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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, George Herbert Walker Bush, the 41st president of |
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the United States, has served the American people with honor and |
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distinction over the course of an exemplary career in public life; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Born in Milton, Massachusetts, on June 12, 1924, to |
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U.S. Senator Prescott Bush and Dorothy Walker Bush, George H. W. |
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Bush hailed from a family with a proud tradition of government and |
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business leadership; he attended Phillips Academy in Andover, and |
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on his 18th birthday, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy; on earning his |
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wings at the completion of flight school, he was among the youngest |
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pilots serving in World War II, and he eventually flew a total of 58 |
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combat missions in the war and earned the Distinguished Flying |
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Cross for his bravery in action; and |
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WHEREAS, George Bush attended Yale University, where he was a |
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member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society; after graduating with a |
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degree in economics in 1948, he found success working in the oil |
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industry in West Texas; his entrance into politics came in 1963, |
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when he was named chair of the Harris County Republican Party, and |
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he was later elected to two terms in the U.S. Congress as a |
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representative from Texas; highly respected by his peers in public |
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service, he received appointments to a series of high-level |
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positions, including ambassador to the United Nations, chair of the |
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Republican National Committee, chief of the U.S. Liaison Office in |
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China, and director of the Central Intelligence Agency; and |
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WHEREAS, This accomplished leader was selected as Ronald |
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Reagan's running mate during the 1980 presidential campaign, and in |
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his role as vice president of the United States from 1981 to 1989, |
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he focused on federal deregulation, antidrug programs, and other |
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domestic policy areas; in 1988, he became the Republican nominee |
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for president, and following his victory in the November election, |
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he took office as the nation's chief executive; and |
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WHEREAS, His presidency coincided with a time of many |
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significant changes in the world, including the end of the Cold War, |
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the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and the fall of the Berlin |
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Wall; noted for his skillful handling of foreign affairs, President |
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Bush worked toward improved relations with Russia and oversaw the |
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U.S. military's removal of Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega; in |
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response to the invasion of Kuwait directed by Iraqi president |
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Saddam Hussein in 1990, he assembled an unprecedented coalition of |
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32 nations to drive out the Iraqi forces, an action that is widely |
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viewed as his greatest presidential achievement; and |
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WHEREAS, During and after his time in office, President Bush |
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has championed the cause of public and community service; in 2011, |
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he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President |
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Barack Obama in recognition of his efforts to inspire volunteerism |
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in communities across the country, and Points of Light, the |
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foundation that he established in 1990, continues to engage |
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millions of people to become agents of positive change; in 2005, he |
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joined forces with former president Bill Clinton to lead a |
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fund-raiser for the victims of Hurricane Katrina, and the |
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initiative collected more than $100 million in donations in a |
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matter of months; and |
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WHEREAS, By his side in all his endeavors has been his wife, |
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Barbara Bush, whom he married in 1945; the couple are the parents of |
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six children, and they have proudly supported the political careers |
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of their sons George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president of |
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the United States from 2001 to 2009, and Jeb Bush, who was governor |
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of Florida from 1999 to 2007, as well as that of their grandson |
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George P. Bush, who was elected Texas land commissioner in 2014; and |
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WHEREAS, In President George H. W. Bush's own words, "Any |
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definition of a successful life must include serving others," and |
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this esteemed statesman has exemplified this ideal through his |
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myriad contributions in the public realm; his patriotism and |
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principled leadership have made him a revered figure in his adopted |
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home state, and the renaming of the State Insurance Building in the |
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Capitol Complex would indeed provide a fitting tribute to his |
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legacy; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby direct the Texas Facilities Commission to rename the State |
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Insurance Building in the Capitol Complex as the George H. W. Bush |
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State Office Building in honor of former president George H. W. Bush |
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and his steadfast commitment to our state and nation; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official |
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copy of this resolution to the chair and to the executive director |
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of the Texas Facilities Commission. |