George Bush Event Timeline

George H.W. Bush (41) Event Timeline
01/20/1989 – 01/20/1993

08/18/1988

Accepts nomination at Republican convention.  “Read my lips:  no new taxes.”

11/08/1988

Election Day.  George Bush defeats Michael Dukakis winning 79% of the electoral vote and 53% of the popular vote.

1989

01/06/1989

Electoral votes counted in Joint Session of Congress.

01/17/1989

Cleveland Elementary School shooting (Stockton, CA), five killed and 30 wounded by man with semi-automatic weapon.

01/20/1989

Inaugural Address.  “I have spoken of a Thousand Points of Light, of all the community organizations that are spread like stars throughout the Nation, doing good. . .The old ideas are new again because they're not old, they are timeless: duty, sacrifice, commitment, and a patriotism that finds its expression in taking part and pitching in.”

02/09/1989

Address to Joint Session of Congress on Administration Goals (State of the Union).

03/09/1989

Statement on the Failure of Senate to Approve the Nomination of John Tower as Secretary of Defense.  This was the first rejection of a Presidential cabinet nominee in 30 years.

03/14/1989

Temporary ban on import of semi-automatic rifles announced by Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms.

03/24/1989

The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill.

04/10/1989

Signs the Whistle-blower Protection Act of 1989, supporting protection of whistle-blowers from reprisals.

04/18/1989

Signs the Bipartisan Accord on Central America.

04/20/1989

Executive Order establishes the National Space Council.

06/04/1989

Chinese government begins bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators who had been gathered in Tiananmen Square starting mid-April.

06/05/1989

Remarks condemning Tiananmen Square Incident.

07/03/1989

Remarks on Supreme Court Decision in Webster v. Reproductive Health Services holding that states have power to restrict abortion on demand.

07/07/1989

Administration bans import of 43 types of semi-automatic weapons (but does not affect domestic manufacturers).

08/09/1989

Remarks on signing Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act (FIREA).

10/17/1989

Loma Prieta earthquake hits during the third game of the World Series, causing heavy damage in Oakland and the San Francisco peninsula.

11/09/1989

The Berlin Wall falls.

11/17/1989

Signs the Fair Labor Standards Amendments.

12/02/1989 - 12/03/1989

Meetings with Soviet President Gorbachev at Malta.

12/20/1989

Address to the Nation on United States invasion of Panama; ousting of General Manuel Noriega.

1990

02/10/1990

Statement on the Release of Nelson Mandela.

02/31/1990

State of the Union Address.

03/09/1990

Swears in Antonio Novello as Surgeon General, first Hispanic and first Puerto Rican to hold the post.

04/17/1990

Remarks to White House Conference on Science and Economics of Global Change.

06/01/1990

Signs agreements with Soviet President Gorbachev in Washington, DC, including chemical and nuclear weapons reductions. 

06/26/1990

Statement on Federal budget negotiations reverses “no new taxes” campaign pledge.

07/15/1990

Around this date, the economy entered recession, closing the longest peacetime expansion up to that point.

07/26/1990

Signs the Americans with Disabilities Act.

08/02/1990

Iraq Invades Kuwait.

09/11/1990

Address to Joint Session of Congress on Persian Gulf Crisis and Budget Deficit. “I cannot predict just how long it will take to convince Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait. Sanctions will take time to have their full intended effect. We will continue to review all options with our allies, but let it be clear: we will not let this aggression stand.”

10/02/1990

Address to the Nation on the Federal Budget Agreement.  “This agreement will also raise revenue. I'm not, and I know you're not, a fan of tax increases.”

10/02/1990

Addresses German People on Reunification of Germany.

10/22/1990

Vetoes Civil Rights Act of 1990. “Despite the use of the term "civil rights" in the title of S. 2104, the bill actually employs a maze of highly legalistic language to introduce the destructive force of quotas into our Nation's employment system.”

11/05/1990

Signs Omnibus Budget Act with increases in tax revenues.

11/08/1990

Increases U.S. Troops in Saudi Arabia.

11/15/1990

Signs the Clean Air Act of 1990.

11/19/1990

Signs Treaty limiting conventional armed forces in Europe.

11/29/1990

Signs the Immigration Act of 1990.

1991

01/14/1991

Signs Resolution Authorizing the Use of Military Force Against Iraq.

01/16/1991

Address to the Nation on Persian Gulf military action (“Desert Storm”).

01/18/1991

News Conference on the Persian Gulf Conflict.

01/21/1991

By Executive Order 12744, designates as a “combat zone” the Persian Gulf and surrounding areas.

01/29/1991

State of the Union Address. Proposes joint cuts to military troops in Europe.

02/23/1991

Address to the Nation announcing ground troop operations in Operation Desert Storm.

02/27/1991

Address to the Nation on Suspension of Offensive Operations in Persian Gulf. Halting invasion of Iraq and allowing Saddam Hussein to stay in power.

03/06/1991

Address to Joint Session of Congress on Cessation of Persian Gulf Conflict.

03/15/1991

About this date, the economic recession ended, and a period of economic expansion began.

07/10/1991

US Sanctions on South Africa Removed.

07/31/1991

Signs START-I treaty in Moscow.

08/15/1991

About this date, the World Wide Web was released for general public use.

10/10/1991-10/13/1991

Senate Judiciary Committee hears testimony of Anita Hill accusing Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment.

10/15/1991

Clarence Thomas is confirmed as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.

11/21/1991

Signs the Civil Rights Act of 1991.

12/25/1991

Statement on USSR General Secretary Gorbachev resignation as President of the Soviet Union; the USSR officially ceases to exist.

1992

01/28/1992

State of the Union Address.

02/01/1992

Meets with Russian President Boris Yeltsin at Camp David.

02/18/1992

Wins New Hampshire Primary, challenged by conservative Patrick Buchanan.

04/01/1992

Announces aid to former Soviet Union.

04/29/1992

Rioting begins in Los Angeles following acquittal of Los Angeles Police Officers in videotaped beating of Rodney King.

04/30/1992

Remarks on Los Angeles riots, expressing concerns about excessive police violence and excessive public violence.

05/01/1992

Address to the Nation on the Civil Disturbances in Los Angeles. “The wanton destruction of life and property is not a legitimate expression of outrage with injustice. It is itself injustice. And no rationalization, no matter how heartfelt, no matter how eloquent, can make it otherwise.”

06/12/1992

Makes an Address to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

06/12/1992

Signs the Framework Convention on Climate Change.

06/16/1992

With Russian President Yeltsin, Announces U.S.-Russian Nuclear Agreement.

06/22/1992

Signs Supplemental Appropriations Act, includes assistance for urban areas, especially including Los Angeles.

07/03/1992

Signs the Unemployment Compensation Amendments of 1992.

08/20/1992

Accepts nomination by Republican Party for a second term.

11/03/1992

Election Day. Loses to Democratic Candidate Bill Clinton, winning only 31% of the electoral vote and 37% of the popular vote (Independent H. Ross Perot wins 19% of the popular vote but no electoral votes).

12/04/1992

Address to the Nation on the situation in Somalia and US participation in United Nations humanitarian mission.  U.S. troops deploy to Somalia on 12/08/1992.

12/15/1992

Remarks on Signing the North American Free Trade Agreement. “If democracy is to be consolidated, the gulfs that separate the few who are very rich from the many who are very poor, that divide civilian from military institutions, that split citizens of European heritage from indigenous peoples, these gulfs must be bridged, and economic reform must ensure upward mobility and new opportunities for a better life for all citizens of the Americas.”

1993

01/03/1993

In Moscow, George Bush and Boris Yeltsin sign START-II Treaty.

01/14/1993

Remarks at a Celebration of the Points of Light. “I'd like to remind you of what that strategy is: first, changing attitudes so that all Americans define a successful life as one that includes serving others; and second, identifying what is already working so that those efforts can be enlarged and multiplied; and third, encouraging leaders to help others become Points of Light. . .”