Overheard at the Bush Center

As part of the Engage at the Bush Center series presented by NexPoint, Jared Cohen, author of Life After Power, and Jeffrey Engel, founding David Gergen Director of the Center for Presidential History at SMU, headlined a conversation on the post-presidency. The conversation, moderated by Freddy Ford, President Bush’s Chief of Staff, featured insights from history and memorable stories.

Russia and China are closer allies than at any time in the two countries’ modern history. In an Engage at Bush Center conversation presented by NexPoint, a panel of distinguished experts discussed how the United States should deal with Moscow and Beijing. Krys Boyd, Host and Managing Editor of KERA Radio’s award-winning national program, Think, led the conversation featuring John J. Sullivan, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia and deputy Secretary of State and author of Midnight in Moscow, a memoir of his experiences in Russia; Dan Schulman, former President and CEO of PayPal; and Ellen Bork, Fellow at the Bush Institute.

Related:

• Engage NexPoint Lecture: The Russia-China Challenge
• The China challenge: How the U.S. can counter Beijing's authoritarian ambitions

Sitting U.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch returned to the Bush Center as part of the Engage at the Bush Center series presented by NexPoint. Justice Gorsuch discussed his new book, Over Ruled: The Human Tool of Too Much Law, and the complex role laws play in Americans lives.

Related: 

• A Conversation with Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch - Engage at the Bush Center, presented by NexPoint
• The Strategerist podcast with Justice Neil Gorsuch

Recently, the Bush Center hosted author Heather Morris for the Laura Bush Book Club as part of Engage at the Bush Center series presented by NexPoint, with support from H-E-B.  In her conversation with Bush Institute’s Anne Wicks, Morris discussed her No. 1 international bestselling novel and new original series, The Tattooist of Auschwitz – a story about hope and love, based on interviews conducted with Holocaust survivor and Auschwitz-Birkenau tattooist Ludwig (Lale) Sokolov. 

Related: 

• Laura Bush Book Club with “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” Author Heather Morris
• Mrs. Laura Bush's 2024 Summer Reading List 

While foundational to the beliefs of our nation, religious freedom is still denied to many around the globe. This conversation dives into the global significance of this liberty and its domestic importance for our pluralistic society.

Panelists:

• Rushan Abbas, Founder and Executive Director, Campaign for Uyghurs
• David French, Opinion Columnist, The New York Times
• Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and National Director, ADL
• Chris Walsh, Director, Global Policy, George W. Bush Institute (Moderator)

Related: 

• 2024 Forum of Leadership 

William J. Burns, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, was the keynote speaker at the Bush Center’s 2024 Forum on Leadership. Burns was joined by David J. Kramer, Executive Director of the Bush Institute, for a conversation on how the CIA assesses challenges facing the United States from Russia and China to the Middle East. 

Related: 

2024 Forum on Leadership

America's role in the world leads to competition and clashes with Russia and China, including when it comes to promoting values of human dignity and personal freedoms. Top minds on this issue will discuss how human rights and democracy factor into the great power competition. With an introductory testimonial by Seohyun Lee, North Korean Human Rights Advocate. 

Panelists: 

• Mark Green, President, Director, and CEO, The Wilson Center 
• William Inboden, Professor and Director, Alexander Hamilton Center for Classical and Civic Education, University of Florida 
• Nicole Bobbins Sedaca, Kelly and David Pfeil Fellow, George W. Bush Institute 
• Moderator: Igor Khrestin, Bradford M. Freeman Managing Director, Global Policy, George W. Bush Institute

Related: 

• 2024 Forum on Leadership

When freedom is under attack, oppressed people’s most powerful tool is often their voice and the voices of others.  Global activists Pashtana Durrani, Joseph Kim, and Alice Zhuravel, joined Bush Institute’s Director of Global Policy, Natalie Gonella-Platts, for a panel  discussion at the 2024 Forum on Leadership on how they are pushing back against authoritarian threats and speaking truth to power. 

Related: 

• 2024 Forum on Leadership 

Indra Nooyi is the former Chairman and CEO of PepsiCo, where she led a push toward sustainable growth emphasizing more nutritious products, a smaller environmental footprint, and empowerment for employees and communities served. She has been recognized for her achievements by both the governments of the United States and India and has been inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame and the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. She’s a role model for women and immigrants and the author of My Life in Full: Work, Family, and Our Future.

As the recipient of the 2024 George W. Bush Medal for Distinguished Leadership, Nooyi sat down with Ken Hersh, President and CEO of the Bush Center, where she shared her journey as the first immigrant to lead a Fortune 50 company.

As part the Engage at the Bush Center series presented by Nexpoint, a panel of former White House Social Secretaries shared insights and behind-the-scenes stories about entertaining at the White House. Moderated by Anita McBride, the panel featured Jeremy Bernard, former White House Social Secretary to President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama; Gahl Hodges Burt, former White House Social Secretary to President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan; and Amy Zantzinger, former White House Social Secretary to President Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush. 

Related: 

• A Conversation with White House Social Secretaries