Former President George W. Bush and current Republican candidate Mitt Romney are very similar politically; Romney’s foreign policy team is stacked with Bush administration veterans, and his economic plan is essentially Bush’s on steroids.
A closer look at the two men reveals that the similarities don’t end with policy, however. Here are 6 ways in which Bush and Romney’s personal lives are eerily similar:
They Were Both Prep School Cheerleaders
Bush served as head cheerleader at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, while Romney led megaphone cheers for the football team at Cranbrook School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.
They’re Both Bullies
Romney led a mob of his high school classmates in pinning down a gay student and cutting off his hair, and mocked another gay classmate with taunts of “atta girl!” Bush hazed the new pledges of his Yale fraternity, DKE, by branding them with an iron.
They Both Have Serious Daddy Issues
Bush’s eight years in office were marked by a desire out-do his father, whose presidency he saw as a failure. The ghost of George Romney seems to haunt Mitt’s every word on the campaign trail.
They’re Both Total Teetotalers
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Bush, a former alcoholic, quit drinking at the age of 40. Romney’s Mormon faith prohibits him from drinking, although he admitted to once tasting a beer as a “wayward teenager.”
They Both Have Mexican Relatives
Romney’s great-grandfather fled to Mexico after polygamy was outlawed in the United States, and one wing of the Romney family (including his second cousin Brandon, pictured above,) still lives there. Bush’s nephews are Mexican-American, and were charmingly referred to as “the little brown ones” by their grandfather, George H.W. Bush.
They Both Used Family Connections To Dodge Vietnam
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Bush reportedly used his father’s clout to avoid combat by skipping the waiting list for a coveted spot in the Texas Air National Guard. Romney’s familial connections with the Mormon Church resulted in his spending the Vietnam War in a French palace.
Hat-tip to @LOLGOPfor his help.
