Bush, George Herbert Walker: Domestic Policy

Domestic Policy

Bush's handling of domestic affairs was less successful. The savings and loan crisis (see savings and loan association) erupted in the early months of his administration, and the costs to the government only added to concerns about the federal budget deficit, which had grown significantly as a result of tax cuts under his predecessor. Bush's plan to stimulate the economy by encouraging growth in the private sector included cutting expenditures and taxes, especially the tax on capital gains. After a prolonged battle with the Congress, he agreed (Oct., 1990) to a deficit-reduction bill that included new revenues, breaking his 1988 campaign pledge to not raise taxes. This angered conservatives, but even more damaging to Bush was a prolonged international recession that resulted in stagnant economic growth at home, high levels of unemployment, and increased concern about the ability of the United States to compete with Japan and other nations.

Because of this economic uncertainty, Bush began his 1992 reelection campaign as a far less popular president than he had been after the Gulf War, a short time earlier. Bush and Vice President Quayle were renominated by the Republican party in Aug., 1992. The Democrats nominated Bill Clinton, governor of Arkansas. Businessman H. Ross Perot entered the race as an independent. After a bitter campaign, Clinton won, and Bush retired to Texas. In 2005, during the presidency of his son George Walker Bush, Bush joined with his successor to raise funds for victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and Hurricane Katrina, and he subsequently served as UN special envoy for the South Asian earthquake disaster.

Sections in this article:

See more Encyclopedia articles on: U.S. History: Biographies