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12 Axes Test
Portrait of George H. W. Bush

Forty-first US president

George H. W. Bush’s political views

The forty-first president, who led the coalition that drove Iraq out of Kuwait, signed the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Clean Air Act Amendments and NAFTA, and raised taxes despite his pledge not to.

Presidency
41st, 1989–1993
Party
Republican
Lived
1924–2018
Scored on
8 of 12 axes

Strongest documented leanings

  1. Globalism80%
  2. Militarist72%
  3. Acceleration72%
Where Bush stood on the twelve axes
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Where Bush stood on the twelve axes

Each bar is one axis, between its two poles. Only axes with a documented position are scored; the others are shown as faint stubs on the icon and listed below, never as neutral.

Based on his record from 1989 to 1993. His tax increase and his vetoes of family leave bills pull in different directions from his disability and clean air laws, so several axes sit near the middle.

  • Nationalism vs InternationalismInternationalism 66%
    NationalismInternationalism

    Won Security Council approval in November 1990 for the use of force against Iraq and led a multinational coalition to carry it out.

  • Militarist vs PacifistMilitarist 72%
    MilitaristPacifist

    Ordered 24,000 troops into Panama in December 1989 and led the coalition that evicted Iraq from Kuwait after a 39-day air campaign.

  • Assimilationist vs MulticulturalistMulticulturalist 58%
    AssimilationistMulticulturalist

    Signed the Immigration Act of 1990, which raised legal immigration caps, and the Civil Rights Act of 1991, after vetoing the 1990 version.

  • Collectivize vs PrivatizePrivatize 50%
    CollectivizePrivatize

    Signed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act on 5 November 1990, which raised the top income tax rate from 28% to 31% and fuel taxes by 5 cents a gallon despite his 1988 pledge of no new taxes, and which also cut spending.

  • Planned vs Laissez-fairePlanned 58%
    PlannedLaissez-faire

    Signed the Americans with Disabilities Act on 26 July 1990 and the Clean Air Act Amendments on 15 November 1990, whose acid-rain programme used a cap-and-trade market to cut power-plant emissions.

  • Isolationism vs GlobalismGlobalism 80%
    IsolationismGlobalism

    Signed the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico in December 1992.

  • Progressive vs TraditionalProgressive 52%
    ProgressiveTraditional

    Vetoed the Family and Medical Leave Act in 1990 and 1992, yet signed the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.

  • Acceleration vs BioconservativeAcceleration 72%
    AccelerationBioconservative

    Announced the Space Exploration Initiative on 20 July 1989, calling for a return to the Moon to stay and a crewed mission to Mars, which stalled after estimates of about $500 billion met a hostile reception.

No documented position, so not scored: Federal vs Unitary, Democratic vs Autocratic, Security vs Freedom, and Irreligious vs Religious.

What shaped the scores

Dated actions from the record. Each is tied to the axis it informs.

  1. Bush orders 24,000 troops into Panama after an American serviceman is killed.

    Militarist vs Pacifist

    Presidency of George H. W. Bush · Wikipedia

  2. He signs the Americans with Disabilities Act, which bans discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, public services and public accommodations.

    Planned vs Laissez-faire

    Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 · Wikipedia

  3. He signs the budget law that raises taxes and cuts spending, despite his 1988 pledge of no new taxes.

    Collectivize vs Privatize

    Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 · Wikipedia

  4. He signs the Clean Air Act Amendments, which create the Acid Rain Program, a cap-and-trade system for power plants.

    Planned vs Laissez-faire

    Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 · Wikipedia

  5. After a 39-day air campaign, coalition forces evict Iraq from Kuwait.

    Militarist vs Pacifist

    Presidency of George H. W. Bush · Wikipedia

  6. He signs the North American Free Trade Agreement, initialled in October.

    Isolationism vs Globalism

    Presidency of George H. W. Bush · Wikipedia

Bush compared with other presidents

Measured on the axes both presidents are scored on, with the same rules as the quiz.

Most like

Least like

Questions about George H. W. Bush’s politics

The forty-first president, who led the coalition that drove Iraq out of Kuwait, signed the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Clean Air Act Amendments and NAFTA, and raised taxes despite his pledge not to. On our twelve axes, the strongest documented leanings are Globalism 80%, Militarist 72%, Acceleration 72%.

Those labels changed meaning over time, so this site describes Bush on twelve axes instead. On the economy, Bush’s record sits between government action and free markets. On social questions it sits between progressive and traditional. The scores above give the evidence behind each axis.

George H. W. Bush was a Republican. Bush was the 41st president, serving 1989–1993.

On the axes they are both scored on, Bush is closest to Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and furthest from Herbert Hoover, Andrew Jackson, Calvin Coolidge.

Yes. He signed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act on 5 November 1990, which raised the top income tax rate from 28% to 31% and added taxes on fuel, tobacco and alcohol, and the reversal became an issue in the 1992 election.

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Sources and credits

Main source: Inaugural Address of George Bush · The Avalon Project

Also read

Portrait: David Valdez, 1989 · Public domain

Scores are editorial estimates from the public record, not measurements. A place on this site is not praise.

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How close are you to Bush?

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