III.

Early Career

After earning his M.B.A. from Harvard in 1975, Bush returned to Midland. Like his father, he first entered the oil industry as a “landman,” someone who helps organize oil-drilling ventures by bringing together geologists, property owners, and investors. In this position, Bush searched property records, studied geological reports, and negotiated deals.

In 1977 Bush announced that he was running for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Shortly after he declared his candidacy, he met Laura Welch, a Midland native who worked as a librarian and an elementary-school teacher. In November 1977, three months after they met, the couple wed. Bush became the Republican congressional candidate after a tough primary race, but he lost the general election in 1978. His Democratic opponent attacked Bush as an outsider and a newcomer who did not understand the needs of voters in Texas. Bush captured the financial and political support of the oil industry, but his opponent won the support of rural and agricultural voters.

After his loss, Bush resumed his career in the oil industry, starting a series of small, independent oil-exploration companies, including Arbusto Energy Inc. (Arbusto is the Spanish word for “bush.”) In 1980 he again campaigned on behalf of his father, who had been chosen as the vice-presidential running mate of Ronald Reagan. (Reagan won the election, and Bush’s father went on to serve two terms as vice president.) In 1981 Bush and his wife became the parents of twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara, who were named for their grandmothers. Although he was raised as an Episcopalian, Bush began worshiping as a Methodist, the denomination of his wife.

Bush’s oil companies never enjoyed great success. He changed the name of Arbusto Energy to Bush Exploration and spent time in New York attracting investors. In 1984, however, his company merged with a larger company, Spectrum 7. Bush became chairman of Spectrum 7, but the company was hurt by falling oil prices. In 1986 it was folded into Harken Energy Corporation, another Texas petroleum company. Bush served as a consultant and a member of Harken’s board of directors.

In 1987 Bush relocated his family to Washington, D.C., to assist his father in his bid to become president. He worked as a campaign adviser at his father’s national campaign headquarters, serving as a liaison to the media and to conservative and Christian leaders. He was a trusted confidant of his father and mother, who sometimes dispatched Bush to measure the loyalty of certain campaign aides and members of the vice president’s staff. He also campaigned across the country, sometimes appearing as a surrogate for his father. After his father won the election, Bush served as an adviser to the president-elect. He helped oversee a group that decided which individuals might be offered posts in the Bush administration.

After the election, Bush moved to Dallas, Texas, and purchased a small interest in the Texas Rangers baseball team in 1989. He became one of the managing general partners of the baseball team and agreed to serve as the public spokesperson for the ownership group. Bush’s affiliation with the team raised his profile in Texas. In 1990 he explored, but then abandoned, the idea of a bid for the Texas governor’s office. During his time with the Rangers, he oversaw the building of a new baseball stadium in Arlington, Texas. Bush, a lifelong baseball fan, was extremely happy during his tenure with the team.

During the early 1990s, Bush repeatedly traveled to Washington, D.C., to confer with his father—the president—and to offer his advice. They discussed various members of the elder Bush’s White House staff. During his father’s time in the White House, Bush was the subject of a Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) inquiry. The SEC investigated whether Bush had engaged in insider trading when he sold Harken Energy stock shortly before Harken announced financial losses. The investigation ended with no proof of wrongdoing. In the 1992 presidential race, Bush again campaigned on behalf of his father; the elder Bush lost the election to Democrat Bill Clinton. After his father’s defeat, Bush turned his attention to his own political ambitions in Texas and began a regular series of meetings with advisers in Dallas to plan a run for the office of governor.