Reading Lips: How JFK Award for Courage is a Major Re-Writing of George Bush, Sr.'s History

by Nomad

Ex-president George H.W. Bush recently received an award for his courage in putting aside partisan politics and in raising taxes. In doing so, it was said at the ceremony, Bush the election in 1992. However, to those of us who actually witnessed these events, this rewriting of history comes as quite a shock.

Why was George Bush, sr. a one-term president? Was it all about his courage.. or was it about his dishonesty?

Profile in Courage?
Sometimes historical revisionism plunges into enters into the world of total fabrication.
The other day, I was dismayed to see an article about an awards ceremony held at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. President George H.W. Bush was given the 2014 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award. Of course, awards for former presidents are a dime a dozen, but what struck me was the reason. 

Former President George H.W. Bush was honored Sunday with a Kennedy "courage" award for agreeing to raise taxes to confront a spiraling deficit, jeopardizing his presidency that ended after just one term.

Really? When Carter was a one-term president, it was because he was an incompetent. With Papa Bush it was because he was too courageous. It is the first time I have heard this spin on the historical record.

The award crossed generations and political parties. It was given by Jack Schlossberg, son of the late Democratic president's daughter, Caroline Kennedy, to Lauren Bush, granddaughter of the former Republican president.

Conservatives denounced Bush for raising taxes, breaking a key promise in his successful 1988 campaign for the White House.

Schlossberg said the award recognizes Bush for taking action, even if it was unpopular.

"We celebrate courage today, in a moment of profound change and challenge, in a world gripped by partisan gridlock and inaction," he said.

Jack Schlossberg and Lauren Bush, whether they know it or not, are participating in a bizarre species of political fraud.  Whatever their motivations- presumably to shame Congress out of its long intransigence- both Schlossberg and Bush had really ought to do a little more historical research on the matter. (Especially Yale-graduate Schlossberg whose family connections might actually count for something.) 

At the awards ceremony last week, Lauren Bush told the audience:

"America's gain was President Bush's loss, and his decision to put country above party and political prospects makes him an example of a modern profile in courage that is all too rare."

To say that George H.W. Bush took the unpopular stand of raising taxes and therefore deserves our praise is a nausea-inducing spinning of the history. It is almost a little too much for one who actually lived during those days- unlike both of these two innocents- to stomach.