There is another persistent rumor that George Herbert Walker BUSH & Barbara PIERCE were first cousins and that the genetic consequence of a first-cousins marriage explains their defective brood of offspring.  What I have found of their ancestry, so far, does not support that George and Barbara are even distant cousins, much less first cousins.  The degeneracy and inhumanity of the BUSH crime family appear to be due, not to genetics, but to the well known corrupting effects of wealth and power, especially inherited wealth and power.

A third rumor is that George W. BUSH is descended from Franklin PIERCE (1804-1869), 14^th President of the United States, through his mother, Barbara (PIERCE) BUSH.  This rumor is also untrue.  They are not his descendants; they are his distant cousins (see lineages below).

George Walker BUSH's patrilineal ancestry is unremarkable, except for his father, as a former U.S. President, and his criminal grandfather, as a Nazi collaborator during WWII.  The much vaunted illustrious ancestry in George Walker's pedigree comes through the BUSH wives.  So, I guess while you can't say much for the BUSH men, one would have to grant that they did manage to marry well — except for George Walker BUSH, himself.  Laura Lane WELCH's ancestry, based on the considerable extent of it available online (see WorldConnect.com), is mostly southern and totally unremarkable.  I guess if your Pappy has made it to the Presidency, you no longer need to marry well. 

And before we make too much of George Walker BUSH's pedigree, keep in mind that virtually anyone with early New England ancestry has connections to European royalty.  Genealogically speaking, it's no big deal and certainly not extraordinary — hence the appellation, "New England blue bloods."  For example, it's estimated that some 20 to 30 million  Americans are cousins to the late Princess Diana via her New England ancestry, although George Walker BUSH doesn't appear to be one of them while I am.  (La di da.) 

Am I a cousin to George Walker BUSH?  On several lines, but distantly…

My closest connection found, so far, is through his mother, Barbara (PIERCE) BUSH, in the person of Henry LYON (1624-1708), who is Barbara's 7th great-grandfather and my 8th.  Henry LYON was a founder of the colonial town of New Ark [now Newark,] NJ, in 1667, and was the town's first Treasurer.  However, Henry LYON's alleged connection to Elizabeth BOWES-LYON (1900-2002), late Queen Mother of Britain, is not supported by any evidence, as is the case for all the romantic legends surrounding Henry LYON's origins.  The fact is that the identity of Henry LYON's parents remain unknown.  His descendants do have a genetic connection to descendants of a LYON from Middlesex, England, which is probably Henry's origin as well.

On the paternal side, my closest connection to George Herbert Walker BUSH found so far is Rev. Edward BULKELEY (1540-1620) of Shropshire, England, who is one of his 10th great-grandfathers and one of my 12th.  Edward BULKELEY has some notable ancestors, including Alfred the Great and Saher de QUINCY, one of the Magna Carta sureties.  Before making too much of such connections, please consider how many ancestors one has going back this many generations and what a minuscule contribution each such individual makes to your genetic endowment. 

For any two people to be cousins, they have to share at least one common ancestor, and for any two people to be first cousins, they have to share at least one set of grandparents.  George Herbert Walker BUSH and Barbara PIERCE are not first cousins.  In fact, I have yet to find a common ancestor making them even distant cousins (keeping in mind that if you go back far enough, we're all cousins).  I'm still working on the charts, with more to do, especially for Barbara, so I may yet find the common ancestor(s) they are said to have.

First Lady Barbara (PIERCE) BUSH's patrilineal line: