Caspar W. Weinberger

(HEW) 1973-1975

Caspar W. Weinberger
(1917 - 2006)

Caspar Weinberger was born in San Francisco, California. He graduated from Harvard College with a bachelor's degree in 1938; and an LL.B. from Harvard Law School in 1941. After law school Mr. Weinberger entered the U.S. Army, serving during World War II with the Forty-first Infantry Division in the Pacific and on General Douglas MacArthur's Intelligence Staff. From 1945 to 1947 he was a law clerk to U.S. Court of Appeals Judge William E. Orr, before entering into private law practice. In 1952, Mr. Weinberger was elected to the Assembly of the California State Legislature; he was subsequently reelected in 1954 and 1956 without opposition. In 1958, after losing his bid for California Attorney General, he returned to his law practice. Mr. Weinberger was appointed California Director of Finance in 1968 by Governor Ronald Reagan. In 1969, President Nixon nominated Mr. Weinberger as Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, a position he held until 1972 when President Nixon promoted him to Director of the Office of Management and Budget. In 1973, Mr. Weinberger was appointed Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, a position he held until 1975.