Pakistan. In response to Saudi Arabia's decision to begin hosting U.S. soldiers in 1991, al-Qaeda had begun a terrorist campaign against U.S. targets, orchestrating attacks such as the 1998 USS Cole bombing. During Bush's first months in office, U.S. intelligence organizations intercepted communications indicating that al-Qaeda was planning another attack on the United States, but foreign policy officials were unprepared for a major attack on the United States. Bush was briefed on al-Qaeda's activities, but focused on other foreign policy issues during his first months in office.

Who won the Bush vs Gore election?

Bush v. Gore. George W. Bush 's tenure as the 43rd president of the United States from his first inauguration on January 20, 2001, and ended on January 20, 2009. Bush , a Republican from Texas, took office following a narrow victory over Democratic incumbent vice president Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election.

Why did Bush try the prisoners?

Rather than bringing the prisoners before domestic or international courts, Bush decided to set up a new system of military tribunals to try the prisoners. In order to avoid the restrictions of the United States Constitution, Bush held the prisoners at secret CIA prisons in various countries as well as at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. Because the Guantanamo Bay camp is on territory that the U.S. technically leases from Cuba, individuals within the camp are not accorded the same constitutional protections that they would have on U.S. territory. Bush also decided that these " enemy combatants " were not entitled to all of the protections of the Geneva Conventions as they were not affiliated with sovereign states. In hopes of obtaining information from the prisoners, Bush allowed the use of " enhanced interrogation techniques " such as waterboarding. The treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, a U.S. prison in Iraq, elicited widespread outrage after photos of prisoner abuse were made public.

What caused the housing bubble?

After years of financial deregulation accelerating under the Bush administration, banks lent subprime mortgages to more and more home buyers, causing a housing bubble. Many of these banks also invested in credit default swaps and derivatives that were essentially bets on the soundness of these loans. In response to declining housing prices and fears of an impending recession, the Bush administration arranged passage of the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008. Falling home prices started threatening the financial viability of many institutions, leaving Bear Stearns, a prominent U.S.-based investment bank, on the brink of failure in March 2008. Recognizing the growing threat of a financial crisis, Bush allowed Treasury secretary Paulson to arrange for another bank, JPMorgan Chase, to take over most Bear Stearn's assets. Out of concern that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac might also fail, the Bush administration put both institutions into conservatorship. Shortly afterwards, the administration learned that Lehman Brothers was on the verge of bankruptcy, but the administration ultimately declined to intervene on behalf of Lehman Brothers.

Why were the attorneys dismissed?

In December 2006, Bush dismissed eight United States attorneys. Though these attorneys serve at the pleasure of the president, the large-scale mid-term dismissal was without precedent, and Bush faced accusations that he had dismissed the attorneys for purely political reasons. During the 2006 elections, several Republican officials complained that the U.S. attorneys had not sufficiently investigated voter fraud. With the encouragement of Harriet Miers and Karl Rove, Attorney General Gonzales dismissed eight U.S. attorneys who were considered insufficiently supportive of the administration's policies. Though Gonzales argued that the attorneys had been fired for performance reasons, publicly released documents showed that the attorneys were dismissed for political reasons. As a result of the dismissals and the subsequent congressional investigations, Rove and Gonzales both resigned. A 2008 report by the Justice Department inspector general found that the dismissals had been politically motivated, but no one was ever prosecuted in connection to the dismissals.

What did President Bush do to stop abortions?

On his first day in office, President Bush reinstated the Mexico City policy, thereby blocking federal aid to foreign groups that offered assistance to women in obtaining abortions. Days later, he announced his commitment to channeling more federal aid to faith-based service organizations, despite the fears of critics that this would dissolve the traditional separation of church and state in the United States. To further this commitment, he created the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives to assist faith-based service organizations. In 2003, Bush signed the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, which banned intact dilation and extraction, an abortion procedure.

Who was the president of the United States in 2000?

Outgoing President Bill Clinton and President-elect George W. Bush in the Oval Office on December 19, 2000. The oldest son of George H. W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States, George W. Bush emerged as a presidential contender in his own right with his victory in the 1994 Texas gubernatorial election.

Who is William Barr?

Who is Attorney General William Barr? George H.W. Bush was elected president in 1988, and his son George W. Bush was elected in 2000. Now, the son of the 41st president and the ...

When is Barr's confirmation hearing?

William Barr, nominee to be US Attorney General, testifies during a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, January 15, 2019.

What is the unitary executive theory?

In line with the unitary executive theory, a school of legal thought that draws a standard of uncompromising presidential power from the Constitution, Barr’s support for executive authority once undergirded a decision to almost fire an independent counsel who had hounded Bush.

107th Congress

Yale law professor Bruce Ackerman argued in a February 2001 edition of the magazine The American Prospect that Bush should not be permitted to place nominees on the Supreme Court during his first term due to the Supreme Court's decision in Bush v. Gore.

108th Congress

During the 108th Congress in which the Republicans regained control of the Senate by a 51-49 margin, the nominees that the Senate Democrats had blocked in the 107th Congress began to be moved through the now Republican Senate Judiciary Committee. Subsequently, Senate Democrats started to filibuster judicial nominees.

109th Congress

Things changed in 2005 due to the 2004 elections. With President Bush's re-election and the Republicans picking up further Senate seats (55-45) in the 109th Congress, the "nuclear option" became a more viable strategy to ensure confirmation.

110th Congress

At the beginning of the 110th Congress in January 2007, President Bush did not renominate Boyle, Myers, Haynes and Wallace in an attempt at reconciliation with the Democrats. However, that did not stop many Bush judicial nominees from being blocked in committee by the new Democratic chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Patrick Leahy.

Others who were considered for nomination

In the spring of 2001, then-Representative Christopher Cox and lawyer Peter Keisler were both considered for federal appellate judgeships. Cox was considered for a California seat on the Ninth Circuit and Keisler for a Maryland seat on the Fourth Circuit.

When did the Bush tax cut come into effect?

June 7, 2001. President Bush signs a $1.35 trillion tax cut into law. Although the amount falls short of the $1.60 trillion the administration has been seeking, the bill does slash income tax rates across the board and provides for the gradual elimination of the estate tax.

How much money did the Bush administration give to farmers?

The House and Senate override President Bush’s veto of the Farm Bill, a $307 billion bill which will provide subsidies to farmers. More than $10 billion of the funds will go to expanding nutritional programs such as food stamps. Bush originally vetoed the bill, which he felt to be excessive.

Why did the capital shut down?

The Capital shuts down amidst an Anthrax scare. Persons in Florida and New York have already tested positive for the frequently fatal bacteria. Bush calls for $1.5 billion to fight bioterrorism.

What was the purpose of the Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives?

By executive order, President Bush creates the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. The new office will work to ease regulations on religious charities and promote grass-roots efforts to tackle community issues such as aid to the poor and disadvantaged.

How did Bush signal a change in relations with China?

President Bush signals a change in relations with China by officially pledging military support for Taiwan in the event of an attack by China. This is the first time a presidential administration has publicly acknowledged a position that had previously been implicitly accepted.

Who was the Republican presidential candidate in 2000?

Supreme Court stops the recount of votes in several contested Florida counties. The Democratic candidate, Vice President Albert Gore Jr., concedes the election, leaving Governor George W. Bush of Texas, the Republican candidate, as President-elect.

Why did Bush propose the stimulus package?

President Bush proposes a $145 billion stimulus package in response to a housing crisis and rapidly increasing oil prices. The package gives individuals several hundred dollars to facilitate spending, as well as rebates for families with children and tax deductions for businesses in order to jump-start the slowing economy.

When did Bush end diplomacy?

Finally, Bush announced the end of U.S. diplomacy. On March 17 he issued an ultimatum to Ṣaddām, giving him and his immediate family 48 hours to leave Iraq or face removal by force. Bush also indicated that, even if Ṣaddām relinquished power, U.S. military forces would enter the country to search for weapons of mass destruction and to stabilize the new government.

What was the main focus of the Bush administration after the 9/11 attacks?

Immediately after the September 11 attacks, domestic security and the threat of terrorism became the chief focus of the Bush administration and the top priority of government at every level. Declaring a global “ war on terrorism ,” Bush announced that the country would not rest until “every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped, and defeated.” To coordinate the government’s domestic response, the administration formed a cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security, which began operating on January 24, 2003.

How many people died in the 9/11 attacks?

The crashes—the worst terrorist incident on U.S. soil—killed some 3,000 people. September 11 attacks. Smoke and flames erupting from the twin towers of New York City's World Trade Center after the attacks on September 11, 2001; both towers subsequently collapsed. Spencer Platt/Getty Images.

Where were the Taliban prisoners held?

In January 2002, as the pacification of Afghanistan continued, the United States began transferring captured Taliban fighters and suspected al-Qaeda members from Afghanistan to what became a special prison complex at the country’s permanent naval base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Eventually hundreds of prisoners were held at the facility without charge and without the legal means to challenge their detentions ( see habeas corpus ). The administration argued that it was not obliged to grant basic constitutional protections to the prisoners, because the base was outside U.S. territory; nor was it required to observe the Geneva Conventions regarding the treatment of prisoners of war and civilians during wartime, because the conventions did not apply to “unlawful enemy combatants.” It further maintained that the president had the authority to place any individual, including an American citizen, in indefinite military custody without charge by declaring him an enemy combatant.

Who controlled the Senate in 2001?

In the same month, however, control of the Senate formally passed to the Democrats after Republican Sen. James Jeffords left his party to become an independent. Subsequently, many of Bush’s domestic initiatives encountered significant resistance in the Senate. George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush, 2001.

What is waterboarding in the CIA?

In February 2005 the CIA confirmed that some individuals in its custody had been subjected to “enhanced interrogation techniques,” including waterboarding (interrupted or controlled drowning, often called simulated drowning), which was generally regarded as a form of torture under international law.

How many Americans died in Iraq in 2003?

From May 1, when Bush declared an end to major combat in Iraq, to the end of December 2003, more than 200 U.S. soldiers were killed as a result of attacks by Iraqis. During the next four years the number of U.S. casualties increased dramatically, reaching more than 900 in 2007 alone. (The number of Iraqis who died during the invasion and insurgency is uncertain.) Widespread sectarian violence, accompanied by regular and increasingly deadly attacks on military, police, and civilian targets by militias and terrorist organizations, made large parts of the country virtually ungovernable. The increasing numbers of U.S. dead and wounded, the failure to uncover weapons of mass destruction, and the enormous cost to U.S. taxpayers (approximately $10 billion per month through 2007) gradually eroded public support for the war; by 2005 a clear majority of Americans believed that it had been a mistake. By the fifth anniversary of Operation Iraqi Freedom in March 2008, some 4,000 U.S. soldiers had been killed. As the death toll mounted, Bush’s public-approval ratings dropped, falling below 30 percent in many polls.

Overview

Early life and education (1924–1948)

Business career (1948–1963)

Early political career (1963–1971)

Nixon and Ford administrations (1971–1977)

1980 presidential election

Vice presidency (1981–1989)

Presidency (1989–1993)