That phrase brings back cold family memories of New Hampshire. In the 1992 primary, President Bush’s broken pledge not to raise taxes helped power Pat Buchanan to a close second, demonstrating Bush’s vulnerability. This year George W. Bush’s brother Jeb, the Florida governor, has handed out oranges in New Hampshire. The former president, however, has stayed away from the state–partly to avoid giving the impression that George W needs dad’s help. Barbara jokes that “my George” was so anxious about their son’s first debate that he called his wife from a fishing trip in Argentina for a report–a day before the showdown. Barbara Bush has described George Sr. as a “little obsessed” with the campaign, but she told NEWSWEEK, “I only read the good news.”
Good-natured ribbing runs in the family. “He’s much funnier than George H. W.,” says Mrs. Bush, who calls her son a “smart aleck.” “She was the enforcer in our family,” W says. Nothing has changed about that. “George will keep his promises,” Mrs. Bush told audiences. “Or else his mother will come get him.” And for her fans, that assurance is golden.
