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Happy Birthday To Greenwich’s George Walker Bush

GREENWICH, Conn. -- Happy birthday to Greenwich’s George Walker Bush!

George Walker Bush turns 68 on Sunday.

George Walker Bush turns 68 on Sunday.

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Bush, who grew up in Greenwich, turns 68 on Sunday. The former president was born July 6, 1946, in New Haven.

He worked in the oil business and later co-owned the Texas Rangers baseball team. He defeated Ann Richards in the 1994 Texas gubernatorial election and served the 46th governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000.

Bush was elected president in 2000, becoming the fourth president to be elected while receiving fewer popular votes nationwide than his opponent.

Eight months into Bush's first term as president, the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks occurred. In response, Bush launched the War on Terror, an international military campaign that included the war in Afghanistan launched in 2001 and the war in Iraq launched in 2003.

He signed into law broad tax cuts, the PATRIOT Act, the No Child Left Behind Act, the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, Medicare prescription drug benefits for seniors, and funding for the AIDS relief program known as PEPFAR.

His tenure saw national debates on immigration, Social Security, electronic surveillance and enhanced interrogation techniques.

Bush successfully ran for re-election, defeating Democratic U.S. Sen. John Kerry in the 2004 election.

In December 2007, the United States entered its longest post–World War II recession, prompting the Bush Administration to enact multiple economic programs intended to preserve the country's financial system.

Nationally, Bush was both one of the most popular and unpopular presidents in history, having received the highest recorded presidential approval ratings in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001, as well as one of the lowest approval ratings during the 2008 financial crisis.

Since leaving office in 2009, Bush has returned to Texas. He has written a memoir titled "Decision Points." His presidential library was opened in 2013 in Dallas.

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