Former President George H.W. Bush remembered
Tributes to former U.S. President George H.W. Bush, who died at the age of 94, poured in from around the world on Saturday as global leaders honored him.
Bush, the 41st U.S. president who served in the office from 1989 to 1993, played a role in helping to end the Cold War. He also routed President Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi army in the 1991 Gulf War but lost his chance for a second term in the White House after breaking his no-new-taxes pledge. [He was known for the promise, “Read my lips, no new taxes,” which he unfortunately broke.] …
Bush, who also served for eight years as U.S. vice president during Ronald Reagan’s two-term presidency and earlier as head of the CIA, died on Friday night at his home in Houston. …
Speaking in Buenos Aires at the G20 summit, U.S. President Donald Trump [said of Bush]: “He was a very fine man. I met him on numerous occasions. He was just a high-quality man who truly loved his family. He was a terrific guy and he’ll be missed. He led a full life, and a very exemplary life, too.” Trump said he spoke on Saturday to George W. Bush and Jeb Bush about their father’s death.
The White House said a state funeral will be held on Wednesday at the National Cathedral in Washington. Trump, who plans to attend the funeral with first lady Melania Trump, also designated Wednesday as a national day of mourning, and ordered the lowering of the American flag for 30 days. …
Bush, [at the age of 18, one of the youngest] naval aviators during World War Two, was the father of former President George W. Bush, who served two terms in the White House in the 2000s, and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who unsuccessfully sought the 2016 Republican nomination for president. Like his sons, he was a Republican. [He was considered by conservatives as an establishment Republican and a moderate.] …
Bush’s death came seven months after that of his wife, former first lady Barbara Bush, to whom he was married for 73 years. …
“The entire Bush family is deeply grateful for 41’s life and love, for the compassion of those who have cared and prayed for Dad, and for the condolences of our friends and fellow citizens,” George W. Bush said in a statement.
At a gate outside the Houston neighborhood where the Bushes lived, residents on Saturday created a makeshift memorial by laying flowers before a U.S. flag. …
Bush served as president during the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. [During a speech in West Berlin in 1987, President Reagan famously called for the leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to open up the wall which the Soviets had erected to keep East Berliners in communist-controlled East Berlin and prevent them from escaping to the democratic free West Berlin. Reagan said, “Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” In 1982, he’d said, “I’d like to ask the Soviet leaders one question […] Why is the wall there?” and in 1986, when asked if he thought the wall could be “torn down,” Reagan said, “I call upon those responsible to dismantle it [today].”]
Responding to President Bush’s death, British Prime Minister Theresa May said, “His ethos of public service was the guiding thread of his life and an example to us all. In navigating a peaceful end to the Cold War, he made the world a safer place for generations to come.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Bush “faithfully served his ｃountry all his life – with a gun in his hand during the war years and in high government roles in peacetime,” according to Russian state news agency TASS.
George Herbert Walker Bush, a Connecticut Yankee who came to Texas to be an oilman, died as the patriarch of a Republican political dynasty. He and George W. Bush were only the second father and son to hold the office of president, after John Adams (1797-1801) and John Quincy Adams (1825-1829).
His second son, Jeb, undertook his own campaign for the presidency in 2015 before ｄropping out [due to scant voter support]. Bush’s father, Prescott Bush, was a U.S. senator from Connecticut.
President Trump signed an order closing the federal government on Wednesday in a show of respect for Bush. The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq will also be closed on Wednesday in his honor.
Bush’s body arrived at the U.S. Capitol on Monday and was to lie in state through Wednesday morning. The public was able to line up to view Bush’s casket continuously from Monday evening until Wednesday morning.
Trump ordered the presidential plane (Air Force One) to be flown to Houston to bring Bush’s body to Washington. … Bush’s body will be returned to Houston on Wednesday and a service will be held on Thursday at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church there.
Bush’s casket will then travel by train from nearby Spring, Texas to College Station. He will be buried on Thursday on the grounds of his presidential library at Texas A&M University, the school said. He will be buried in a family plot next to his late wife. …
Bush did not endorse fellow Republican Trump, the eventual winner of the 2016 presidential election who [criticized “low energy”] Jeb Bush during his campaign. He did not publicly say whom he voted for in the election, but a source told CNN he voted for Trump’s Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.
Bush did send Trump a letter in January 2017 saying he would not be able to attend his inauguration because of health concerns, but wishing him the best.
Reporting by Gary McWilliams in Houston; Bill Trott, David Morgan, David Shepardson and Humeyra Pamuk in Washington; Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Roberta Rampton in Buenos Aires; Mark Heinrich in London; Andrew Osborn in Moscow; and Marcin Goclowski in Warsaw; Editing by Alistair Bell, Jonathan Oatis and Will Dunham.
Article Source:https://www.studentnewsdaily.com/daily-news-article/former-president-george-h-w-bush-remembered/
Image Source: https://www.studentnewsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/President-George-H.-W.-Bush-820x578.jpg" class="img-thumbnail" alt="Former President George H.W. Bush remembered
VOCABULARY WORDS:
1.Former/adjective : having previously filled a particular role or been a particular thing.
2.Tribute /noun : an act, statement, or gift that is intended to show gratitude, respect, or admiration
3.Numerous /adjective : great in number; many.
4.Occasion /noun : a particular time or instance of an event.
5.Exemplary /adjective : serving as a desirable model; representing the best of its kind.
6.Funeral /noun : the ceremonies honoring a dead person, typically involving burial or cremation.
7.Cathedral /noun : the principal church of a diocese, with which the bishop is officially associated
8.Nomination/ noun : the action of nominating or state of being nominated.
9.Conservative / adjective : holding to traditional attitudes and values and cautious about change or innovation, typically in relation to politics or religion
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION:
1. What three things was George H.W. Bush known for as president, according to the Reuters reporters?
2. List all government positions Bush held in his lifetime.
3. What actions will be/have been taken to honor President Bush?
4. a) What does it mean to ‘lie in state’?
b) What is the purpose of a national day of mourning? Who usually receives that honor?
c) What is a state funeral?
