George Walker Bush ( ; born July 6, 1946) was the 43rd President of the United States from 2001 to 2009. He was the 46th Governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000 before being sworn in as President on January 20, 2001.

Bush is the eldest son of the 41st U.S. President George H. W. Bush and Barbara Bush. After graduating from Yale University in 1968, and Harvard Business School in 1975, Bush worked in his family's oil businesses. He married Laura Welch in 1977 and unsuccessfully ran for the United States House of Representatives shortly thereafter. He later co-owned the Texas Rangers baseball team before defeating Ann Richards to become Governor of Texas in 1994. In a close and controversial election, Bush was elected president in 2000 as the Republican candidate, receiving a majority of the electoral votes, but losing the popular vote to then Vice President Al Gore.

Eight months into Bush's first term as president, the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks occurred, and Bush announced a global War on Terrorism, ordered an invasion of Afghanistan that same year and an invasion of Iraq in 2003. In addition to national security issues, Bush promoted policies on the economy, health care, education and social security reform. He signed into law broad tax cuts, the No Child Left Behind Act and Medicare prescription drug benefits for seniors. His tenure saw a national debate on immigration and social security.

Bush successfully ran for re-election against Democratic Senator John Kerry in 2004, garnering 50.7 percent of the popular vote to his opponent's 48.3 percent. After his re-election, Bush received increasingly heated criticism from some sources. In 2005, the Bush administration dealt with widespread criticism over its handling of Hurricane Katrina. In December 2007, the United States entered the longest post-World War II recession, and his administration took more direct control of the economy, enacting multiple economic stimulus packages. The US national debt grew from $5.9 trillion to $10.7 trillion during his presidency. Though Bush was a popular president for much of his first term, his popularity declined sharply in his second term.

Childhood to mid-life

main: Early life of George W. Bush Born in New Haven, Connecticut on July 6, 1946, Bush was the first child of George H. W. Bush and Barbara Bush (born Pierce). He was raised in Midland and Houston, Texas, with his four siblings, Jeb, Neil, Marvin and Dorothy. Another younger sister, Robin, died from leukemia at the age of three in 1953. Bush's grandfather, Prescott Bush, was a U.S. Senator from Connecticut. Bush's father, George H. W. Bush, served as U.S. President from 1989 to 1993.

Education

As a child, Bush attended public schools in Midland, Texas until the family moved to Houston after he completed seventh grade. He then went to The Kinkaid School, a prep school in Houston, for two years.

Bush finished his high school years at Phillips Academy, a boarding school (then all-male) in Andover, Massachusetts, where he played baseball and during his senior year was the head cheerleader. Bush attended Yale University from 1964 to 1968, graduating with a Bachelor's degree in history. During this time, he was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon, being elected the fraternity's president during his senior year. Bush also became a member of the secretive Skull and Bones society as a college senior. He characterized himself as an average student.