To many, he’s the hero behind the first Gulf War. To some, he’s the one who let the US economy slow. To others, he guided the world from the Cold War into a more stable future. To others, he fell short of Reagan’s ideals. Like any impactful president, he consisted of many things to many people. Along with John Adams, he remains one of two presidents ever to have their sons someday succeed them. Meacham, one of America’s great political biographers, here details George HW Bush’s life and remains both sympathetic, independent, and critical throughout the account.
Meacham was granted access to Bush’s diaries that chronicled the heights of his power. He also interviewed numerous members of Bush’s inner circle, along with “Number 41” himself. Meacham also tries to pry behind the scenes of Number 41’s mindset when the son “Number 43” came to power and faced crises. Bush’s youth and development are also amply described here along with details from his marriage to Barbara, who contributed to the research effort.
The resulting portrait reveals a complex, competitive man who was described as “good” and “decent” by opponents and fans alike. His service in the US Navy during World War II (for which he volunteered and postponed a time at Yale) defined the trajectory of his life. He aimed to serve his country, free of any fixed ideology, and that became his full-time job for the second-half of his life.
Throughout, Bush made compromises that kept him short of being ideal. He opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to win a campaign. He flip-flopped on abortion and supply-side economics to become a part of Reagan’s ticket in 1980. Then there was Iran-Contra. He also entered an unfocused drift on the domestic front after the first Persian Gulf War. Meacham does not skip over these and suggests ways that Bush could have improved. However, from reading this book, I get the impression that Bush would wholeheartedly agree with Meacham on most of this critique.
This book will remain the definitive writing on George HW Bush’s life for some time. The quality of historiography and the artful prose make it hard to surpass. Discussion of Bush’s legacy – positive and negative – will continue, and this work provides many conversation starters about that. The inside access that the Bush family gave to Meacham will make this book not only seminal but also a future primary source for future biographers. (Number 43’s biography of Number 41 must also be consulted as a primary source, too.)
Most living Americans might read Destiny and Power as a way to remember their personal histories. It certainly brought back many memories for me. It reminded me of my conservative youth and my ideological shift during Number 43’s presidency. Through reading, I was able to attain a more comprehensive, three-dimensional view of Number 41, independent of the passions of the time (and the passions of my family). Meacham reflects on where America has been recently and where we can go, and for era of 1964-2008, much of that was wrapped up in the service of Number 41 George HW Bush.
Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush
By Jon Meacham
Narrated by Paul Michael
Copyright (c) 2015
Random House Audio
ASIN B0143RY90W
Length: 25:10
Genre: Presidential Biography, American History
www.amazon.com