Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush

by Jon Meacham

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review | Time | NPR | St. Louis Post-Dispatch

In this brilliant biography, Jon Meacham, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author, chronicles the life of George Herbert Walker Bush. Drawing on President Bush’s personal diaries, on the diaries of his wife, Barbara, and on extraordinary access to the forty-first president and his family, Meacham paints an intimate and surprising portrait of an intensely private man who led the nation through tumultuous times. From the Oval Office to Camp David, from his study in the private quarters of the White House to Air Force One, from the fall of the Berlin Wall to the first Gulf War to the end of Communism, Destiny and Power charts the thoughts, decisions, and emotions of a modern president who may have been the last of his kind. This is the human story of a man who was, like the nation he led, at once noble and flawed.

His was one of the great American lives. Born into a loving, privileged, and competitive family, Bush joined the navy on his eighteenth birthday and at age twenty was shot down on a combat mission over the Pacific. He married young, started a family, and resisted pressure to go to Wall Street, striking out for the adventurous world of Texas oil. Over the course of three decades, Bush would rise from the chairmanship of his county Republican Party to serve as congressman, ambassador to the United Nations, head of the Republican National Committee, envoy to China, director of Central Intelligence, vice president under Ronald Reagan, and, finally, president of the United States. In retirement he became the first president since John Adams to see his son win the ultimate prize in American politics.

With access not only to the Bush diaries but, through extensive interviews, to the former president himself, Meacham presents Bush’s candid assessments of many of the critical figures of the age, ranging from Richard Nixon to Nancy Reagan; Mao to Mikhail Gorbachev; Dick Cheney to Donald Rumsfeld; Henry Kissinger to Bill Clinton. Here is high politics as it really is but as we rarely see it.

From the Pacific to the presidency, Destiny and Power charts the vicissitudes of the life of this quietly compelling American original. Meacham sheds new light on the rise of the right wing in the Republican Party, a shift that signaled the beginning of the end of the center in American politics. Destiny and Power is an affecting portrait of a man who, driven by destiny and by duty, forever sought, ultimately, to put the country first.

Praise for Destiny and Power

“Should be required reading—if not for every presidential candidate, then for every president-elect.”—The Washington Post

“Reflects the qualities of both subject and judicious, balanced, deliberative, with a deep appreciation of history and the personalities who shape it.”—The New York Times Book Review

“A fascinating biography of the forty-first president.”—The Dallas Morning News

“When we rank, reconsider, laud, or denounce past Presidents, living or dead, we are taking stock of our own times. In that sense, the vindication of George H. W. Bush is a reflection of what we know we’ve lost.

Genres: Biography, History, Presidents, Nonfiction, Politics, American History, Us Presidents

864 pages, ebook

First published November 10, 2015

About the author

Jon Ellis Meacham is an American writer, reviewer, historian and presidential biographer who is serving as the Canon Historian of the Washington National Cathedral since November 7, 2021. A former executive editor and executive vice president at Random House, he is a contributing writer to The New York Times Book Review, a contributing editor to Time magazine, and a former editor-in-chief of Newsweek. He is the author of several books. He won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography for American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House. He holds the Carolyn T. and Robert M. Rogers Endowed Chair in American Presidency at Vanderbilt University.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

The world lost a great man!

In this highly educational biography of George H.W. Bush, Meacham offers the reader an insightful look into the life and times of the 41st President of the United States. With scores of interesting anecdotes wrapped in a fluid narrative, the author brings to life a man who sought to influence American politics in the latter part of the 20th century, while trying to keep from being subsumed in the shadow of his presidential predecessor. Bush was a man of honour and dignity, but also held firm to his beliefs, which changed as life shaped them. Meacham depicts the elder President Bush as a man of numerous perspectives, three of which rise as themes throughout the tome. Bush was a passionate family man, an ever-ready compromiser, and the effective political figure, personas that spanned his entire life (at least up to the the publication of the book). Meacham helps personalize Bush to the reader while not shying away from the lustre garnered from a life of privilege in Connecticut that hung over the man for his entire public life. A wonderfully refreshing biography that will keep the reader enthused until the final pages, not to be missed by the curious and those willing to open their minds to rediscovering this man.

Family was the lifeblood of George Herbert Walker Bush, and proved to be a means of support his entire life. From his early years, Bush always had a strong relationship with his family, be they his parents, grandparents, or siblings. This love of family grew when he left to fight in the Pacific Theatre during the Second World War. Meacham explores the love Bush had for his fellow navy men and the pain of losing them during a Japanese bombing campaign late in the war. Bush began thinking of his own family when he married Barbara Pierce, a woman for whom he held as much regard. From the birth of George W. Bush, the elder Bush saw a new type of familial love, which only grew as more children joined the brood. It was the crippling illness and eventual death of his daughter, Robin, that the author uses to best personify the family. While the entire family was crushed, Bush did all he could to keep the family on track, but was devastated in private and away from prying eyes. As head of his own family, Bush sought to provide for them, which meant entertaining options out in Texas, where oil exploration and processing could garner a substantial wage. Bush never shied away from ventures that would foster a sense of upward mobility, producing a self-made man who chose not to ride on the coat tails of his family or its name. As his children grew, Bush continued to foster the passion of family, from grandchildren through to other non-blood relations, never forgetting the passion instilled in him by his mother, Dorothy, or the support his children were able to offer him. From his highest moments through to his worst feelings, Bush always turned to his family for support, and offered just as much to those who struggled and needed his shoulder. Even in his latter years, when the next generation took up the reins of political power, Bush sought to counsel and advise his sons, offering praise or a strong shoulder, when needed. Meacham depicts George Bush as a man whose reliance on family proved essential and who would never compromise on their importance.

Bush spent his entire life as a man of compromise, seeking to keep his options open as he sought upwards mobility. Bush proved himself the true negotiator from a young age, bartering with his family in order to win their approval. When he married Barbara, Bush sought to compromise with her as he took them out of their comfort in Connecticut and to the barren wasteland of Texas. Compromise ensued from here as the oil business had them move throughout the state, with Barbara acting in a firm but agreeable way. Even when Bush sought to run for political office he had to compromise on some of his beliefs, finding himself running as a Republican in a strong southern Democratic area. Appeasement outweighed personal beliefs, to a point, as Meacham argues throughout the political narrative embedded in the biography. Bush could not shake his rich-boy upbringing, but was able to cobble together enough support from business interests and the general public that he could make his way to Congress and represent his constituents effectively, namely by finding common ground. As shall be discussed below, Bush compromised from there, touted as an up-and-comer by Richard Nixon. By 1980, compromise helped him garner the presumably impossible role of vice-presidential running mate alongside Ronald Reagan, which did cement a friendship between the bitter rivals. It was after serving as second-in-command for a time that Bush realised that he had to reinvent himself again if he wanted to run for and capture the GOP nomination in '88. His moderate views needed sharpening and his persona a strong polish ahead of the run for the White House. Meacham illustrates this compromising as being for the betterment of the party, while Bush allowed his own beliefs to evolve, or at least morph into something else, as politics and age shaped him as a more right-of-centre thinker. As president, Bush had to open new avenues of compromise, even though he led a military powerhouse. With the economy in a state of disrepair, compromise from his "Read my lips, 'no new taxes!'" gaffe forced Bush to determine that he needed others, even at the zenith of his power. However, compromise proved a political downfall, when the electorate chose not to renew his time as POTUS in '92, making room for the next generation. While some depicted Bush as a man who had little leadership material because of his lack of an iron-clad set of beliefs, this compromising manner fostered the sort of compassionate persona that Bush never wanted to lose.

With the power of a family foundation and the ability to compromise, Bush entered the world of politics well-armed for the trench battles ahead. Coming from a family where monetary influence could sway those in politics, Bush sought to follow his own father, Prescott, into the world of American politics. The elder Bush was a senator who, after some staggering, was able to find his way and sought to push George H.W. Bush towards the political promised land. After a move to Texas to pursue oil, Bush had to reinvent himself to the southern base. As a rich Republican from the New England, Bush had a difficult time making a name for himself in the Democratic south, home to the fiery Lyndon Johnson. Bush faltered, as his father had, but was able to secure a seat in the House of Representatives, where he began planting seeds of a political future. Even after a crippling loss in a Senate run, Bush caught the eye of Nixon, who brought him into the fold, first as Ambassador at the United Nations and then heading up the Republican National Committee. While life in Congress was a sobering experience, Bush found his political acumen when trying to steer the GOP through Watergate and worked hard to prove himself as he watched Nixon implode. President Ford rewarded him with a post in China, where he tried to strengthen the still-new relations with that Communist country. Meacham explores how Bush surmised that the next stop on his political journey might have been a means to ensure he suffered a slow political death, when Ford put him into the Director's chair at Central Intelligence. An apolitical spot if ever there were one, Bush against tried to remain calm and do all he could to support the president, while wondering if his own presidential ambitions might be lost. Ford's loss in '76 to Carter left Bush in a position to rebuild his political acumen, as Carter sought to place Democrats in key positions. Bush used this time to help garner name recognition for the Republican primaries of 1980. Standing in his way was political Goliath, Ronald Reagan. Meacham builds up his narrative and uses this rivalry as a central part of the book, pitting the moderate Bush against the strongly conservative Reagan, the face of the new Republican Party's values. The journey found the two men coming to a compromise (proof that Bush's ways did bring him success) and leading America into a new decade of conservatism. By the time Bush took the helm in '89, America was in a severe Reagan hangover, though Bush took it upon himself to differentiate his presidency. A military campaign against Iraq and economic struggles at home forced Bush to play a less than all-powerful role in the political realm, though Meacham does balance criticism with praise during this period. However, his single-term presidency may stymie some from offering too much positive outlook on his time in the White House. Still, he did not blame others, choosing to accept the decision and hold his head high. As politics ran through his veins, Bush attempted to shape his time in public eye with a mixture of compromise, strong family values, and a sense of leadership. History will judge how effective he could be.

Meacham offers an effective view of Bush in his retirement years, after leaving the public eye. A resurgence of popularity seemingly came when his son, George W. won two-terms in the White House, though no one offers that the elder Bush used his son's power to act as puppet master. Bush remained respectful and even sanguine when press coverage of his son's time in office came under scrutiny. By the time Obama made it to the White House, Bush was secure in his retirement and sought not to appear too often in the public eye. He did not need to be flashy to know that he made a difference. Humbleness was his means of steering his own ship in the waning years.

Meacham constructs a powerful biography of this 20th century political figure, mixing the public record with a collection of letter, interviews, reports, and diary entries. With such a tremendous collection of documentation, it would be easy to weave a narrative that relies too heavily on one thing or another. The author chooses more of a 'leapfrog' approach, never sitting too long on any one issue or time period. While there were formative events throughout Bush's life, the reader is never stuck reading scores on anything, as the book offers a glance on the arc that was Bush's life, stopping in to analyse some of the more important areas. With an easy to read format and enticing style, the reader wants to forge ahead, learning more with each chapter. Keeping said chapters somewhat succinct also fosters a desire to 'read just a little more', which can only help substantiate the readability of this biography. The lay reader should not shy away from the book's length, for it is as fluid a read as it is education and entertaining.

Kudos, Mr. Meacham for this wonderful biography. As you have done with other presidential figures, you offer the reader much insight and a passionate interest in your subject.

Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

[Howard · Rating 2 out of 5]

PRESIDENT GEORGE H. W. BUSH’S MEMOIR
Can you tell me the title of President George H. W. Bush’s memoir? You can’t? There’s a reason that you can’t. He didn’t write one.

All of the other post-WWII presidents did, but not George H. W. Bush.

DESTINY AND POWER
In some respects, however, Jon Meacham wrote one for him, a book of over 800 pages, including 600 pages of text, that is a from the cradle to almost the grave account of the life and times of the 41st president (It was published in 2015 and Bush died in 2018 at age 94.).

In an Author’s Note at the end of the book, Meacham writes:

My first and greatest thanks are due to George H. W. Bush, who granted me access to his diaries and sat (usually patiently, and always politely) for interviews from 2006 to 2015. The former president was generous, welcoming, gracious – and insisted that I call them as I saw them.

Patient, polite, generous, welcoming, gracious? How could one possibly criticize such a nice, honorable man, who was willing to sit through all those interviews and allow you unlimited access to his diaries? A little later Meacham writes, “Mrs. Bush was unfailingly helpful, answering many questions over several years.”

In the Acknowledgements, he writes, “As noted earlier [two pages ago to be exact], I am most grateful to George H. W. Bush and to Barbara Bush, whose cooperation and patience made this project possible.”

THE DIARIES
Any biographer would love to have the kind of access that Meacham was accorded, especially regarding the president’s diaries. But there are several worrisome facts about the situation: 1) in too many cases he simply accepted the president’s version of events as described in the diaries; 2) people sometimes misinterpret events when they record them in diaries, or they discover later that they were mistaken, or -- it happens -- they lie to themselves; 3) like memoirs, diaries can be self-serving and thus unreliable; and 4) Meacham relied too heavily on them.

There are 601 endnotes in the book and I know from reading the text that an extraordinary number of them refer to direct quotes taken from the diaries. In many instances, Meacham quotes the passage and lets it speak for itself, thus accepting Bush’s version when it really needs to be either explained or clarified or supported or rejected by the author.

And there was one glaring omission that leapt out at me regarding the section on Hurricane Katrina which occurred during the presidency of George W. Bush. First of all, Meacham quotes several letters the father wrote complaining about the way the media treated his son in the aftermath of the hurricane. For example:

The criticism enraged the former president, who wrote Hugh Sidey [political columnist and Bush friend] a passionate letter defending his son. He was reminded, he said, of what he himself had faced after Hurricane Andrew in 1992. ‘Now my own son is under the kind of blistering, mean-spirited attack….The critics do not know what is in [George W.’s] heart, how deeply he feels about the hurt, the anguish, the losses affecting so many people, most of them poor.’

The problem is that Meacham once again let Bush’s comments stand. He doesn’t offer an opinion one way or the other as to whether Bush was correct or mistaken in his response to the media coverage. But that isn’t the omission.

The omission involves the time when the former first lady Barbara Bush toured the Houston Astrodome where thousands of Katrina evacuees were warehoused and living in deplorable conditions. Her response as she voiced it to NPR was that “[so] many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this, this is working well for them.” As Jennifer Senior wrote in her review in the New York Times: “How could he have left that out?”

It is quite common for biographers to grow fond of their subjects, but it appears that Meacham fell in love with his. As I read the book I couldn’t help shake the feeling that instead of a biography of George Bush I was reading an autobiography written by George Bush with Jon Meacham as his co-writer.

Steve Donoghue wrote in the Christian Science Monitor, “the methodology results in a flawed book – even though it is well-written and interesting.” He continues:

Many Americans will remember a different President Bush – more venal, more conniving, but also more interesting – and they’ll wish Meacham had written a biography of that man, warts and all.

Count me in that camp.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Sometimes you shape events by not making any mistakes.”

“Destiny & Power” was an unexpected read for me. I enjoy biographies and Jon Meacham has written a few that are on my “to read” list. This was the first I picked up; I will be picking up the others. I was only 10 years old when Bush was elected president, so although I do have memories of his presidency the consequence of the times I was living through were lost on me.
First off, the text flows well, and is simply written. Its narrative pace does a nice job of (mostly) keeping you in the world of George Herbert Walker Bush. Too often biographies pull you in the author’s element rather than the subjects. This text avoids that trap.
The book details the life of the 41st president of the United Sates in a deft manner and there were some unexpectedly very tender moments. The death of Bush’s daughter Robin from leukemia and a section where the text details a bout of depression that Barbara Bush suffered from a few years later are among some of the text’s very human, and thus powerful, moments.
Another decently written section deals with the 1980 Republican Convention and Ronald Reagan making up his mind about the choice for his running mate between former president Gerald Ford and Bush. Of course, I was only 2 when it actually happened, but I did not know that it was such riveting political drama. The tension is palpable at times in this part of the book.
George Bush was many things, but this biography makes astoundingly clear that when it came to foreign policy he was an excellent president, leading the world safely and calmly through the fall of communism and the many (possible) volatile moments that could have accompanied it.
Mr. Meacham had unfettered access to President Bush’s personal diaries and his entry on his final day in the Oval Office talks about the honor of the office and the fact that no one could lay personal misconduct at his feet. Considering what his successor did in that same office it leaves the reader a little in despair that Bush’s generation has passed from leadership and its role in history.
In reading “Destiny & Power”, it is obvious that the author admires his subject and accepts the flaws in him, as we all should, as part of the human condition. I learned a lot while reading this text, and enjoyed doing so. I will leave off with something that Bush said once that struck me with its simple profundity, “There are no magical solutions to our problems. The real answers lie within us. We need more than a philosophy of entitlement. We need to all pitch in, lend a hand, and do our part to help forge a brighter future for this country.”

[Steven Z. · Rating 3 out of 5]

With the rollout of Pulitzer Prize winning biographer Jon Meacham’s new book DESTINY AND POWER: THE AMERICAN ODYSSEY OF GEORGE HERBERT WALKER BUSH what emerged in the media was the elder Bush’s criticisms of Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney’s poor service in the administration of his son. Many pundits have questioned the senior Bush’s judgement since another son, Jeb is in the midst of his own presidential campaign. Whatever motivated the senior Bush it has created a great deal of buzz around Meacham’s latest biography. After successful histories of Andrew Jackson, Thomas Jefferson, and the relationship between Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt, Meacham’s latest effort is not quite on the level of his previous work. In Meacham’s defense it is difficult to write a critical biography of a subject that is still alive, and as time has separated him from his presidency he has become more popular than ever. George H.W. Bush was a lifetime Republican who served in Congress, the head of the Republican National Committee, held a number of important jobs in the Nixon and Ford administrations, and later served as Ronald Reagan’s Vice President. Always a loyal party man he never could quite gain the confidence of the conservative wing of his party. He was always seen as a Rockefeller eastern liberal Republican and he constantly had to prove his bonafides to conservatives. If he were a candidate for office today, Bush would be relegated to the junior varsity on the debate stage on many issues. To Bush’s credit as Meacham points out repeatedly in his narrative, he embraced compromise in public life and engaged his foes in the passage of important legislation as he was willing to buck his own party to do what he believed was right.

After reading Meacham’s description of Bush’s childhood in Connecticut, Kennebunkport, and South Carolina it is obvious what former Texas Governor Anne Richards meant about Bush’s presidential candidacy in 1988, when she stated at the Democratic National Convention that “for eight straight years George Bush hasn’t displayed the slightest interest in anything we care about. And now that he’s after a job that he can’t be appointed to, he’s like Columbus discovering America. Poor George, he can’t help it-he was born with a silver foot in his mouth.” (334-35) The Bush children of the 1930s were insulated from want, but they were raised to feel a sense of obligation to others. According to Meacham, the Bush family code was to disguise one’s ambition, and hunger to win. For years I had difficulty accepting Bush’s authenticity and sincerity as I watched him “flip flop” on issues in order to get elected in 1980 and 1988 and avoid the charge that he was an eastern establishment Republican. I must admit that for over half of Meacham’s narrative I became somewhat convinced that my view was harsh after reading the intimate details of Bush’s patriotism leaving his privileged education to become a naval pilot during World War II and how he reacted and handled being shot down in the Pacific with the loss of his radioman and tail gunner. We see Bush as the supporting husband taking care of a spouse dealing with depression. Further, we are privy to Bush as a father and family man dealing with the passing of his daughter Robin at the age of three from leukemia, witnessing a distraught person who exhibits the traits we would all hope to have in a similar situation.

The book comes across as a conversation between the author and the reader. At times one gets the feeling that Meacham is interviewing the former president conveying Bush’s view of his life, issues, and historical perspectives. We are exposed to the major events in American history from 1964 on as they are intertwined with Bush’s political career. The weakness is that part of the narrative comes across as an extensive magazine article intertwined with a degree of analysis. Meacham for the most part is content with explaining Bush’s motivations for his decisions without delving deeply enough into their ramifications. A case in point is Bush’s vote against the 1964 Civil Rights Act, but a few pages later we learn he voted for the 1968 Fair Housing Act, as if the later vote canceled out the weakness of character reflected in the first vote. We read a great deal about Bush’s personality and his commitment to the family ethos as represented by his father, Prescott Bush, but not enough of what can be described as the “edginess of politics” and its cut throat nature. As I read the first few hundred pages I wondered how such a “nice person” became such a duplicitous politician who would lie about his knowledge concerning the Iran-Contra deal (apart from the Nicaraguan aspect), the use of the Willie Horton commercial in 1988 and his alliance with the likes of Lee Atwater and Roger Ailes, his reversals on abortion, taxes, and other issues to make him palatable to be Ronald Reagan’s running mate. What I gathered from Meacham’s narrative is that Bush according to the family credo was that winning was most important, but that is covered up by a political pragmatism rather than following what the author presents as his core principles.

Meacham does a credible job discussing the major aspects of Bush’s career. His successful run for the House of Representatives and defeat as he tries to win a Senate seat in the 1960s. We learn of his stint as UN Ambassador under Richard Nixon, envoy to China, and CIA Head under Gerald Ford, highlighting the domestic and international machinations of each. The reader is placed inside his campaign against Ronald Reagan in 1980 and the development of their working relationship since Ronald and Nancy Reagan did not think much of the Bushes at the outset. Meacham constantly points to Bush’s winning personality as his key asset and we can see how effective he is in winning over the President and developing a strong personal relationship during the Reagan administrations. The reader has an insider’s view of the White House during the first Reagan administration and the role that Bush played. Then, the second administration seems to disappear in the narrative except for a discussion of Iran-Contra and the duplicitous role played by Bush. By 1988 Bush must earn his next governmental position, the presidency, something he seems to have sought since his entrance into politics in the 1960s, because there are no longer any appointments coming his way because of the networking that had rewarded him for decades in business and politics.

Meacham’s focus and analysis seems to take a sharper turn as he deals with the 1988 presidential campaign as he examines the mistaken choice Bush admits to in choosing Dan Quayle as his running mate. We follow the campaign and the errors of the Dukakis team as we see the former Massachusetts governor foolishly riding in a tank in New Jersey and is forced to deal with the prison furlough program that brought about the Willie Horton ad. Once elected, Meacham accurately explores Bush’s successes in foreign policy and the difficulties he faced in dealing with Congress over domestic legislation during his term in office.

I am very familiar with Bush’s personal belief that he thought that he should receive the major credit for winning the Cold War, and I am certain that believers in the Reagan cult would beg to differ. However, Bush senior must be commended for the way he handled the fall of the Berlin Wall and the personal relationship he was able to develop with Mikhail Gorbachev that fostered arms control and a lessening of tensions between the former Cold War competitors. Meacham takes us from the night the Wall was breached through the difficult diplomacy that resulted in the reunification of Germany. Though the definitive account of those heady days have yet to be written, Meacham’s narrative praising Bush for his calm and steady approach to events and his diplomacy, particularly with the Soviet Union and NATO members forms an excellent summary. Bush has the reputation of overseeing a strong foreign policy that resulted in his words, “a new world order,” where the bipolar Cold War was replaced by a new unipolar world. This characterization can be easily argued, but Meacham chooses not to in the same way as he glances over the American invasion of Panama to replace Manuel Noriega. Perhaps if he would have delved into the background relationship between the American national security establishment and the drug trafficking Panamanian dictator the reader would be provided a clearer picture. Further, Meacham leaves out some important details in the run up to the American invasion of Iraq after Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait. The reader is provided with a detailed account of Bush’s handling of the crisis, but what is missing is an accurate description of the messages we sent to the Iraqi dictator at the end of July, 1990 right before the invasion. To his credit, Meacham explores the meetings between Saddam and American Ambassador to Iraq, April Glaspie whose career took a strong hit after the invasion took place. Perhaps if the administration would have laid out clearer instructions, Glaspie’s messages to Saddam would not have been so misinterpreted to the point where he believed that the United States would not remove his forces from Kuwait militarily. Bush is to be credited with putting together an international coalition against Saddam, and unlike his son he realized the vacuum that would be created if American troops marched on Baghdad in March, 1991 and that once the predictable civil war between Shi’ites and Sunni would evolve, Iran would emerge as the true winner. Another aspect that Meacham should have explored closely is the Bush family’s relationship with the Saudi royal family and what impact it had on American policy. Craig Unger’s HOUSE OF BUSH HOUSE OF SAUD is worth consulting.

Meacham correctly points out that Bush did have a domestic agenda as he repeatedly refers to Bush’s diaries to support the idea that the president wanted to improve the lives of everyday Americans. His successes include a raising of educational standards and enhancements for the Head Start program, amendments to the Clean Air Act, and the Americans for Disability Act. However, once Bush had to deal with economic policy as the American economy fell into recession he ran up against a conservative wall in Congress led by Newt Gingrich. Once he decided to turn away from his famous “read my lips” promise when he won the Republican presidential nomination and agreed to raise federal taxes to deal with the budget crisis he just reaffirmed the belief of conservatives that he was not one of them. Again, to Bush’s credit he put political pragmatism and his country ahead of those in his party who may have pursued the actions of the Ted Cruz’s of today. Meacham hits the nail on the head when states that Bush “could mold an international coalition, but he could not convince his own party to back their president.” (448)

Meacham provides an in depth account of the 1992 presidential campaign and the rivalry with the egoistic Ross Perot that resulted in the election of Bill Clinton. The author puts the reader on the debate stage as Bush stares too long at his watch and has difficulty remembering the price of hamburger. For Bush it was very difficult for a member of the greatest generation to lose the presidency to someone who he then characterized as a “draft dodger.” However, Meacham is correct in pointing out that the reason Bush lost the election was that he did not seem to be that committed to his own election victory. Time and again Meacham pointed to Bush’s diaries that expressed doubts as to whether he should have run.

Once out of office, Bush could theoretically relax, reflect, and enjoy his family. For the most part he did, but he was worried about the course of his son’s presidency and the tone set by Bush 43’s administration commentary. Overall, Meacham received unparalleled access to Bush 41 on a personal level as well as the availability to his diaries and many of those who served his political career and administration. Meacham has written what appears to be an authorized biography that will be well received, but could have been a bit more incisive and balanced.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm trying to read a book about every President.

Will I succeed?

Probably not. Some presidents seem uninteresting and one died weeks after taking office but I will try.

One term presidents are rather rare in The U.S. There have only been about 11 presidents who lost their reelection bid including President Sore Loser. In my lifetime there have only been 2 such presidents. President Sore Loser and George H. W. Bush. Americans tend to be complacent and we tend to be willing to stick with the incumbent.

I'll start off by saying that despite the fact that had I been old enough(I was 2) when he ran in 1988 I wouldn't have voted for him and I wouldn't have voted for him in 1992(I was 6) either. I was old enough to vote for his son in 2004(it was my 1st) but did not (John Kerry!). I still think that George H.W.Bush was a nice person. As I said before I would never have voted for him but that doesn't mean that I think he's a bad person(His sons W & Jeb can go to hell tho)

Destiny and Power is an exploration of man who was probably too nice to be president. He didn't seem to have the fight needed to handle the global issues that presidents deal with. Throughout his political career he was never far right enough for Republicans or middle of the road enough for Democrats. At times he tried to be a right winger and it usually blew up in his face. He wasn't a perfect president ( hence the 1 term) I don't think he should EVER be forgiven for putting the human garbage that is Clarence Thomas on the supreme court. But overall his presidency was more of a place holder or bridge to take us from Reagan to Clinton.

I love Jon Meacham and you can tell that he took the time to really get to know George H.W. Bush and that he has a ton of respect for him. I'm glad I read this book. I didn't know a lot about him since he was president when I was so young. I think he often gets forgotten when we discuss modern presidents. My dad forgot George H. W. Bush was ever even president(he didn't vote in 1988 and my mother was pissed. He voted in 1992). His time in office was short but I think current politicians could learn a thing or two about how to be a decent person from the late President Bush.

A must read!

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: Meacham traces the life of our 41st president from his family’s roots and values that shaped a man both deeply committed to service and country, and also highly competitive and ambitious. The biography traces both his skillful leadership in handling the transition from the Cold War era, and the inability of this deeply private man to communicate his deep care for and desire to serve his country that cost him a second term.

Reading this biography suggested to me that George H. W. Bush is perhaps under-rated both as a president and a person. For many, he is regarded as an asterisk between the Reagan and Clinton years. And yet, as President, he skillfully navigated the nation in international relations at the end of the Cold War era that avoided provoking hard-line reactionaries in the former Soviet Union, facilitating the reunification of Germany, the freedom of Soviet satellites from Communist domination, and the establishment of warm relations between the U.S. and Russia. He built an international coalition to decisively defeat Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait and bring relief to the atrocities against Kuwaitis, containing Hussein without becoming embroiled in another “Vietnam”.

While growing up in a privileged New England family, he was a genuine war hero, surviving being shot down after a bombing run at Chichi-Jima. Before going off to war, he married Barbara, beginning a lifelong partnership between two very strong individuals. They experienced tragedy that deepened their compassion early in marriage, losing their daughter Robin to leukemia. They built their own fortune in the Texas oil industry of the 1950s. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives, then lost a Senate race in 1964 in the midst of Lyndon Johnson’s landslide victory over Barry Goldwater. Subsequently, he served in Republican party leadership, as U.N. ambassador, our ambassador to China and as C.I.A. director.

There was the complicated relationship with Ronald Reagan. Losing to Reagan after a promising beginning in Iowa, criticizing Reagan’s age and “voo-doo economics” he is selected as running mate, despite Nancy Reagan’s opposition. He turns out to be the ideal Vice-President who becomes a trusted friend by never stealing the limelight, and is asked by Nancy to give Reagan’s eulogy, which he did paying tribute not only to Reagan but to Nancy.

The drive for success, for power accounted for the weaknesses and flaws in his story–compromised positions on civil rights in the early years, the Willie Horton ads in the Presidential campaign, the famous “read my lips” promise that he broke when it became clear that only additional tax revenues could address the nation’s fiscal problems in the early 1990’s. Meacham explores the drive in his character that led to these compromises. At the same time, we see a president willing to do what he saw in the best interests of his country even though it contributed to his loss of the presidency, ironically laying the groundwork for budget surpluses in the Clinton years. We also see a very private man torn by the political necessities of glad-handing, wearying of the process in the 1992 election, outshone by the young Democrat from Arkansas.

As impressive as anything else is the life he lived after his one term presidency. He kept a low profile and eventually became good friends even with Bill Clinton, as the two former presidents worked on tsunami relief. Meacham writes about his relationship with his presidential son and there is no evidence of the father second-guessing the son, even on Iraq. He dismissed comparisons on this score with the response that these were different circumstances, different wars. Rather the relationship was one of pride and support, allowing the son to be his own person and only offering counsel when asked. Generally, he was generous with his words even of political foes. The few exceptions: Donald Rumsfeld (always a rival) and Dick Cheney, whose vice-presidency Bush 41 criticized after the fact.

Years earlier, I read Kevin Phillips American Dynasty, which is a much more sinister view of the Bushes as an inter-generational political dynasty. His account and Meacham’s are very different. Perhaps it was the fact that Phillips book was written during the height of criticism of Bush 43’s Iraq policies just before the 2004 elections. This seems a much more measured appraisal and a pleasure to read. It presented a man of both great ambition and generally high principle as well as one far more decent than he was given credit in his 1992 defeat. While acting in his own best political interests at times, what was more striking were the times he acted in service to the country, even at the expense of his own interests, whether as CIA director, vice president, or in the 1990 budget deal raising taxes. I was struck with how fortunate we were to have one with his foreign policy skill at the denouement of the Cold War. While his presidency is still in the recent past and will be subject to continuing discussion, Barack Obama’s assessment on awarding the Medal of Freedom to George H. W. Bush in 2010 may be the most fitting:

“As good a measure of a president as I know is somebody who ultimately put the country first and it strikes me that throughout his life he did that, both before he was president and while he was president, and ever since.”

[Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

George H. W. Bush is one of the few presidents that did not write his autobiography after leaving office. Jon Meacham has produced the “official biography” on H.W. Bush. I have read a number of Meacham’s books including “American Lion” which won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize.

Meacham did extensive research for the book and was allowed access to Bush’s diaries and numerous interviews with family and friends. Needless to say he also had access to the presidential papers and other archive materials.

Bush 41 comes across as an ambitious and emotional man, which is different from the aloof and polished figure we normally see. Meacham also reveals him to be a witty observer of other people’s quirks. Bush 41 was raised in privilege but did service to the country in World War II and as an elected official. The book covers his life from birth to the current date. I found the last quarter of the book the most interesting.

The book is well written and meticulously researched. Meacham comes off neutral and lacking ideological fervor that allows him to paint a picture of Bush that is new. The book does have an affectionate feel for Bush, but Meacham has a judicious balanced approach to the material. The book also provides quite a bit of new information that makes the book well worth the read. I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is long at 800 pages or 25 hours. Paul Michael does a good job narrating the book.

[Aaron Million · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written a few years before the end of his life, Jon Meacham provides one of the first complete biographies of George H.W. Bush. Bush was one of the most qualified men ever to hold the office of President of the United States, having served in Congress, and then holding a series of appointive offices under Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Even when Bush ran as Ronald Reagan's vice-president, he was still subservient politically to Reagan, as the VP should be. Not until he ran in 1988 did he really become his own man in the eyes of many, and maybe even himself.

Meacham covers Bush's privileged upbringing and childhood extensively, reviewing his wealthy family's roots. He also shows Bush being instilled from childhood with a sense of patriotic duty to his country. This manifested itself early, when he enlisted as a fighter pilot in WWII as soon as he turned 18. Bush's service continued throughout his life except for his period of moving to Texas and working in the oil business starting in the late 1940s. Meacham covers equally Bush's professional and personal lives, focusing on the highs and lows of both, with none lower than the tragic death of Bush and Barbara's daughter, Robin, in 1953. One wonders how they managed to survive, despite having each other for support.

Meacham reviews Bush's rise in politics, but also his missteps: being against the Civil Rights Act of 1964 so as to appeal to the growing right-wing of the Republican Party, his two failed Senate runs in Texas, and his failed 1980 presidential campaign in which he eventually bowed out to Reagan and got lucky to be chose by Reagan as his VP after negotiations between Reagan and Ford collapsed.

Unlike so many presidential biographies, Meacham devotes considerable time to Bush's post-presidency. While Bush attempted to stay out of the limelight, he was inevitably brought back into it thanks to the gubernatorial campaigns of both George W. and Jeb, followed immediately by George W.'s presidential run, the 2000 election dispute, then 9/11, and finally with Bush's deepening partnership and friendship with Clinton. I am glad that Meacham reviewed all of this in detail, although I thought he ran a little long in discussing Bush's reluctance to offer unsolicited advice to George W. After awhile, I really did not care that much whether and how much advice he did or did not offer.

There were some things that I thought were missing. In Susan Page's excellent biography of Barbara Bush, she wrote about her returning home alone for the Christmas holidays in 1974 while the Bushes were stationed in Beijing. Page alluded to some marital difficulties being behind that uncharacteristic behavior (it seemed like the Bushes were together as much as possible). But here Meacham does not really touch on that. He mentions how, later on, Bush was attacked for possibly committing adultery, but that those seemed to be none other than smear campaigns (I agree with Meacham - I think they were baseless).

Meacham also provides almost no review of Bush's Cabinet selection, which generally is an important part of presidential biographies. Other than discussing Dick Cheney being named Secretary of Defense, the rest of the Cabinet is hardly mentioned (James Baker was already in the book so much that Bush's nomination of him as Secretary of State really didn't need an explanation). Also, certain parts of Bush's presidency are barely mentioned, such as the ethnic conflict in Bosnia, the devastation of Hurricane Andrew, or Bush's 1000 Points of Light. In a note at the end of the book, Meacham addresses this - saying that his goal was not to write a comprehensive review of Bush's presidency, but rather a more nuanced view of Bush's life and the times that he lived in. Fair enough. Still, I would have liked more. And one final observation: it did not seem like Meacham used Reagan's extensive diaries at all, or at least not in the published book. We get a lot of what Bush thinks of Reagan, but we get almost nothing from Reagan's viewpoint. I thought that was a missed opportunity.

Moving forward, this has to be an indispensable source for any future Bush scholars. Meacham's full access to Bush, Barbara, their children, and just as important, the Bush's diaries will reap dividends for future biographers and historians. This is a solid book about someone who looks better and better with the passing of time. Largely seen as a failed or inconsequential president during his time in office, his decency, integrity, and morality stand up very well in an era of conspiracy theories and threats of violence against those with whom one disagrees.

Grade: A-

[Cora · Rating 4 out of 5]

George H. W. Bush is in some ways a neglected figure in recent American history. Ronald Reagan supposedly won the Cold War abroad and defeated big government at home, leaving nothing for Bush to do but betray the Gipper's legacy. (A comparison with an earlier generation's view of JFK and Lyndon Johnson would be instructive, I think.) Bush's reputation improved during his son's administration, as he was seen as the 'good ones' whose legacy was tarnished by a feckless son. Bush 41's positive qualities were discovered or in some cases invented out of whole cloth. And yet this didn't engender a strong interest in Bush's legacy, any more than Jeb Bush's reputation as the 'smart Bush' created an interest in Florida education policy.

For that reason, Jon Meacham's DESTINY AND POWER is a welcome read despite the his often-hagiographic tone. On the foreign policy front, George H. W. Bush looms particularly large: his administration did the lion's share of work on NAFTA; helped to secure the unification of Germany within NATO; and led the country (and a coalition of nations) to war against Iraq after the invasion of Kuwait. A generation on, it seems as if America is still living out the implications of these decisions. On the domestic policy front the 1990 budget agreement and the Americans with Disabilities Act both seem like substantial accomplishments. To my mind, Bush is a more important president than his immediate predecessor.

Meacham tells the story of Bush's presidency ably and briskly, and he does particularly well when recounting the major moments of his private life: getting shot down as a Naval pilot over Chichi-jima, the loss of his daughter Robin, age three, to leukemia. However, as a chronicler of Bush the man I'm afraid he pales in comparison to Richard Ben Cramer's biography in WHAT IT TAKES, perhaps because his reliance on access to the Bush family permits a level of white-washing.

Central to the book is a nostalgic appreciation not only for Bush's character but for an older generation of public-spirited elite WASPs from which Bush sprang. (The original title was THE LAST GENTLEMAN.) This struck me as unconvincing. For example, Meacham describes that Poppy Bush was pushed to achieve on the one hand while being punished for talking about himself on the other hand. (When, as a child, he said after a match that "I was off my game," his mother witheringly replied, "_You_ don't have a game.") This doesn't encourage modesty--since modest accomplishments were not to be tolerated--as much as deception. Bush seems to have learned from this how best to disguise his ambition in a cloak of public-spiritedness and please powerful men through targeted acts of sycophancy. "Bush", Richard Nixon wrote once, "plays our line beautifully."

Also in regards to Bush's character, it's worth examining why his electoral strategy so often relied on race-baiting, from his 1964 opposition to civil rights to his 1970 rhetoric against 'welfare queens,' not to mention his repeated invocation of Willie Horton during the 1988 campaign. This doesn't sit well with the widespread notion of Bush as a gentleman, and Meacham is not the biographer to delve too deeply into this subject.

(Curiously, Meacham does disabuse the reader of another pro-Bush 41 myth that took root after 2003: Poppy was apparently eager to get on the record as a supporter of the Iraq invasion.)

With all of Meacham's limitations, I found that they bothered me much less than similar errors might be in a biography of a more prominent figure. Bush 41 is too often neglected, and if Meacham's judgments aren't always sound he leaves enough evidence to reach another conclusion. Hopefully DESTINY AND POWER encourages others to take Bush, and his legacy, seriously.

[Terry Cornell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Meacham's books on Presidents Jefferson and Jackson. I don't know why it took me so long to finish this one on Bush. Perhaps because I wasn't alive during those lifetimes, but was for much of Bush's. Reflecting on what was happening in my life in relation to Bush, national, and world events slowed down my reading. Pondering why I didn't seem to know much about Bush 41, and then grasping that when Bush was Reagan's VP I was in college and pretty much politically out of touch. When Bush became president, I was starting off on my career which seemed all encompassing-- again politically out of touch--at least on the national level. When Bill Clinton became president is when I first started really paying attention to national politics.

Another factor is that in more recent history more detailed information is available. A deeper dive into the minutia can sometimes make things more interesting, it can also make it harder to mentally digest.

I realized Meacham also had to have a much different research approach, since he could actually interview Bush as well as others. I found this to be another outstanding Meacham biography. He does a great job of capturing the essence of Bush, probably one of our countries most underrated presidents. I just wish Meacham would give up his side job of being a political pundit. I almost shelved this book for good, thinking there was no way he could give an impartial analysis of Bush 41's presidency.

As bios do, this starts up with H.W.'s early years. This can get a little confusing--George is a very popular name in the Bush clan. College years interrupted to serve in the US Navy as a pilot. Returning to college after the war, and finishing a degree at Yale in economics.

Bush traveled to Texas, starting off as a hard scrabble oil equipment salesman, and eventually made his fortune as a founding partner in an oil development company.

Eventually he followed his dad, Senator Prescott Bush's footsteps into politics. During the LBJ years Bush was elected to Congress. When unlike most Texas politicians Bush backed Nixon versus Reagan in the 1968 Republican primaries, Nixon appointed Bush as UN Ambassador when Bush lost a race for a Texas Senate seat. Nixon later asked Bush to take over as the Chairman of the RNC.

President Ford appointed Bush Ambassador to China, then to Director of the CIA. During the Carter years Bush went back to the private life, but then Reagan eventually chose Bush to be his running mate.

Things I learned: Much of Republican opposition to the Civil Rights Act was mostly fear of federal government gaining too much control over private business and state governments. In the Nixon era, Reaganites were considered to be Cold War hawks, Nixonites more moderate, and the Rockefeller Republicans to be more liberal.

Interesting reading about the Republican primaries leading to the 1980 presidential election. Reagan already had misgivings about Bush going back to the primaries leading to Nixon's election. (Bush supported Nixon). One of Bush's campaign managers came up with the term 'voodoo economics' originally in regard to President Carter. Reagan reluctantly picked Bush to be his VP. Reagan advisors finally convinced him Bush was the best choice. They formed a deep friendship and respect for each other. Nancy Reagan selected Bush to give the eulogy at Reagan's funeral service.

One of Bush's rules as VP was 'don't play the Washington news-leaking game'. Apparently this isn't a new thing! Roger Ailes, now known as the former CEO of Fox News, was a Nixon and Reagan media adviser and adman. He helped Bush during the 1980 elections with his speaking and presentation styles.

One of my favorite quotes from the book was actually from Barbara Bush '. . . our success as a society depends not on what happens in the White House, but what happens inside your house.'

Often overlooked, is that on 9-11 H.W. Bush and Barbara were on a commercial flight flying to St. Paul Minnesota. When the World Trade Center was attacked their plane was forced to land in Milwaukee.

The last pages of Meacham's book show Bush 41 trying to balance caring for his son's victory to attain the oval office and creating his own destiny without intruding and imprinting his own ideas and philosophy. The elder Bush reveals some criticisms over his son's choices, and shows how proud he is of his accomplishments. Bush also reveals his opinions on working with former President Clinton on fund-raising for disaster relief, and what a contrast in personalities they were!

To many people's surprise President Obama presented Bush with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, praising him for helping usher in the post cold-war era and creating an opportunity for stability and peace in the world.

George H.W. Bush believed in serving his country by serving in political office. He was a successful businessman, and viewed his political life as a service to his country. Sadly there seem to be to few like him in our political landscape today.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://bestpresidentialbios.com/2018...

Published in 2015, “Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush” by Jon Meacham is the most recent full-scale biography of the 41st president. Meacham is a presidential historian and author whose biography of Andrew Jackson won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize. He has also written about Thomas Jefferson and Franklin Roosevelt and is currently working on a biography of James and Dolley Madison.

With 601 pages of text and nearly 200 pages of notes and bibliography, “Destiny and Power” is not a light read. Yet this meticulously-researched (and largely sympathetic) biography feels more sprightly than it appears. In his customary style, Meacham has written a thoughtful, well-informed and exquisitely articulate life-and-times.

It is uncommon for a biographer and his or her subject to meet…and even more extraordinary for an author to receive the type of cooperation Meacham received from George H. W. Bush. For more than a decade, Bush sat for numerous interviews, provided access to his personal diaries and encouraged the cooperation of his family and political colleagues. This is one of the book’s greatest strengths – but also one of its latent weaknesses.

As a result of this intimacy between biographer and subject, the reader is treated to a degree of familiarity which cannot be captured in most presidential biographies. In many respects, Meacham’s biography often feels like the memoirs Bush 41 never wrote…but with a professional patina.

Bush’s pre-presidency takes up just over half the book while one-third of the biography is allocated to his single term in the White House. The final sixty pages are spent reviewing Bush’s retirement with an emphasis on his relationship with Jeb, George and Bill Clinton.

The earliest decades of Bush’s life are nicely covered but seem to pass too quickly, particularly since the author had a unique opportunity to explore his subject’s years at Andover, in the Navy and in his business career with even greater depth. Similarly, Bush’s early political career retreats too rapidly – his transition into politics, his first campaign for Congress, and his service at the UN, RNC and CIA hardly linger long enough to leave a distinct impression.

The narrative’s pace slows once Bush seeks the presidential nomination in 1988. But while Meacham’s description of the president-elect assembling his inner-circle is often fascinating there is very little insight into how he selected most of his Cabinet. And, throughout the book, important supporting characters such as James Baker, Bob Dole and Dan Quayle receive only the briefest of introductions.

Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait (and Bush’s response) features prominently in Meacham’s coverage of the Bush presidency; these four chapters are among the most interesting in the book. And the most intriguing of Meacham’s revelations may be Bush’s thoughts on Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld – and their impact on the Bush 43 presidency.

Ironically given its length, if Meacham’s biography has one overarching flaw, it’s that it is not nearly long – or detailed – enough. As a result, while it covers discrete events well (and always seems to know what is on Bush’s mind) too frequently it fails to answer questions that fall out of the narrative, or to probe more deeply, or to fully analyze or assess.

Overall, Jon Meacham’s biography of George H. W. Bush is very good…but fell short of my expectations. Because as revealing as this biography proves to be – largely due to the relationship between author and subject – it is never as deep, critical or penetrating as I hoped. But it provides an otherwise excellent (if admiring) review of the remarkably eventful life and career of George H. W. Bush.

Overall rating: 4 stars



Note: Bush was to live another three years after this biography was published. And while he reviewed much of the manuscript he apparently exerted no editorial influence. Meacham, of course, was chosen to deliver one of the eulogies at George H.W. Bush’s funeral.

[Marc · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been wanting to read a Jon Meacham book for a while. I chose George H W Bush out of curiosity for the one term president with the huge glasses stuck between Reagan and Clinton.

I enjoyed Meachum's highly readable prose and interesting use of quotes from Bush's personal papers. The book took several years to write and the author had a privileged access to the 41st president. I found the era between 1966 to 1980 to be the most interesting part of his life (from his first term in congress to his second political life on the Reagan ticket). Bush was a real risks taker who never shrank from complicated challenges. I especially enjoyed the details about the relationships with his bosses and foes (Nixon, Ford, Carter, Perot, Buchanan, Reagan, Gingrich, Clinton, Dukakis).

Only downside: no punches pulled at all in this book. I would not described this biography as well balanced but I think it worth the read.

George H W Bush had class as a politician, could compromise and make real friendship with fellow democrats. Something that is rare to see these times on Capitol Hill.

[11811 (Eleven) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great biography. The tension was sometimes so palpable I forgot I already knew how it all turned out. As for the man himself, few would disagree about his honor and integrity. Obama calls him one of our most underrated presidents.

It doesn't surprise me that he lost his reelection attempt. It's not easy to govern with pragmatism and expect undying support from the more extreme wing of your political party. I respect any president who does what he thinks is right knowing it will hurt him politically. Politics would benefit from more people with such character.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jon Meacham tells in 600 pages the story of a man who lived a four-volume life. Where longer biographies can become bogged down in political minutiae, Destiny and Power has captured the essence of the president once known best as George Bush.

Bush’s legacy may be grander than his four years in the White House, and it certainly is as far as the Bush family and his friends are concerned. Meacham brings Bush out from the shadows of Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, Mikhail Gorbachev, George W. Bush, and Dana Carvey. Into the light he is thrust, given his hour again, by an author who would eulogize him just three years after publication.

Destiny and Power is incredibly easy to read, fast paced—constantly moving, like Bush himself. Bush’s character shines, when it often seemed absent during his presidency. Barbara, George W., and Jeb are all given adequate space in these pages, and Ross Perot intrudes often enough.

Meacham is unnecessarily apologetic in the Author’s Note at book’s end. A reader should expect a biographer to be partial to his subject, but modern times have us questioning anything we are told by an authority or intellectual. In 2020, history needs a hero, and the American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush isn’t a bad place to start looking.

[Jake Hahn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best biography I have ever read. When I saw it was over 800 pages I was worried there might be alot if boring filler. This was not the case at all I was thoroughly entertained throughout the book. I came away with a new found respect for this Bush after reading this. I was especially happy with his stand against the John Birchers.

I won this book on good reads but it was after I bought the Kindle edition.

[Alexw · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the Meacham book, The American Lion about Andrew Jackson which won the Pulitzer and if that book won the Pulitzer then Destiny and Power should have no trouble winning this years Pulitzer. Bush dictated his notes for years and turned them over to Meacham so you get his story as it happened -warts and all. Bush struggles with the media who labelled him a wimp even though he was the youngest fighter pilot in WW 2, his contempt of draft dodger, Bill Clinton and his absolute awe for Ronald Regan. Get your political fix on this book before the 2016 Presidential election makes us all cynical of the election process.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meacham is a top rate historian and Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush may be his best work. I would even go so far as to say that this is also one of the best Presidential biographies that I have read. An impressive achievement given that George H.W. Bush historically ranks as a pretty average president.

In addition to Meacham’s obvious chops as a Pulitzer Prize winning author, this biography is a good read because there is so much source material peppered with anecdotes. This is a consistent read which was generally sympathetic to Bush although a few controversies were addressed. Meacham dispels some myths including one that Bush enjoyed enormous family wealth. Bush was certainly well connected but the wealth from his oil startup didn't come until he and Barbara were married for more than a decade.

Meacham was able to interview Bush many times over the course of the ten years it took to prepare the biography and even-handedly tells us about the young Bush, his military service in WWII, business success, fatherhood and his political life through his presidency. There are few other presidents who served in so many different roles within the federal government and the DC establishment (U.S. congressman, UN Ambassador, Chairman of the RNC, U.S. Envoy to China, CIA director, Vice President, President and was a Navy fighter pilot in WWII).

Meacham shows us that Bush was ambitious and fiercely competitive but also that he didn’t always have the campaign charisma to match rivals, including the outsized personalities of Reagan (1980 Republican nomination) and Clinton (1992 presidential election). Although his outward persona could be perceived as tepid and even at times awkward, George H.W. Bush was a fighter and an obedient public servant. He was able to succeed at the highest level of government during the largest scandals in the 1970s (Watergate) and 1980s (Iran-Contra).

This biography is a “mere” 600 pages, which is about the right length for a one term president who has had so many other accomplishments. Bush’s biography provides an excellent context for those interactions with many other famous people in American presidential history including Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan and Bush Jr.

Would highly recommend this well organized and well paced read to anyone regardless of political belief, especially those with a broad interest in 1970s and 1980s national politics.

[Jerome Otte · Rating 4 out of 5]

A readable, balanced and thorough if not exhaustive biography of Bush.

The narrative is well-paced and insightful although, on the whole, it doesn’t add much new. A lot of it deals with the Bush family background and its impact on his character. Meacham describes Bush’s vice presidency and how he had both the good and bad fortune to follow Reagan into the White House, as well as how Bush’s presidential successes seemed to outweigh his failures. Meacham also covers how Bush always downplayed his own ambition even while thinking that he was always the best man for whatever position he was in.

I don’t know if I’d describe the book as hagiographic, but it did seem to veer in that direction at times, almost like Meacham was ghostwriting a memoir for Bush (the book also relies heavily on interviews with him, and Meacham doesn’t always critique them). Meacham’s criticism often seems to coincide with Bush’s self-criticism, and there is little on his campaign against Dukakis, for example. The section on the Vice Presidency also seems skimpy; it’s basically just about how Reagan and Bush worked together. It also seems like there are more anecdotes than analysis.

A fair, vivid and well-written biography.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coming to the Oval Office at a critical time in foreign and domestic affairs, the Presidency of George H.W. Bush was filled with successes and failures but guided by a steady hand. Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush by Jon Meacham brings together independent historical research and interviews from the former President and numerous family members as well as political colleagues and advisories to bring the life and career of the 41st President to readers.

Meacham begins the biography with a family history of G.H.W. Bush’s father and mother showing how their lives were shaped that would influence their second son and made him the competitive though ego suppressing individual he was. Though Meacham gave overall historical background for certain situations, this was a book focusing on the life of G.H.W. Bush and what he did throughout his life from his post-war decision to forgo an easy career on Wall Street to join the oil business to Texas and being his own man in politics and not agree with everything his father Prescott believed while serving in the Senate. A political career that had as many defeats as victories, G.H.W. Bush’s path to the White House was through public service, especially throughout the 1970s especially in the diplomat sphere that would later impact his handling of foreign affairs of his Presidency. Meacham covers the Vice Presidential and Presidential terms in detail which cover over half the book before ending with the former President’s unique retirement as elder statesman and father of a serving President of the United States and an analysis of his relationship with his son during those years.

Taking roughly a decade of research, interviews, and writing Meacham presents a thoroughly well-rounded view of the 41st President, Barbara Bush, and their relationships with their children within reason. The elder Bush and Barbara allowed Meacham a free hand in written and this is evident in their attitudes to individuals being put in print and Meacham analysis of various controversies particularly Iran-Contra scandal. If there is one drawback is that at the time of publication the 41st President was still alive with several years left to live and express his views on things, but also a biography after the subjects death allows time afterwards to fully analyze their lives and that difference was evident.

Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush is a very written and thorough biography of the 41st President of the United States. Like his other biographies, Jon Meacham’s research and analysis give a vivid description of his subject and his family. This is a highly recommended biography for anyone interested in the 41st President or the particular time in the 20th Century when he was in office.

[Bob Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, I love biographies, especially those that don’t try to lionize their subject. Meacham does a wonderful job of presenting GHWB as a sometimes flawed but but still decent man, who sought to DO something (lead a nation and the world into a new and better era) rather than just BE something (a title).
The life stories and diary excerpts ( from both George and Barbara) describe both “the most competitive person I ever met” (per James Baker, his closest friend) and the man who in the midst of a victory celebration calls his opponent to express his empathy. They also reveal what the Presidency is like. - the imperfect choices to make, unfair criticisms to endure, and strains on a family.

GHWB’s political undoing may well have been his distrust and disregard for the far right in his party. He foresaw the current difficulty our nation has with being willing to compromise (regardless of which party you’re part of) to get things done. This reading takes you to the feelings and calculations of a principled man, willing to risk re-election to do what he believes is right. Reading this makes you wonder though: how well do we know any of our leaders today (beyond their carefully crafted media images)?

All of us are a study in contradiction to some extent. Meacham doesn’t try to rationalize those contradictions in Bush, and the result is an even greater appreciation for a man who lived by a simple creed his mother taught him: “do your best.”

I’d highly recommend this to anyone who wants a greater understanding of a critical period in our history, and perhaps a look at how we might ease our current political divisiveness.

[Christie Bane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a solid presidential biography that made it clear that George H. W. Bush was a good man. No matter that he made policy decisions that a lot of people disagreed with, or that he broke a promise he made ("Read my lips: No new taxes"), or that he wasn't a great speaker like the presidents before him and after him. He was honest, he listened, he took the time to understand issues, he looked at issues from all sides, he cared about people, he was civil... He was everything that it seems like none of our politicians are. The Bush vs Clinton election was the first one I voted in, and I was all like, "Bill Clinton is hot and awesome and George Bush is a boring old fogey." Well, I admit now I was wrong (not about Clinton -- he was hot and awesome -- but about Bush), and I would love to have someone of George Bush's caliber in either party running for president.

[Sassa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 stars....not quite a 4.
I enjoyed the peripheral chapters the most: the beginning chapters including George H. W. Bush’s ancestry, childhood, education, marriage and service in WW 2; and the final chapters discussing his volunteerism and stance during his son’s George W. Bush’s presidency.
It is great fun to recall the names of Bush’s administration and to read back-door negotiations.

A life motto of Bush, engrained by his mother was: “Tell the truth. Don’t blame people. Be strong. Do your best. Try hard. Forgive. Stay the course.”
The Bushes were to win, but not brag; succeed, but not preen.

Bush’s most telling characteristic is that he is a very loving and devoted father and grandfather. His gentle, thoughtful and polite political behavior may be the end of the genre.
“I just go about my business,” he dictated. “Work hard, and get the job done. I hate the negative things that are said about me, but I know nothing to do but to fight back in this state.” Time marched on. “But there is always a tomorrow,” Bush told his diary. “Remember that—always.”

Interesting note: “Though not totally open: The New York developer Donald Trump mentioned his availability as a vice presidential candidate to Lee Atwater. Bush thought the overture “strange and unbelievable.”

Books, especially novels, were always a part of Bush’s life..
The Bush children read Two Years Before the Mast, Tess of the d’Urbervilles, and Mutiny on the Bounty.
A key biblical verse much repeated in the Bush household came from the First Epistle to the Corinthians: “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful,” a variation of the Gospel text from St. Luke: “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.”
“Pretty much every day we’d have a Bible verse, usually at breakfast,”

On the Finback, after Bush was rescued from a downed fighter plane during WW 2, as a mental escape he read C. S. Forester’s Captain from Connecticut, Lloyd C. Douglas’s The Robe, Paul Hughes’s Retreat from Rostov, and John Dos Passos’s Number One.

I also enjoyed the many photos included. We live in a special time, too, because we can watch internet clips of events described in the book.

It is a thick book, but I would estimate that at least 30% is notes and photography. (That is not official, just my estimate.)

[Kamil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush by Jon Meacham - (9/10)

I started reading this book just a little after finishing Boot's biography of Reagan as I thought it would be quite fitting to read a book about the 41st President right after the 40th.
I soon realised that Max Boot took heavy inspiration from Meacham's style of writing and layout. The chapter layouts look identical, as do the acts. But I must say, Meacham just does it far better.

I appreciate Meacham's effort in this book as it was written between 2006 and 2015, and he did not allow H.W Bush to read any of it prior to release as he didn't want his input on it. I find it admirable that he managed to be really non-biased as opposed to Boot's book on Reagan, who appeared biased against Reagan simply by trying too hard to be non-biased. Meacham instead does not provide a counter point to everything unlike Boot, who counter pointed the goods and bads of Reagan when it was unnecessary to the point he had to use a 13 year old as a source, or when he listed debunked rumours as his sources.

Anyway, this book was very pleasant to read through (even though I got the worst sunburn in my life by reading 100+ pages out in the scorching sun of July) and I look forward to reading more of Meacham's books.

This review also won't be as long as my previous one on Reagan as I can't find too much to criticise.

My only bit of criticism for this book is that it is too short. Its only 603 pages long, but it could've easily been 800-1,000 pages. I find that the 1989-1993 part of the book lacks a lot of details, and could've included more. But nonetheless, it was still a very very enjoyable read.
Prologue: The Last Gentleman (9/10)

The prologue begins with H.W Bush recording his thoughts after his loss to Bill Clinton in the 1992 Presidential Election. It is nice and short, and describes how Bush served the United States from the age of 18 at the entry of US to WW2 in 1941, up until his loss in 1992, and far beyond into the 2000s when he raised money after natural disasters occurred in Asia and the US.

Part I: A Vanished Universe - Beginnings to 1942 (8/10

The first act of the book goes over the ancestors of H.W Bush, his fathers life and service during WW1, and then Bush's early life up until his departure for the Pacific. There isn't much to talk about really except that I found Prescott Bush's life very interesting, and how despite appearing very strict and well mannered, he was quite a jokster. I also found it interesting how despite growing up conservative and traditionalist, Dorothy Bush wasn't really a housewife and had a sporty and active lifestyle, to the point that she refused to stop playing tennis after breaking her arm and finished the match.

As for H.W Bush's early life there's not much to talk about. He was born into wealth, had an easy upbringing, didn't really fling about with women until he found Barbara, and then became the youngest US Navy pilot in WW2.

Part II: War and Marriage - 1942 to 1948 (9/10)

Although being the shortest act in the book at a whopping 17 pages, it is still enjoyable. Meacham manages to perfectly describe Bush's service in WW2 from training to the end of the war.

The chapter on his shootdown and loss of his fellow crewmen was a great read, somehow I leaned forward whilst reading it as it was action packed and felt like I was reading Tom Clancy's Red Storm Rising instead of a biography.

However, this is where I think Meacham could've written more, he describes the rest of Bush's missions in little detail, but I feel like if he could, he could've written far more.
Part III: Texas and Tragedy - 1948 to 1966 (10/10)

The act describes Bush's years of "being a grown up" and moving to Texas for oil-money, and then starting a family and beginning his political years.

Although the first chapter is quite boring due to there being a lot of names being said and then repeated to the point of confusion, the next few chapters are probably one of the best in the book.
Firstly Meacham goes over Prescott Bush's years in the Senate and his service to the country.
Then, Meacham wrote a beautiful chapter on the loss of 3 year old Robin Bush to leukaemia. Words cannot describe how beautifully this chapter was written, how the whole family were crushed during Robin's strong fight against the disease, how the public was so unaware of leukaemia that sadly other parents refused their kids to play with Robin as they believed it could be contagious, and how the family later dealt with the loss and when Barbara finally stopped mourning when she overheard little George W. telling his classmates that he couldn't play baseball because his mom often cried and needed him.
The act then later goes on about Bush's unsuccessful 1964 Senate bid, and then his 1966 campaign for the House.
Part IV: The Wars of Washington - 1966 too 1977 (9/10)

A brilliant act that describes the first half of Bush's political career. Meacham describes how although Bush was a Republican and a Conservative, he was far more liberal in terms of compromise and was economically conscious when he voted for regulations against his older oil workers exploiting the business.

Then it goes on to describe his time as the ambassador to the UN, the head of the RNC, liason to China, his time at the CIA, and how he was considered to be Vice President in 1968, 1972, 1973, 1974 and 1976 but was dropped each time.
In 1968 he was on the shortlist and Nixon hinted at Bush becoming his running mate to the point the Bush team printed "Nixon-Bush 1968" pins for the GOP convention. He was then dropped as Agnew had more experience in politics.
In 1972 Nixon debated dropping Agnew and considered Bush but decided against it in the last moment.
In 1973 after Agnew resigned, Nixon had to pick between Bush and Ford but ultimately picked Ford.
In 1974 after Ford became President, Bush was considered as VP but due to a rumour of a secret fund that benefited Bush, Rockefeller was picked instead.
Then for the 1976 election, Bush was once again considered to the point of having a 1 on 1 meeting with Ford in the White House, but was chosen over Bob Dole.

The act here suffers from being too short imo. For instance, Bush's time the UN is barely mentioned except that he hosted foreign ambassadors at his private home in Maine, and as for
Part V: The Age of Reagan - 1977 to 1989 (9/10)

Yet another great act that goes over Bush's time trying to run for President in 1980, being VP for Reagan, and then running for President again in 1988.

The 1980 GOP Primaries has a great few chapters in the book and its explained well. It goes on to describe how Bush saw Reagan as a foe he hated, to them becoming best friends in 1981.

There isn't anything noteworthy to talk about the chapters of him being VP except that Meacham concluded that Bush most likely knew about the whole Iran-Contra situation unlike Reagan.

As for the 1988 campaign, I found it interesting how Bush and Dole were heavy rivals, and how they didn't really get over being rivals until far later into the 90s. I also found it funny how the Bush team regretted picking Quayle as Bush's running mate almost soon after choosing him.
The Presidential campaign is also well written.

Again, I believe this act suffers from being too short as Meacham doesn't really describe Bush's time as VP but constantly talks about the eventual 1988 campaign even as early as 1984.
Part VI: The Awesome Responsibility - 1989 to 1993 (9/10)

I don't know what to say except that it was a great read but was probably too short. The Eastern Europe situation is only described in 1 chapter and Desert Storm in 2. I mean, for his entire Presidency the act is 168 pages, way too short imo.

I did find it interesting how H.W Bush risked impeachment to liberate Kuwait in 1991, and how so many Democrats were against the Gulf War and preferred a 1 year long appeasement method to try and make sanctions work before any war started. Also found it interesting how Carter almost went to Baghdad behind Bush's back to try and appeal to Saddam, it actually made me rate Carter less in his post-presidency years.

Also, found it funny how Quayle was almost dropped in 1992 for Dick Cheney, but instead Bush's decided against it in the final moment as he didn't want to fire Quayle, and Quayle refused to drop out.

Part VII: In The Twilight - 1993 to 2016 (10/10)

Short at just a little over 40 pages, the act discusses H.W's post Presidency years and his quite and private life outside of politics. He was never bitter about his loss in 1992 and only blamed himself, he even became best friends with Bill Clinton after.
He didn't influence W. Bush's policies between 2001-2009, and stayed quiet about the 2003 invasion even tho he was personally against it.

Then Meacham discusses Bush's life in the Obama years, how he skydivided, how he admired Obama, and how he even changed his stance on gay marriage.

Overall, its an amazing book, but its also a bit too short

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

As it professes to be toward the very end, this book is a contribution to the historical conversation about the 41st American president. It offers what I think is a fair and positive viewpoint. Criticisms are made when the author thinks they're due, and praise given when it's seen as due as well. Often enough, the author seems befuddled by the paradoxes of 41's character, worldview, and decision-making. The portrait is drawn of a man of a particular time who has his own ideas of right and wrong, and which seem at times to collide with expediency or what others think about him, but who remains consistent to the basic principle of treating other people right (even when he thinks they might not deserve it) and being willing to compromise and put himself out of the way in order to see that things are done that he believed were in the country and the world's best interests. The book itself is very read-able, surprisingly so for a book of this kind. I'd recommend it.

[Phrodrick slowed his growing backlog · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before getting into my remarks about Quote” Jon Meacham is the editor of Newsweek, a Pulitzer Prize winning bestselling author and a commentator on politics, history, and religious faith in America.”(Source Goodreads) and his book, Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush, let us play a pretend game. Pretend it is 100 years from now. The entire period from the Viet Nam War to, say 9/11 is covered in about 5 pages of the typical high school history book. Almost all the present day left/right politics has morphed into some other simplistic dichotomy. Pretend you picked up Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush not to prove and confirm whatever your present echo chamber has reinforced in your pre-existing ideas and ideology. This will be your first in depth take on President George W. W. Bush. Maybe all you will ever know about him. Using that as a test, what exactly has this Pulitzer Prize winner and author and commentator on faith and the rest told you?

The entire Democratic Party is shrugged off early in the book with a partisan and derogatory quote. Never confirmed, denied or substantially considered. The press is unfailingly ugly. Why or what may have been the substance of that hostility is not worth mentioning. The occasional issue that receives any coverage is covered briefly and mostly about the terrible people who were leading that portion of the republican vote off handedly described as “passionate, unthinking voters.” There is the occasional mention of a democratic president, a scattering of highly placed other than American leaders, but the former are not important and most of the later are dealt with by an at home barbeque with the Bushes.

In short, this book is so much an insider’s book, so dependent upon The President’s diaries that no reader of this book can fairly say they learned much about George H.W. Bush. We can be certain that we can recite what he and his, and his besties were likely to say, and at that only what they might say to his or his genuinely loving wife’s face.

My problems with the book began with the title: Destiny and Power. Presidents certainly have power, but from whence comes Destiny? The word, and this book made me look it up, means: The inevitable or necessary fate to which a particular person or thing is destined; one's lot. (Wordnik). How so was it that this man was destined for this or that life? It would be said of G.H.W’s son that “He was born on third base and claimed to have hit a home run.” This would be an unfair assessment of the father.

George H.W. Bush was born to a lot of money, power and connections. He was never entirely dependent upon them. His war record was entirely of his making, it was honorable and heroic. Except that there was never any question but that he would be an officer. A Navy aviator by choice and talent (No one got pilot’s wings on family ties). His medal was for an action where he could have made a legitimate and easier choice. His business career was his own, except that he made smart use of his name and his family. He had to have had some skills at politics. Much of his political success can be thought of as his own achievement. There are some “howevers”, but in the main these are less about the man. It cannot be taken from him that his life could have been a lot simpler, less filled with personal achievements and he could have passed through America history as just another rich guy. He was just as determined to be more than a coaster. He early made the decision to make his own way and allowing for connections he worked a lot harder than he had too and delivered on more promise than was obvious at his birth.

I was still thinking about ‘Destiny”. As often as Meacham would remind us that Mr. Bush could have made his way in an easier way, I was also reminded that he was born, white, male and Christian at a time when these things, as much as money and family meant that certain decisions were open to him. No woman, of whatever race or religion was going to pilot a warplane, at the front in World War II. Only a fixed percentage of Jews would have a chance to go to the schools that placed him among his generations of elites, and as for the choices a Black man had in 1930-1980 America, need I finish that sentence? None of this can properly be held against Mr. Bush. It is an unmentioned aspect of his destiny. It is in the nature of privilege, that its rewards are so given as to be assumed and therefore unnecessary to mention.

Meacham seems to be unable to step back from his protagonist to perform any historian’s due diligence. Never to do we get context, depth or contrary opinion about any issue. Never mind the left/right, or even the right/right arguments, what might have been an objective documentation of any issue? We are told that Mr. Bush held a large number of very difficult and important jobs. He held many of them briefly. Did he really master diplomacy in hardly a year? Was he the real catalyst for the rehabilitation of the CIA in another brief year? He absolutely had a resumé a mile long, but objectively, how deep? How might his resume change if he was intended, from the beginning, to be a place holder, or a front man?

What for a reader not 100 years from today? Jon Meacham gives us a good, patriotic, hard working family man. One who was conscientious about his service to his country and his political and religious values. George H. W. Bush was from early on determined to be more than a well to do scion of the Bush family largess. More than many who start down that road even given his advantages, he achieved much more than was average. If you are looking for a positive and uplifting book, Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush is all that. I wanted something more.

[Relstuart · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are good high character things we miss about this president in politics these days. Far from perfect, nevertheless, someone dedicated to seeing his service as service to his nation. The last president from the Greatest Generation. Reviewing where we've been by reading something like this does give one a better understanding of where we are today. And, for me, a better understanding of the America I was a child in.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good biography of Bush 41. Meacham knows what to include and how long to dwell on it. The breadth of his research was evident due to how many people he interviewed. Access to so many people around Bush 41 made this a really fun, important read.

[Roger DeBlanck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meacham offers a compelling and endearing portrait that lends to the increasingly praiseworthy legacy of our forty-first president, George H. W. Bush. He places Bush in regard both as an underappreciated leader and as a man possessing an integrity that made him a highly trustworthy president. Bush may have grown up in a wealthy family, but his parents instilled in him an ideal that with privilege came the necessity to give back to the larger world. Therefore, his own pursuit of success adhered to a code of duty and responsibility that required him to serve those less fortunate. He approached life with an internal compass to balance his ambition to win with having empathy and compassion for others. His parents also ingrained in him never to flaunt his success and instead to keep hidden his ambition to succeed.

His devotion to serve began when he enlisted on his eighteenth birthday to fly missions in the South Pacific during WWII. Barely surviving after the Japanese shot down his plane, he returned to combat and finished the war as a decorated veteran. With Barbara waiting for him after his military service, they headed to west Texas where Bush eventually built a business and attained wealth in off-shore oil drilling. By 1964, he made his first bid for political office in a Texas Senate seat, but came up on the losing end. Even in defeat, he exhibited dignity and grace that became hallmarks of his revered character. Then in 1966 he won a House seat within Texas’s 7th Congressional District. Running again for the Senate in 1970, he came up short a second time, although again he bowed out with dignity and grace. However, his service in the House allowed him to gain experience with serving the greater good, and he came away with understanding how the function of government was less about radical reform and more about careful stewardship. This outlook and purpose led him to having several unique opportunities to serve as an envoy to China, as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, as chairman of the RNC, and as director of the CIA.

The payoff came when Reagan took him on the 1980 ticket as vice president. His unconditional and unwavering support of Reagan’s conservatism and the Republican party’s platform enabled him to gain the presidency in 1988. As Commander in Chief, he served the way he had his entire life: to make the country and the world better places through steady, conscientious leadership. His governing paved the way for the bloodless end of the Cold War because he never upstaged the Russians, nor did he implement policy conditions that made their position untenable in dealing with the U.S. He led the Gulf War against the ruthless Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and sent the message that aggressor regimes could not exploit smaller nations like Kuwait. He refused to gloat in success, and his quiet demeanor led many Americans to think he didn’t care about domestic problems. Meacham makes clear, however, that this is an unfair assessment because Bush had been driven his entire life to serve others, but to do so without pompousness or flamboyance, and he regretted and grieved deeply whenever he felt like he let someone down.

At over 700 pages, Meacham’s comprehensive research of Bush’s purpose-filled life left me with an undeniable admiration for our forty-first president as both a man and a leader of the highest integrity. His empathy, generosity, kindness, and thoughtfulness are, indeed, peerless in the history of public service, especially for politicians with the degree of fervor and ambition that Bush possessed. He refused to demonize the opposing party and he often felt sick about the deplorable nature of politics.

Throughout this absorbing biography, Meacham frequently quotes from Bush’s diary. During the campaign for president in 1988, Bush reveals his prescience and concerns in an observation about how the Republican Party was beginning to abandon its trust and goodwill by descending into hatred and cruelty. It’s impossible not to read Bush’s passage below, where he describes his encounter with a Republican extremist, and not relate his warnings to what Trump does with emboldening anyone who is willing to follow and support his hatred and cruelty:

“Still, this staring, glaring ugly—there’s something terrible about those who carry it to extremes. They’re scary. They’re there for spooky, extraordinary right-winged reasons. They don’t care about Party. They don’t care about anything. They’re the excesses. They could be Nazis, they could be Communists, they could be whatever. In this case, they’re religious fanatics and they’re spooky. They will destroy this party if they’re permitted to take over. There is not enough of them, in my view, but this woman reminded me of my John Birch days in Houston. The lights go out and they pass out the ugly literature. Guilt by association. Nastiness. Ugliness. Believing the Trilateral Commission, the conspiratorial theories. And I couldn’t tell—it may not be fair to that one woman, but that’s the problem that [Pat] Robertson brings to bear on the agenda.”

[Preston Merrill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book almost exactly a year ago when I saw it on sale at the Boston Public Library’s book sale. I got it because I thought it would be funny to read the whole thing and be one of the most knowledgeable people on this random president’s life. Now after finishing the whole thing a year later, I feel like I have still barely scratched the surface on his life, presidency, and legacy. Here are just a few aspects of this book that I found particularly interesting.

Although not the main subject of this book in any means, it provides a unique lens to look at the Republican Party through, and how it has become what it is today. Even within Bush’s time, he could be seen as someone from an older era: a moderate, career politician whose career in the White House was thrust upon him (almost accidentally) by a deeply conservative outsider opposed to what Bush stood for. Bush became president to continue the legacy of Reagan, and Bush’s own political leanings often put him at odds at the coalition that brought him to power in the first place. This book’s look at Bush’s interactions with Newt Gingrich, and Pat Buchanan’s bid to beat him in the 1992 primary show how a far-right populist, deeply reactionary faction of the Republican Party existed even in these “simpler times,” but was kept at bay in part by Bush’s political ambitions, and a stronger appeal to democratic norms that got corroded over time by the party’s desire to win.

Bush’s sheer level of ambition is also an interesting aspect of his legacy that this book highlights. Through every turn of Bush’s life, the book always underlines his “dedication to public service” through helping people and politely doing what he was asked to do within the Nixon, Ford, and Raegan administrations. Despite this humble mission to serve the country on paper, it coexists with his own immense ambition and ego. This battle comes to a head prior to 1992 where the book discusses his own malaise and exhaustion towards the presidency at that time, but he decided to run again in 1992 sheerly because he did not want to be seen as a “loser.” To be a good and successful politician you have to be self-centered enough to think you deserve the most powerful job in the world, but also empathetic and community-focused enough to actually help people. This book shows the intricacies of that balance and how Bush was both able to achieve that balance, and the tolls it caused on his mental health and legacy.

Even though President Bush can be seen as one of America’s lamest presidents, his presidency was one of extremes. He became the most highly approved president in the history of polling, and then became hated enough by his own party that he was almost ousted in the primaries. He started off with a bang passing a huge amount of environmental legislation and the Americans with Disabilities Act, and then led the country through the end of the Cold War and the Gulf War, ensuring for a moment America was the only super power in the entire world. After the political storm of the Gulf War which ended in his broad support, his administration stalled and support quickly deteriorated because people believed that he was out of touch with the economy. After looking at his presidency and the life of service he lived prior, I get a feeling of deep respect and admiration for someone I know I would’ve never actually voted for at the time.

Lastly, the book’s description of Walker Point always made me really jealous and miss Maine. If I ever get rich, the one luxury I want is a beach house in Maine I can share with my friends and family.

[Sherry Sharpnack · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy listening to Jon Meacham when he appears on an MSNBC news show. But I'm really not sure I like his biographies. I have read his biographies of Andrew Jackson and Thomas Jefferson, and ended up loathing both men. But this biography of one of my formerly favorite recent politicians, George HW Bush, has left me questioning how much more Meacham I can read.
George HW Bush was an extremely likeable man: he was raised w/ the concept of noblesse oblige - to whom much has been given, much is expected; his nickname as a kid was "have-half" b/c of his habit of sharing. Therefore, to all accounts, Mr. Bush is a nice guy. He was also a remarkable man: war hero, Texas wild-catter, and a believer in politics as public service.
Then how to explain some of his more - ahem - ruthless - actions as a politician? Because of the "get-it-done" attitude I guess. He was nothing if not pragmatic when it came to bending his beliefs in order to get elected. One of my great disappointments of my following politics (and I LOVE politics) was when Mr. Bush did the about-face from "voodoo economics" (about Reagan's supply-side fantasies), to becoming Reagan's VP. Um...what? I mean, voodoo economics is EXACTLY what supply-side turned out to be: we Americans are still paying in the price in stagnant wages and ballooning deficits b/c of Reagan's tax cuts. I was also disappointed when he went from feeling that abortion was a woman's business w/ her doctor to being publicly anti-abortion (although Barbara never went there).
OK, enough of MY views of Mr. Bush. My criticisms of this biography of Bush: 1) Mr. Meacham obviously LIKES Mr. Bush. To all accounts, he IS an extremely likeable man, after all. But, this biography is in no way unbiased; I found it nearly sycophantic at times. For example, the way Meacham explained away some of Bush's more distasteful actions (Willie Horton, anyone?). 2) He spent too much time talking about Bush's son, GW Bush, and quoting GW too much for my taste. Again, my personal views taint my review. As much as I liked Bush the Elder, I loathed Bush the Younger.
I still like GHW Bush as a human being. I cried like a baby over how he missed his young daughter, Robin, for the rest of his life after she died from leukemia in 1953 at age 4. But I stopped liking him as a politician a long time ago. 4 stars b/c this is a very thoroughly-annotated biography from one of our noted current historians and I learned a LOT.