TEXAS TITANS
Texas Titans, George H.W. Bush & James A. Baker III, A Friendship Forged in Power
The friendship between George H.W. Bush and James A. Baker, III began over fifty years ago on the tennis courts of the Houston Country Club when they found themselves paired as a doubles team, winning back-to-back championships in 1966 and 1967. While both men were admittedly weak servers, Bush was the net-and-volley guy, with Baker holding down the baseline with his groundstroke skills. That same approach of complementary skill sets and teamwork spilled over into their political careers for decades to come.
Men of Power and Persuasion
The friendship between George H.W. Bush and James A. Baker, III began over fifty years ago on the tennis courts of the Houston Country Club when they found themselves paired as a doubles team, winning back-to-back championships in 1966 and 1967. While both men were admittedly weak servers, Bush was the net-and-volley guy, with Baker holding down the baseline with his groundstroke skills. That same approach of complementary skill sets and teamwork spilled over into their political careers for decades to come.
​
Both men’s résumés were legendary. Bush served as a United States congressman, ambassador to the United Nations, chair of the Republican National Committee, US liaison to China, director of Central Intelligence, 43rd vice president, and 41st president of the United States.
​
Baker served as undersecretary of commerce, secretary of the treasury, secretary of state, and White House chief of staff — twice, while also chairing or playing a lead role in five successive presidential elections for three different candidates from 1976 to 1992.
Consequential Presidency
During George Bush’s single term as president, the world underwent a series of cataclysmic events — the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the invasion of Panama, the re-unification of Germany, the Persian Gulf War, and the collapse of the Soviet Union. As these developments unfolded, President Bush turned to his trusted friend and closest political ally to help transform the world into what it is today. While Bush’s foreign-policy achievements from 1989 to 1993 were consequential, indeed, a less-than-stellar economy and an unanticipated third-party candidate siphoning off crucial Republican votes tripped up his re-election efforts in 1992. Both men returned to their beloved hometown of Houston, Texas. Eight years later, Baker’s best friend’s eldest son – Texas governor George W. Bush — was in a political dogfight in Florida and turned to Baker to help secure the state’s twenty-five electoral votes — and the presidency.
​
This is a story of two of the most significant statesmen of the past half-century, a story of a friendship forged in power between George H.W. Bush and James A. Baker, III.






