Former President George W. Bush has selected UVA’s Miller Center of Public Affairs to conduct the official oral history of his presidency.
According to a press release, President Bush is “delighted that the Miller Center will record for history detailed interviews with key members of my administration.”
The Miller Center began its Presidential Oral History Program in 1981 and has worked to chronicle the presidencies of four other presidents: Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
About 100 interviews are expected to take place, and the project will take roughly five years to complete. Usually, the interviews are tape-recorded, cleared by the interviewee and then released to the public. Currently, the oral history of presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan are open to the public.
Professor Russell Riley, chair of the Miller Center’s Presidential Oral History Program, said that the 43rd presidency was one of the most “consequential” in American history.
The Miller Center is also working on a project about the life and career of Senator Edward Kennedy.
