Mr. Baker served as the 67th Secretary of the Treasury from 1985 to 1988 under President Ronald Reagan. As Treasury Secretary, he was also Chairman of the President's Economic Policy Council. From 1981 to 1985, he served as White House Chief of Staff to President Reagan. Mr. Baker's record of public service began in 1975 as Under Secretary of Commerce to President Gerald Ford. It concluded with his service as White House Chief of Staff and Senior Counselor to President Bush from August 1992 to January 1993.
Long active in American presidential politics, Mr. Baker led presidential campaigns for Presidents Ford, Reagan and Bush over the course of five consecutive presidential elections from 1976 to 1992.
A native Houstonian, Mr. Baker graduated from Princeton University in 1952. After two years of active duty as a Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps, he entered the University of Texas School of Law at Austin. He received his J.D. with honors in 1957, and practiced law with the Houston firm of Andrews and Kurth from 1957 to 1975.
Mr. Baker received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1991 and has been the recipient of many other awards for distinguished public service, including Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson Award, The American Institute for Public Service's Jefferson Award, Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government Award, The Hans J. Morgenthau Award, The George F. Kennan Award, the Department of the Treasury's Alexander Hamilton Award, the Department of State's Distinguished Service Award, and numerous honorary academic degrees.
Mr. Baker is presently a senior partner in the law firm of Baker Botts. He is Honorary Chairman of the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University and serves on the board of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. From 1997 to 2004, Mr. Baker served as the Personal Envoy of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan to seek a political solution to the conflict over Western Sahara. In 2003, Mr. Baker was appointed Special Presidential Envoy for President George W. Bush on the issue of Iraqi debt.
Mr. Baker was born in Houston, Texas in 1930. He and his wife, the former Susan Garrett, currently reside in Houston, and have eight children and seventeen grandchildren. « less
Government Positions
Business Positions
Carlyle Group
Asset management firm
Other Positions & Memberships
1-10 of 13 :: see all
Alfalfa Club
Exclusive DC club for the rich and powerful since 1913
Council on Foreign Relations
The most prestigious US foreign policy think tank
Gerald R Ford Foundation
Provides support for the Gerald R Ford Presidential...
Partnership for Public Service
Public-private partnership
Education
Professional Associates
David Rubenstein
Co-Founder and Co-CEO of The Carlyle Group
James W Cicconi
Top AT&T lobbyist
Donation/Grant Recipients
1-10 of 25 :: see all
John Kline
US Representative from Minnesota
John McCain
US Senator and Representative from Arizona
Mitt Romney
Former Governor of Massachusetts
Michael Castle
Republican politician from Delaware
George W Bush
43rd US president, ex-governor of Texas, son of George H W Bush
Rick Lazio
US Representative from New York; 2010 Republican candidate for New York...
Office/Staff