Learn more about the Baker Institute's leadership and get contact information for the administrative staff. . He previously was The Post's education editor, and he worked as an investigative reporter, a military correspondent and covered crime and courts in Northern Virginia. He is the 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. Baker married his first wife Mary Stuart McHenry in 1953. Former Secretary of State James Baker III gives a eulogy during the funeral for former President George H.W. Pursuing research and open debate to develop pragmatic drug policies based on common sense and driven by human rights interests. "Thank you for being such a great leader for this country and for this department.". 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. Clearly, constant adult supervision is the only solution to the dangers of having children around water, whether it's open water, pools or hot tubs. James Addison Baker III, n le 28 avril 1930 Houston (Texas), est un avocat, , diplomate et homme politique amricain, membre du Parti rpublicain, ancien secrtaire au Trsor de Ronald Reagan entre 1985 et 1988 et ancien secrtaire d'tat de George H. W. Bush de 1989 1993. Baker served as the 67th secretary of the treasury from 1985 to 1988 under President Ronald Reagan. They married in 1953. Baker III and the late Bush enjoyed a close 60-year friendship forged on the tennis courts. James A. Baker III interview for Frontline. Also in 1993, the Enron Corporation hired Baker as a consultant within a month of his departure from the White House, and Enron said that Baker would have an opportunity to invest in any projects he developed. His team included Dennis Ross and many others who were soon appointed to the new Bush Administration. They have one child. In March 1997, Baker became the Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Western Sahara. However, Baker changed his mind about running for Congress when his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer; she died in February 1970. The former secretary of state, they write, insisted the story was distorted at best. Connect to the World Family Tree to find out, James Addison BAKER, Ethel "Bonner" BAKER (born MEANS), Apr 28 1930 - Houston, Harris, Texas 77251, USA, James Addison Baker, Ethel Bonner Baker (born Means), Baker, Baker, Baker, Baker, 1940 - 1216 Bissonet, Houston, J P 1, Harris, Texas, USA, James Addison Baker, Bonner Baker (born Means), Mary Stuart McHenry, Susan Garrett Winston, James Addison Baker Jr., Ethel Bonner Jr. (born Means), 1216 Bissonnet, Houston, Harris, Texas, United States. James Addison Baker III, 61st Secretary of State Rise to Prominence Born in Texas on April 28, 1930, Baker attended prep school in Pennsylvania, and went on to graduate from Princeton University in 1952. State of Denial, a book by investigative reporter Bob Woodward, says that White House Chief of Staff, Andrew Card, urged President Bush to replace Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld with Baker following the 2004 election. [27] Baker proved willing to confront Israeli officials on statements they made contrary to American interests. Reach out to the Palestinians as neighbors who deserve political rights. Bakers use of the term Greater Israel and his insistence on criticizing both sides of the conflict, not just the Palestinians, was received negatively by AIPACs leadership. The authors explain that as the quote spread, it would be repeated by others without the brackets, shortened to Fuck the Jews, an even cruder version than Koch originally alleged., The real story behind the inflammatory comment, the authors write, stemmed from Bakers long-running feud with [Housing Secretary] Jack Kemp, who had told Koch about the episode. Reached at their McLean home yesterday, the Baker family declined to comment. [46] During a 2016 memorial service for Nancy Reagan, he commented to former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney that he believed there were parallels between the rise of Trump and the rise of Reagan. Kemp, for his part, told them that Bakers sentiment got mischaracterized by Koch and others as being anti-Israel. James Baker III was born on April 28, 1930 in Houston, Texas, USA. Israel, a country Baker visited countless times during his four years as President George H.W. Bakers memoir Work Hard, Study . He and his wife, the former Susan Garrett, currently reside in Houston and have eight children and 17 grandchildren. He was a regular tennis partner with Bush at the Houston Country Club in the late 1950s. Baker was portrayed in the film by British actor Tom Wilkinson. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 10th White House Chief of Staff and 67th United States Secretary of the Treasury under President Ronald Reagan and the 61st U.S. Secretary of State before returning as the 16th White House Chief of Staff under President George H. W. Bush. From 9 A.M. to 11:45 A.M. alone, the White House comment line received more than 400 calls about Baker, two-thirds of them positive, the rest negative.. The book also shows how much the Republican Partys approach to Israel has changed over recent decades. Vise, David A.. "Former Secretary of State Baker Joins Carlyle Group". [25] As far back as 1988, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) issued a "declaration of statehood" and changed the name of its observer delegation to the United Nations from the PLO to Palestine. [52], Baker began service on the Rice University board of trustees in 1993.[53]. More below about Doug Baker's appointment by Bush in Nov 2001. From his combat service during World War II until his time at the highest levels in American political leadership, he spent his career trying to make our country the very best it could be," said Secretary Baker. Reagan rejected the Phillips-Wright request. Shultz. "Profiles: The Tactician". Mary had breast cancer in 1968 and died in February 1970 when . He also served as Chief of Staff and Secretary of the Treasury for Reagan and as Secretary of State for Bush. Its a quote that has haunted former U.S. Secretary of State James Baker for almost three decades. Darman continued in the next administration as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. A family member found her, and it took two adults to dislodge her, authorities said. Neither Koch nor Safire named a source, but the former mayor later acknowledged in a book that Kemp was the one who tipped him off., Peter Baker and Susan Glasser interviewed both Kemp and James Baker about the episode. He was named under secretary of commerce by Pres. During the Florida recount following the 2000 presidential election, he managed George W. Bush's legal team in the state. Baker also advised George W. Bush on Iraq. Baker was interviewed during the making of the film, and British actor Tom Wilkinson portrayed him in it. He served until May 1976, ran Ford's 1976 presidential campaign, and unsuccessfully sought election as the Attorney General of Texas. "It was functioning perfectly," Lubas said. (1957) from The University of Texas at Austin and began to practice law in Texas. American lawyer and statesman (born 1930), This article is about the politician. But the former secretary of state was portrayed for many years as anti-Israeli, in large part because of the infamous Fuck the Jews quote. [26], More tensions rose in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict with a massive influx of Jewish people from the Soviet Union moved to Israel. They have six sons and two daughters. He was previously married to Mary Stuart McHenry. Screw them, they dont vote for us, Baker recalled replying. He left behind the Baker II plan, accepted as a suitable basis of negotiations by the Polisario and unanimously endorsed by the Security Council, but rejected by Morocco. Secretary Baker himself is actually a pretty religious person, but hes not a favorite of the evangelical wing of the party, which has long viewed him with suspicion, Peter Baker added. No replacement has yet been named. Secretary Baker would tell you that hes a strong supporter of Israel and that he thinks America should remain its indispensable ally, Peter Baker told Haaretz on Monday. In a classic instance of Washington's willful self-deception, the people who work with James A. Baker III proclaim him a warm, funny Renaissance man with old-fashioned family values. Sep 24th 2020. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1991. Bush. The following year, he was selected as Gulf Coast Regional Chairman for the Richard Nixon presidential campaign. The tall Texan with the impassive stare ranks as the only person to have served as White House chief of staff,. Its ironic that James Bakers criticism of settlements, and his confrontations with Shamir and Netanyahu, led to accusations of hostility toward Jews, when in reality its evangelicals who have moved the Republican Party away from his positions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Baker is considered to have had a high degree of influence over the first Reagan administration, particularly in domestic policy. Since March 2006, Baker and former U.S. In 1985, Baker received the U.S. His wife, Susan, listens at right. Adventures and Lessons from an Unexpected Public Life Hardcover - October 5, 2006 by James Baker III (Author) 87 ratings Kindle $14.99 Read with Our Free App Hardcover $24.42 65 Used from $1.45 8 New from $19.90 2 Collectible from $29.96 Paperback James A. Baker III a t nomm par le prsident Bush, le 5 dcembre 2003, comme reprsentant spcial charg de rengocier la dette irakienne. [31] However, despite having run two winning campaigns for Ronald Reagan and one for Bush, Baker was unsuccessful in the second campaign for Bush, who lost to Clinton by 370 electoral votes to 168.[32]. A lawyer by training, he practiced law in Houston with the firm of Andrews & Kurth for more than twenty years. His wife's influence led Baker to politics and the Republican Party. But James Baker III, the Houston lawyer who rode shotgun for Jerry Ford, George Bush, and Ronald Reagan in their presidential campaigns, plans to keep a low profile in the White House. Virginia Graham Baker of McLean was playing with other children in a friend's whirlpool on Alps Drive during a graduation party Saturday when she accidentally got caught in the pool's drain. [18] He later revealed that he had agreed to do so because James Baker promised that NATO troops would not be posted to eastern Germany and that the military alliance would not expand into Eastern Europe. Writing about Mr. Baker years later,. [41], State of Denial, a book by investigative reporter Bob Woodward, says that White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card urged President Bush to replace Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld with Baker following the 2004 presidential election. To promote greater safety in pools and spas, Nancy Baker gave testimony to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and James Baker helped form an advocacy group, which led to the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool And Spa Safety Act (15 USC 8001). View the profiles of people named James Baker III. Going it alone is not an option.. [26], After this landmark event, he did not work to further improve Arab-Israeli relations. [10] Winston had two sons and a daughter with her former husband. Analyzing the influence of the transnational circulation of people, technologies, commodities and ideas in China. What are James Bakers views on the future of international collaboration? While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Israeli officials and public were highly offended due to the tone of his speech, though his address called for little more than his predecessors. Until 2005 he was senior counsel to the Carlyle Group and is currently a senior partner at the law firm of Baker Botts. U.S. Secretary of State James Baker III, right, and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir conferring following meetings at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, September 17, 1991. Virginia was the daughter of James A. Baker IV, who is the son of the former cabinet secretary. However, Baker changed his mind about running when his wife was diagnosed with cancer. Corrections? "G.O.P. Bush appointed Baker Secretary of State in 1989. Strengthening the binational relationship by addressing major concerns on both sides of the border. By now, its probably the most famous quote attributed to the 90-year-old elder statesman. The son of a prosperous Houston attorney, Baker graduated from Princeton University in 1952 and then spent two years in the U.S. Marine Corps. The authors write that in his speech Baker wanted to call for a reasonable middle ground on the Israeli-Palestinian issue. The book also includes a detailed account of Bakers famous testimony before Congress on peace negotiations between Israel and the Arab world, during which he said the United States cant want an agreement more than the two sides themselves. James Addison Baker Work Hard, Study.and Keep Out of Politics! Many of Baker's concerns proved correct, and the project became a key factor in the company's downfall. He has been married to Susan Garrett Winston since 1973. In this telling, the target of his ire was an interest group, not Jews as a whole. According to the new biography, its far from certain those words were actually ever used by Baker. He was a fifth generation. For three decades and more, James A Baker III was the face of American power. Contact him at bipp@rice.edu or (281) 348-4683. Baker III worked as White House chief of staff and secretary of the treasury under President Ronald Reagan, and as secretary of state and White House chief of of staff under President George. Ray Covey, HP staff / Houston Chronicle Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Omissions? In 2000, Baker served as chief legal adviser for George W. Bush during the 2000 presidential election campaign and oversaw the Florida recount. Or purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on. James A. Baker, III entered the world in 1930 as the son, grandson, and great-grandson of distinguished lawyers all named James A. Baker,2 who each made a good living working at the Baker Botts law firm (formed by Baker's great-grandfather) in Houston. When Bush decided to run for the U.S. Senate in 1969, he supported Baker's decision to run for the Congressional seat he was vacating. Fax: 713-348-5993. The group also included Martin S. Feldstein and N. Gregory Mankiw. His wife's influence led Baker to politics and the Republican Party. Phone: 713-348-4683 The Iraq Study Group examined a number of ideas, including one that would create a new power-sharing arrangement in Iraq that would give more autonomy to regional factions. Baker and his boss, the 41st president, were two of the most influential figures in GOP politics from the 1970s onward. James A. Baker. Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir came to visit the White House in April 1989, shortly after the new administration took office and whatever was said ended up driving an enduring wedge between the two sides. During that meeting, Shamir told Bush that settlements in the occupied West Bank shouldnt be a problem for the administrations plans to start peace talks between Israel and its neighbors. During the disputed presidential election of 2000 between George W. Bush and Al Gore, Baker played a leading role for the Bush campaign combating legal challenges filed by Gores campaign. He is also the honorary chair of the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University in Houston, Texas. Afterwards, he earned a J.D. James Addison Baker III was born in Houston at 1216 Bissonnet St.,[3] the son of James A. Baker Jr. (18921973) and Ethel Bonner (ne Means) Baker (August 6, 1894 April 26, 1991). He is known for The American Ruling Class (2005), The Bush Years: Family, Duty, Power (2019) and Countdown to Zero (2010). [29] In August, following the Democratic Convention, with Bush trailing Clinton in the polls by 24 points,[30] Bush announced that Baker would return to the White House as Chief of Staff and as head of the re-election campaign. But history had other plans: Bush lost the 1992 election to Bill Clinton, and the incoming Democratic president was the one who presided over the signing of the Oslo Accords and Israels peace agreement with Jordan. He became a close friend of George H. W. Bush and worked for Bush's unsuccessful 1970 campaign for the United States Senate. However, another G. H. W. Bush Administration veteran, Robert Gates, was appointed instead, and only after the 2006 elections. In this November 21, 1990 file photo, Secretary of State James Baker is seen whispering to National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft during a press conference by President George H. W. Bush. 492, 505. Though Bush lost to Lloyd Bentsen in the election, Baker continued in politics, becoming the finance chairman of the Texas Republican Party in 1971. Baker attended The Hill School, a boarding school in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. Bush and Baker had a strained relationship with Israeli leaders from the start, the book explains. Baker served as Fords campaign manager that year and went on to direct Bushs campaign for the presidential nomination in the Republican primaries of 1980. On March 15, 2006, Congress announced the formation of the Iraq Study Group, a high-level panel of prominent former officials charged by members of Congress with taking a fresh look at America's policy on Iraq. In this August 11, 1990 file photo, President George H. W. Bush is pictured with his advisers on the Middle East crisis, including Secretary of State James Baker III, right. Ibid. Bushs secretary of state, is mentioned more than 150 times in the book. When youre serious about peace, call us., A day later, the authors note, Baker sent flowers to the White House operators to apologize for subjecting them to a flood of calls by giving out their phone number instead of his own. [26], Baker was notable for making little and slow efforts towards improving the state of Israeli-Palestinian relations. His father was a partner of Houston law firm Baker Botts.Baker has a sister, Bonner Baker Moffitt. Seventeen-year-old Mary Stuart. As a result, we missed the multiple Nobel Prize . Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Bush believed Shamir had lied to him and never forgave him., A month after that incident, Baker gave a speech at the annual AIPAC Policy Conference in Washington, his first-ever appearance before the large pro-Israel gathering. War. Baker adroitly managed George H.W. [13] He served in that capacity until 1985. Adventures and Lessons from an Unexpected Public Life was published in October 2006. They have six sons and two daughters, and 18 . Bush at St. Martin's Episcopal Church,. [45] On October 9, 2006, the Washington Post quoted co-chairman Baker as saying "our commission believes that there are alternatives between the stated alternatives, the ones that are out there in the political debate, of 'stay the course' and 'cut and run'".