<Tr> <Td> <Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> <P> The presidency of George W. Bush began at noon EST on January 20, 2001, when George W. Bush was inaugurated as 43rd President of the United States, and ended on January 20, 2009 . Bush, a Republican, took office following a very close victory over Democratic incumbent Vice President Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election . Four years later, in the 2004 election, he defeated Democrat John Kerry to win re-election . Bush, the 43rd President, is the eldest son of the 41st President, George H.W. Bush . He was succeeded by Democrat Barack Obama, who won the 2008 presidential election . </P> <P> Upon taking office, Bush pushed through a $1.3 trillion tax cut program and the No Child Left Behind Act, a major education bill . He also pushed for socially conservative efforts, such as the Partial - Birth Abortion Ban Act and faith - based welfare initiatives . After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, Bush declared a global war on terrorism and, in October 2001, ordered an invasion of Afghanistan to overthrow the Taliban, destroy the terrorist group al - Qaeda, and capture Osama bin Laden . That same month, he signed into law the controversial Patriot Act in order to strengthen security and allow for greater surveillance . In 2003, Bush ordered an invasion of Iraq, asserting that Iraq possessed stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1441 . Later that year, he signed the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act, which created Medicare Part D and made other changes to Medicare . </P>

Who was the president of usa in 2005