So, you want to talk about George W. Bush’s net worth—and Forbes has the juicy numbers. It’s not just about oil fields and baseball teams. It’s a story of blue blood, a brush with a different kind of power, and a whole lot of paintings.
The Big Number (And Why It’s Weird)
Forbes pegs George W. Bush’s net worth at around $40 million. That’s a lot of zeroes, but compared to other ex-presidents? It’s almost modest. Think of it this way: Barack Obama is worth well over $70 million. Bill Clinton? Over $120 million. So W. is the cheap billionaire’s son.
Wait—his dad, George H. W. Bush, was also president. And his grandfather was a senator. The family trust is old money, built on oil, finance, and Connecticut real estate. But here’s the kicker: W. didn’t inherit a fortune outright. He earned part of it, lost part of it, and then fumbled his way into the White House.
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From “Bushwood” to the Big Leagues
Before politics, W. was a serial entrepreneur with mixed results. He started an oil company called Arbusto Energy. Yes, “Arbusto” means “bush” in Spanish. His investors? Mostly family friends. It went bust. He sold it. Then he tried a second oil company, Spectrum 7. That also went bust.
So how did he make money? Connections. He sold Spectrum 7 to a bigger firm, Harken Energy, and pocketed a cool $500,000 in stock. Then he became part-owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team. His $600,000 investment turned into $15 million when he sold his share. That’s the money ball of luck.
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The Forbes Factor: A Quirky Look
Forbes doesn’t just count cash. They count land, art, and speaking fees. W.’s biggest asset? Prairie Chapel Ranch in Crawford, Texas. It’s a 1,600-acre spread worth about $3 million. He bought it in 1999 for just $1.3 million. Now he chops wood there. Literally. He’s famous for clearing cedar trees with a chainsaw. That’s his version of self-care.
Speaking fees are his real income. Since leaving office, he’s given hundreds of speeches. At $100,000 per pop, that’s a massive pile of cash. But he also writes books. His memoir, “Decision Points,” earned him a $7 million advance. Not bad for a guy who once said, “Fool me once, shame on—shame on you. Fool me—you can’t get fooled again.”
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The Painting Money Mystery
Here’s the quirky fact. George W. Bush is a painter. And not a bad one. He paints dogs, cats, and shower scenes. His subjects? Often world leaders he met as president. He paints their heads floating in bathtubs. It’s oddly mesmerizing.
Do these paintings make money? Yes. In 2017, someone bought his portrait of a dove for $300,000 at an auction. But the weird part? The buyer was a Bitcoin investor named Tim Draper. So W.’s art is now a crypto-cash curiosity. Forbes probably doesn’t count that in his net worth. It’s too strange.
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Let’s be honest. The Bush family trust is the quiet engine of his wealth. His grandfather, Prescott Bush, was a Wall Street banker. His dad, George H.W., married into the Walker family, which owned a massive oil fortune. The trust pays out dividends to all the Bush children and grandchildren. W. gets a cut.
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But he’s not a flashy spender. He lives in a modest-ish house in Dallas. He plays golf. He paints. He gives millions to charity, mostly for veterans and malaria programs. So his $40 million net worth feels unexpectedly human. No yachts. No private jets (anymore—he flew Air Force One, which was a big one).
Why We Care (And Should)
Let’s face it. Talking about money is fun because it’s gossip with a calculator. With W., the numbers tell a story of privilege, failure, and a second act. He went from a failed oilman to a president who launched two wars. Then he became a painter who skips dessert for coffee.
George W. Bush Net Worth - Net Worth Post
Forbes says he’s worth $40 million. But that number doesn’t capture the weirdness. It doesn’t count the time he choked on a pretzel and fainted. It doesn’t value the joy of riding a bike through his ranch. Or the awkwardness of his “Mission Accomplished” banner speech.
So here’s the takeaway: net worth is just a number. George W. Bush’s real fortune is in loyalty, a strong name, and a willingness to try anything—even if you fail at it twice. Plus, he’s a really good painter of cats. Check your own portfolio. Does it include a painting of a cat in a bathtub? No? Then he’s richer than you in the most important way.
And that, my friend, is the kind of wealth Forbes can never capture.