Everything about Caspar Weinberger totally explained
Caspar Willard "Cap" Weinberger (
August 18,
1917 –
March 28,
2006), was an
American politician and
Secretary of Defense under President
Ronald Reagan from
January 21,
1981, until
November 23,
1987, making him the third longest-serving defense secretary to date, after
Robert McNamara and
Donald Rumsfeld. He is also known for his roles in the
Strategic Defense Initiative program and the
Iran-Contra Affair.
Early life
Weinberger was born in
San Francisco, the younger of two sons of Herman Weinberger, a
Colorado-born
lawyer, and the former Cerise Carpenter Hampson, an accomplished
violinist whose parents were
immigrants from
England. Weinberger was named "Caspar" for a friend of his mother's; his father began calling him "Cap", a nickname that stuck into adulthood. Weinberger was a first
cousin of the nationally-broadcast
radio personality
Don McNeill of
Don McNeill's Breakfast Club; their mothers were sisters. The Weinbergers were a
middle class family; not until years later did Caspar learn that his father had encountered some difficulties paying the family's expenses during the
Great Depression. Weinberger had a sickly childhood and required close nurturing from his mother; in time, like his boyhood idol,
Theodore Roosevelt, he overcame his poor health and innate shyness as a youngster.
Herman Weinberger left
Judaism because of a dispute at a
synagogue. Caspar Weinberger was reared in a home with no denominational ties, but in time he became an active
Episcopalian and often expressed his faith in
God. When he enrolled at
Harvard University in
Cambridge, Massachusetts, Mrs. Weinberger rented an apartment nearby for the first semester that Weinberger and his older brother, Peter, attended Harvard. She then returned to her husband in San Francisco. Weinberger received his
bachelor of arts,
magna cum laude, in 1938 and a
Juris Doctor degree in 1941, both from Harvard. He edited the Harvard student
newspaper,
The Harvard Crimson, and recalls in his
memoirs entitled
In the Arena: A Memoir of the 20th Century two specific interviews of which he was most pleased: one with the highly decorated soldier
Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., and another with
Alabama-born
actress Tallulah Bankhead.
He entered the
United States Army as a private in 1941, was commissioned, and served with the
41st Infantry Division in the Pacific. At the end of the war he was a captain on
General Douglas MacArthur's intelligence staff. Early in life, he developed an interest in
politics and
history, and, during the war years, a special admiration for
Winston Churchill, whom he'd later cite as an important influence in his life. From 1945-1947, Weinberger worked as a law clerk for a federal judge before joining a San Francisco law firm.
Political career
He won election to the
California State Assembly in 1952 and reelection in 1954 and 1956. As the Chairman of the Assembly Government Organization Committee, Weinberger was responsible for the creation of the
California Department of Water Resources and was instrumental in the creation of the
California State Water Project. Although unsuccessful in his 1958 campaign for
California Attorney General, Weinberger continued to be active in politics and was chosen by Nixon in
1962 to become chairman of the California
Republican Party. Nixon's unsuccessful gubernatorial primary rival,
Joe Shell, then the State Assembly Minority Leader from West Lost Angeles, opposed Weinberger's selection because at the time Weinberger was considered a liberal Republican even though he was known for his hard-line anti-communist views.
Governor Ronald Reagan named him chairman of the Commission on California State Government Organization and Economy in 1967 and appointed him State director of finance early in 1968. Weinberger moved to Washington in January 1970 to become chairman of the
Federal Trade Commission. He subsequently served under President
Richard Nixon as deputy director (1970-72) and director (1972-73) of the
Office of Management and Budget and
Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (1973-75). For the next five years, Weinberger was vice president and general counsel of the
Bechtel Corporation in California.
Secretary of Defense
Although not widely experienced in defense matters, Weinberger had a reputation in Washington as an able administrator; his powers as a cost cutter earned him the sobriquet "Cap the Knife." He shared President Reagan's conviction that the
Soviet Union posed a serious threat to the United States, and that the defense establishment needed to be modernized and strengthened. Belying his nickname, at
the Pentagon Weinberger became a vigorous advocate of Reagan's plan to increase the
Department of Defense budget. Readiness, sustainability, and modernization became the watchwords of the defense program. In his early years at the Pentagon, Cap Weinberger was known as "Cap the Ladle" for advocating large increases in defense spending.
As Secretary of Defense, Weinberger oversaw a massive rebuilding of US military strength. Major defense programs he championed included the
B-1B bomber and the "
600-ship Navy". His efforts created economic and military-industrial pressures that were associated with the beginning of
Perestroika and the beginning of the end of both the
Cold War and the
Soviet Union. While these events were clearly substantial and world-changing, they came at the cost of helping to triple the national debt. Weinberger pushed for dramatic increases in the United States'
nuclear weapons arsenal and was a strong advocate of the controversial
Strategic Defense Initiative, popularly known as
Star Wars, an initiative which proposed a space-based missile defense shield.
In response to the
1983 Beirut barracks bombing, President Reagan assembled his national security team and planned to target the Sheik Abdullah barracks in
Baalbek,
Lebanon, which housed Iranian Revolutionary Guards believed to be training
Hezbollah fighters. However Weinberger said there would be no change in the US's Lebanon policy and aborted the mission, reportedly because of his concerns that it would harm US relations with other Arab nations.
Iran-Contra Affair
Though he claims to have been opposed to the sale on principle, Weinberger participated in the transfer of United States
TOW anti-tank missiles to
Iran during the
Iran-Contra Affair. By 1987, the disclosure of the Iran-Contra Affair and increasing difficulties with Defense budgets weighed on Weinberger. Weinberger resigned on
November 23,
1987, citing his wife's declining health. He specifically denied that he was opposed to the
INF Treaty, scheduled to be signed in Washington in December 1987. In fact, he took credit for proposing the substance of the treaty early in his term at the Pentagon.
Following his resignation as Secretary of Defense, Weinberger was placed under indictment by
Independent Counsel Lawrence E. Walsh. The formal indictment charged Weinberger with several
felony counts of lying to the Iran-Contra independent counsel during its investigation. Weinberger received a Presidential
pardon from outgoing President
George H.W. Bush on
December 24,
1992.
Involvement in the Jonathan Pollard Case
Prior to the sentencing of
Jonathan Pollard, then Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger submitted a 46-page classified memorandum to the judge, the contents of which were not shown to Pollard's attorneys. Weinberger called for severe punishment, and the memo, still classified, is widely cited as a major reason that the judge ultimately sentenced Pollard to life in prison without parole for espionage. However, Weinberger, who himself was pardoned by President
George H.W. Bush, stated before his death that Pollard's punishment is too harsh.
Later career
Weinberger had been Secretary of Defense for six years and ten months, longer than any man except for
Robert McNamara and
Donald Rumsfeld. After Weinberger left the Pentagon, he joined Forbes, Inc., in 1989 as publisher of
Forbes magazine. He was named chairman in 1993. Over the next decade, he wrote frequently on defense and national security issues. In 1990, he wrote
Fighting for Peace, an account of his Pentagon years. In 1996, Weinberger co-authored a book entitled
The Next War, which raised questions about the adequacy of US military capabilities following the end of the
Cold War.
Death
While residing on
Mount Desert Island,
Maine, Weinberger was treated for and died from complications of
pneumonia at Eastern Maine Medical Center in
Bangor. He was eighty-eight years of age.
Shortly after his death President
George W. Bush in a public statement said:
» Caspar Weinberger was an American statesman and a dedicated public servant. He wore the uniform in World War II, held elected office, and served in the cabinets of three Presidents. As Secretary of Defense for President Reagan, he worked to strengthen our military and win the Cold War. In all his years, this good man made many contributions to our Nation. America is grateful for Caspar Weinberger's lifetime of service. Laura and I send our condolences and prayers to the entire Weinberger family.
Then
United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld stated:
» Cap Weinberger was a friend. His extensive career in public service, his support for the men and women in uniform and his central role in helping to win the Cold War leave a lasting legacy... He left the United States armed forces stronger, our country safer and the world more free.
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