George H. W. Bush

"I will keep America moving forward, always forward — for a better America, for an endless, enduring dream and a thousand points of light."— George H. W. Bush

In 1988, George Bush accepted the presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention. It was the first time he made reference to “a thousand points of light,” a phrase he would go on to use in subsequent speeches. It appears twice in the 1988 address, first in the line “a brilliant diversity spreads like stars, like a thousand points of light in a broad and peaceful sky,” and later in the line above. The speech also included Bush's infamous “Read my lips: no new taxes” promise, which eventually came back to haunt him.