Some Thoughts on the Passing of a Great President –
George H.W. Bush
By Bruce Meyer
With the recent passing of President George H.W. Bush, I began to think about the time of his Presidency and his impact on my life as well as the Republican Party.
When George Bush Sr. was elected to office, it was 1988. I was Chairman of the Old Dominion University College Republicans. This was the “Eighties” and the era of Ronald Reagan. The baton was going to be handed over to a new leader. These were exciting times!
The Republican Party in Virginia was a very different animal than it is today. Back then, the Party was organized and motivated, preparing for our future growth. Sure we had our share of interfamily squabbling; however, at the end of the day, we would all come together and support our nominee. Don Huffman was Chairman of the Party at the time and brought together both “old and new schools of thought.” Technology met grassroots. The typical College Republican club attendance had grown. Just at ODU, we averaged around 40-50 students per weekly meeting. The Republican Party of Virginia Beach held its weekly Saturday breakfast at the old Island House Restaurant on Shore Drive. We began to average 60-80 people every Saturday and later had to move to Waffles-N-Things on Virginia Beach Blvd. The local Virginia Beach Republican Party business meetings averaged around 200 members in attendance each month. We were united, growing and were made up of numerous opinions and philosophies all at the same time. When President Bush was nominated, all of us came together in hope of a Ronald Reagan 3rd term.
I was fortunate that I was invited to attend, along with my fellow ODU College Republicans, the Inauguration and swearing-in ceremony of President Bush. It was surreal to be in the crowd and then see President Reagan’s helicopter, literally, fly off into the sunset. Later we went “Balling” (attending Balls) throughout DC that night. We got to see President Bush’s motorcade slowly drive by our group and he turned and waived at us. For young college students, that was pretty cool.
As the years progressed throughout his tenure as President, we noticed a theme developing. It was the “Big Tent”. Part of this was the brainchild of his then-campaign manager and later RNC Chairman – Lee Atwater. I had the pleasure of meeting him several times and saw the good he did for the Republican Party. His goal was to grow the party, unite everyone, and expand our base. Unfortunately Lee became ill with Cancer and passed away in 1991 and never was able to continue his good work. President Bush on the other hand did continue the fight to grow and expand the party.
People do not appreciate that President Bush navigated our country and the world out of the perilous dangerous waters of the Cold War and into a new era. One misstep and it could have been very deadly. And if that were not enough, not since WWII had we witnessed a leader put together a worldwide coalition to stop tyranny in its tracks – Sadam Hussein. Imagine what the world would have looked like had we stopped Hitler, in the mid-thirties, early in his tracks. The Holocaust would never have occurred and tens of millions of people would not have been massacred – both Jews and non-Jews alike.
Even though he did lose re-election to Bill Clinton in 1992, President Bush will always be remembered as a great President. Do not forget, had Ross Perot (conservative businessman) not entered into the race, Bill Clinton would never had been elected. See the 1992 Presidential results for yourself:
Bill Clinton
Democratic
44,909,889
George Bush
Republican
39,104,545
Ross Perot
Independent
19,742,267
One can only imagine.
An important lesson we can learn from President Bush now is how we all benefit when everyone is extended the invitation to become involved. It takes fine people on both sides to make our country great.
President George H.W. Bush did set the stage one more time for the future – the two term presidency of George W. Bush (his son). But that is another story for another time.
God Speed Mr. President!
We will miss you!