H. Res. 1172 

In the House of Representatives, U. S., 

December 11, 2018. 

Whereas President George Herbert Walker Bush’s lifetime 

record of service to the United States will continue to inspire Americans for years to come; 

Whereas, after the attack on Pearl Harbor, George H.W. 

Bush joined the United States Naval Reserve in 1942 on 

his 18th birthday and became a distinguished naval aviator; 

Whereas George H.W. Bush’s TBM Avenger aircraft was hit 

with enemy fire over Chi Chi Jima, and though the engine was ablaze, he completed his mission and escaped 

over water, and floated on a raft for 4 hours before being 

rescued; 

Whereas George H.W. Bush flew 58 combat missions during 

the Second World War, and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the United States Navy Air 

Medal with 2 gold stars; 

Whereas George H.W. Bush graduated from Yale University 

with a degree in economics, and moved his family to 

West Texas and embarked on a successful career in the 

energy industry; 

Whereas, in 1966, George H.W. Bush was elected to represent Texas in the House of Representatives; 
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Whereas, from 1971 to 1973, George H.W. Bush served as 

the United States Ambassador to the United Nations; 

Whereas, from 1974 to 1975, George H.W. Bush served as 

the Chief of the United States Liaison Office to the People’s Republic of China; 

Whereas, from 1976 to 1977, George H.W. Bush served as 

the Director of Central Intelligence; 

Whereas, from 1981 to 1989, George H.W. Bush served as 

the 43rd Vice President of the United States; 

Whereas, from 1989 to 1993, George H.W. Bush served as 

the 41st President of the United States; 

Whereas President George H.W. Bush provided the steady 

leadership needed through the fall of the Berlin Wall, the 

reunification of Germany, the peaceful end of the Cold 

War, and the collapse of the Soviet Union; 

Whereas President George H.W. Bush led a coalition of 32 

nations to restore Kuwait’s sovereignty following its invasion by Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein; 

Whereas President George H.W. Bush is noted for the advancement of civil rights with the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act; 

Whereas President George H.W. Bush negotiated the North 

American Free Trade Agreement, creating the world’s 

largest free trade zone; 

Whereas, on January 6, 2000, President George H.W. Bush 

and First Lady Barbara Pierce Bush became the longest 

married Presidential couple, setting forth for the Nation 

an example of love and commitment; 

Whereas, on January 10, 2009, the U.S.S. George H.W. 

Bush was commissioned as the 10th and final Nimitz- 
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class carrier for the Navy, named in recognition of 

George H.W. Bush’s Navy service; 

Whereas, in 2011, President George H.W. Bush received the 

Medal of Freedom, the Nation’s highest civilian award, 

for his life of public service and commitment to liberty; 

Whereas President George H.W. Bush was a tireless advocate 

for volunteerism and community service, speaking in his 

inaugural address of ‘‘a Thousand Points of Light, of all 

the community organizations that are spread like stars 

throughout the Nation, doing good’’; 

Whereas President George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush 

were strong supporters of the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University, established in 1997 as a component of the George H.W. Bush 

Presidential Library, to encourage future generations to 

live a life of service to others; 

Whereas President George H.W. Bush, with Barbara Bush, 

had 6 children, 17 grandchildren, and 8 great-grandchildren, and considered Houston, Texas, his home and 

Walker’s Point in Kennebunkport, Maine, as his ‘‘anchor 

to windward’’; and 

Whereas President George H.W. Bush’s life will be remembered for civility, public service, humility, and servant 

leadership: Now, therefore, be it 

Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

(1) expresses its appreciation for the profound public service of President George H.W. Bush; 

(2) expresses its deep sympathy to the children of 

President George H.W. Bush and First Lady Barbara 

Bush: President George W. Bush, Jeb Bush, Neil Bush, 
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Marvin Bush, and Dorothy Bush Koch, and to the entire 

family of the former President; and 

(3) directs the Clerk of the House to transmit a 

copy of this resolution to the family of President George 

H.W. Bush. 

Attest: 

Clerk.