George H. W. Bush Quotes

From last night's All Together Now, a Celebration of Service: There can be no definition of a successful life that does not include service to others.

I want to make sure everybody who has a job wants a job.

What's wrong with being a boring kind of guy?

There are singular moments in history, dates that divide all that goes before from all that comes after.

We sue each other too much and care for each other too little.

The Cold War began with the division of Europe. It can only end when Europe is whole.

Study hard; and you might grow up to be President. But let's face it: Even then, you'll never make as much money as your dog.

When America is stronger, the world is safer.

We don't want an America that is closed to the world. What we want is a world that is open to America.

Be bold in your caring, and be bold in your dreaming.

My grandkids say, "Reality Bites." O.K., but it also challenges and rewards ... I believe our best days are yet to come.

Now we can see a new world coming into view, a world where there is a very real prospect of a New World Order.

I think in defeat you grope for things that are happy, and it's hard.

It's much worse to read criticism about your son than yourself.

Thousand points of light.

Ageing's alright, better than the alternative, which is not being here.

Let's forgive the Nazi war criminals.

This is a fact: Strength in the pursuit of peace is no vice; isolation in the pursuit of security is no virtue.

The only time I had any butterflies was when I stood up and backed toward the open door and looked down.

I don't like dynasty and legacy. But I think there's a period in the U.S. history where Bushes have been in the forefront.

This aggression will not stand

In crucial things, unity. In important things, diversity. In ALL things, generosity.

I wouldn't answer the marijuana questions, You know why? Because I don't want some little kid doing what I tried.

America needs to be a lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like the Simpsons.

We are not the sum of our possessions.

A time of historic change is no time for recklessness.

Every loss of life is terrible.

For 18 years I have resisted talking about current events. I am not going to start now.

American business can out-think, out-work, out-perform any nation in the world. But we can't beat the competition if we don't get in the ball game.

Appeasement does not work. As was the case in the 1930s, we see in Saddam Hussein an aggressive dictator threatening his neighbors.

The problem with the French is that they have no word for entrepreneur.

I've often thought that the process of aging could be slowed down if it had to go through Congress.

The longer our graduation lines are today, the shorter our unemployment lines will be tomorrow.

But I see history as a book with many pages
and each day we fill a page with acts of hopefulness and meaning.

Education is the key to opportunity. It's a ticket out of poverty.

I have opinions of my own - strong opinions - but I don't always agree with them.

Now that I am no longer President, I find I can no longer win every game of golf I play.

War is never cheap or easy.

The thing I miss about Air Force One is they don't lose my luggage.

You know I vowed when I became President not to talk about the loneliest toughest job in the world and I didn't.

I got poked in the left eye on the collision. My vision is blurry in that eye. I had to play. It was for coach, and because it was a district game.

We have had triumphs, we have made mistakes, we have had sex.

I hope my own children never have to fight a war.

A good country song taps into strong undercurrents of family, faith, and patriotism.

Our God is a forgiving God.

I put confidence in the American people, in their ability to sort through what is fair and what is unfair, what is ugly and what is unugly.

Whoever says Americas best days are behind it are looking the wrong direction.

We're going to keep trying to strengthen the American family. To make them more like The Waltons and less like The Simpsons.

The glory of being a carrier pilot has certainly worn off.

I hope I stand for antibigotry, anti-Semitism, antiracism. This is what drives me.

I'll be glad to reply to or dodge your questions, depending on what I think will help our election most.

There are things we can do to give us a little more attention ... I've got to look more frantic.

We are a nation of communities ... a brilliant diversity spread like stars, like a thousand points of light in a broad and peaceful sky.

Every American expects and deserves clean air, and then we act on that belief, then we will set an example for the rest of the world to follow.

There is a God and He is good, and his love, while free, has a self imposed cost: We must be good to one another.

Poland should be strong and prosperous and independent and play its proper role as a great nation in the heart of Europe.

I think 9/11 guaranteed that national security is going to be in the forefront of every election.

We're enjoying sluggish times, and not enjoying them very much.

No, I'm not anguished and tormented.

It's amazing how many people beat you at golf now that you're no longer president.

It's not whether people like you but whether they share the bright dreams ... and understand the heartbeat of the country.

There is but one just use of power, and it is to serve people.

One of the good things about the way the Gulf War ended in 1991 is, you'd see the Vietnam veterans marching with the Gulf War veterans.

May God bless those who died and bless their families. With regards, George Bush.

By the grace of God, we won the Cold War.

If the people were to ever find out what we have done, we would be chased down the streets and lynched.

Competence is the creed of the technocrat who makes sure the gears mesh but doesn't for a second understand the magic of the machine.

I can tell you this: If I'm ever in a position to call the shots, I'm not going to rush to send somebody else's kids into a war.

Well, I think everybody is frustrated by the finances of the U.N. and the inability to solve problems of war and peace.

When I need a little advice about Saddam Hussein, I turn to country music.

Unlike Churchill, I have no plans to shape history ... Socrates gave advice

We are not here to enjoy the things on earth, but to pass them around. The people who do it are the happiest people you know!

Our stewardship of the Earth is brief. We owe it to those who follow to keep that in perspective, to be responsible passengers along the way.

I can't ever remember sitting around and saying, 'gosh let's hurry up and get these debates going, that'll win it for me.' Nope.

The defense budget is more than a piggy bank for people who want to get busy beating swords into pork barrels.

There's a second life involved. No matter what your position is on abortion or the death penalty, you shouldn't put a pregnant woman to death.

I don't write letters anymore.

Each of the patriots whom we remember on this day was first a beloved son or daughter, a brother or sister, or a spouse, friend, and neighbor.

I don't know that atheists should be considered citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God.

It's too much show business and too much prompting, too much artificiality, and not really debates. They're rehearsed appearances.

The U.S.S. George H. W. Bush is a great thing in my life. It's amazing. A great honor.

Don't try to fine-tune somebody else's view.

We can realise a lasting peace and transform the East-West relationship to one of enduring co-operation.

I just sit ther and do what I vowed I would never do - talk back to the television.

I think I'd be a better president because I was in combat.

Communism didn't fall. It was pushed.

At Odessa we became Texans, and proud of it.

Losing is tough.

I believe with all my heart that one cannot be America's president without a belief in God, without the strength that your faith gives you.

I have survivor's curiosity, I guess.

I have been very happy in the House of Representatives.

The anchor in our world today is freedom, holding us steady in times of change, a symbol of hope to all the world.

We asked for God's help; and now, in this shining outcome, in this magnificent triumph of good over evil, we should thank God.

We know what works. Freedom Works. We know what's right. Freedom is right.

We don't think of ourselves as a dynasty. I really hope some of my grandkids will be actively involved in politics.

The fact is prosperity has a purpose. It's to allow us to pursue "the better angels," to give us time to think and grow.

I stand for anti-bigotry, anti-Semitism, and anti-racism.

It's a very good question, very direct, and I'm not going to answer it.

People say I'm indecisive, but I don't know about that.

Real improvement in our schools is not simply a matter of spending more, it is a matter of expecting more.