Description
Deluxe limited edition of “Read My Lips: No New Taxes,” signed by Presidents George H.W. Bush and Gerald R. Ford.
Octavo, 159pp. Blue cloth, quarter black leather, title in gilt on spine and cover. Housed in the publisher’s matching blue cloth slipcase, in fine condition.
From a limited edition of 175 numbered copies and 26 deluxe copies signed by President George Bush.
This book is a presentation copy, held back for the author and signed by President George Bush and former President Gerald R. Ford (pg. 57).
In November 1990, President George H. W. Bush signed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990, which raised several taxes—including increasing the top individual income-tax rate from 28 percent to 31 percent, raising the alternative minimum tax, and tightening high-income itemized deductions and exemptions—as part of a deficit‑reduction compromise.
The decision directly contradicted his 1988 campaign pledge, “Read my lips: no new taxes,” frustrating many conservatives and damaging his credibility. This reversal became a central issue in the 1992 presidential campaign, where Democratic challenger Bill Clinton used it to question Bush’s trustworthiness, and many analysts cite Bush’s broken promise as a major factor in his defeat to Clinton.
