Charlie Wilson (Texas politician)

Charlie Wilson
Wilson c. 1995
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 2nd district
In office January 3, 1973 – October 8, 1996
Preceded by	John Dowdy
Succeeded by	Jim Turner
Member of the Texas Senate from the 3rd district
In office January 10, 1967 – January 3, 1973
Preceded by	Martin Dies Jr.
Succeeded by	Don Adams
Member of the Texas House of Representatives
In office January 8, 1963 – January 10, 1967
Preceded by	Steve Burgess
Succeeded by	David W. Crews
Constituency	6th district
In office January 10, 1961 – January 8, 1963
Preceded by	William D. Winston
Succeeded by	David W. Crews
Constituency	18th district
Personal details
Born	Charles Nesbitt Wilson (1933-06-01)June 1, 1933 Trinity, Texas, U.S.
Died	February 10, 2010(2010-02-10) (aged 76) Lufkin, Texas, U.S.
Resting place	Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington County, Virginia, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouses	Jerry Carter ​ ​ (m. 1973; div. 1983)​ Barbara Alberstadt ​ ​ (m. 1999)​
Alma mater	United States Naval Academy (BS)
Occupation	Politician Naval officer
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1956–1960
Rank	Lieutenant

Charles Nesbitt Wilson (June 1, 1933 – February 10, 2010) was an American politician and naval officer who was a 12-term Democratic Representative from Texas's 2nd congressional district. Wilson is best known for leading Congress into supporting Operation Cyclone, the largest-ever Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) covert operation, which during the Carter and Reagan administrations supplied military equipment to the Afghan Mujahideen during the Soviet–Afghan War.^[1] His behind-the-scenes campaign was the subject of the non-fiction book Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History by George Crile III and the subsequent film Charlie Wilson's War, in which he was portrayed by Tom Hanks.