George H.W. Bush's Wartime Experience Shaped His Approach To Politics
George H.W. Bush's experiences in World War II helped shape him as a dealmaker. Though he believed trust and relationships were key to governance, he was not afraid to get personal with campaign foes.
George Herbert Walker Bush was the 41st president of the United States, but in many ways he was the last of his kind.
Bush was the last World War II veteran to serve in the Oval Office, and he presided over the end of the long Cold War with the Soviets. He was also the last person raised within the confines of the once politically dominant "Eastern Establishment" to attain the presidency.
"A real transition, one might say, came with the conclusion of Bush's term," says presidential historian Robert Dallek.
Bush's background and history made him temperamentally different from his successors. But to the extent that he was a transitional figure, his
