George H.W. Bush
After serving in the U.S. Navy, Bush, the son of a Connecticut Senator, entered the oil business, and became a millionaire by age 40. A successful politician who represented Texas in the House of Representatives from 1967-1971, President Nixon appointed him U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and, under President Ford, he served as a diplomat in China. Bush directed the CIA for one year before joining Ronald Reagan’s presidential ticket, serving two terms as vice president., during which time he penned our letter. In 1988, he ran for president and defeated Democratic rival, Michael Dukakis, taking office in January 1989. The Bush administration witnessed the invasion of Panama, the Gulf War, the signing of the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and the collapse of the Soviet Union. In 1992, President Bush ran for reelection but lost to Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton.
Kingon, a Wall Street investment adviser and publisher of Financial World and Saturday Review, served as Assistant Secretary of Commerce from 1983-1984 and President Reagan’s cabinet secretary from 1985-1987, where he played “a central role in domestic, agricultural, economic and trade policy,” and became U.S. ambassador to the European Union from March 27, 1987- June 23, 1989, (“Working Profile: Alfred H. Kingon; Being a Fly on White House Wall and Loving It,” The New York Times, Weinraub). Written a week after Kingon was sworn in.
Written on a blue-bordered correspondence card bearing the gold embossed vice-presidential seal in the upper left corner and accompanied by the original envelope bearing Bush’s stamped franking signature. In extremely fine condition.
