Warren Christopher

Warren Christopher
Official portrait, c. 1993
63rd United States Secretary of State
In office January 20, 1993 – January 17, 1997
President	Bill Clinton
Deputy	Clifton R. Wharton Jr. Strobe Talbott
Preceded by	Lawrence Eagleburger
Succeeded by	Madeleine Albright
5th United States Deputy Secretary of State
In office February 26, 1977 – January 20, 1981
President	Jimmy Carter
Preceded by	Charles W. Robinson
Succeeded by	William P. Clark Jr.
9th United States Deputy Attorney General
In office March 10, 1967 – January 20, 1969
President	Lyndon B. Johnson
Preceded by	Ramsey Clark
Succeeded by	Richard G. Kleindienst
Personal details
Born	Warren Minor Christopher (1925-10-27)October 27, 1925 Scranton, North Dakota, U.S.
Died	March 18, 2011(2011-03-18) (aged 85) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting place	Forest Lawn Memorial Park
Political party	Democratic
Spouses	Joan Southgate Workman ​ ​ (m. 1949; div. 1955)​ Marie Wyllis ​ (m. 1956)​
Children	4
Education	University of Redlands University of Southern California (BA) Stanford University (LLB)
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1942–1946
Rank	Ensign
Battles/wars	World War II

Warren Minor Christopher (October 27, 1925 – March 18, 2011) was an American lawyer, diplomat and politician. During Bill Clinton's first term as president, he served as the 63rd United States Secretary of State.

Born in Scranton, North Dakota, Christopher clerked for Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas after graduating from Stanford Law School. He became a partner in the firm of O'Melveny & Myers and served as Deputy Attorney General from 1967 to 1969 under President Lyndon B. Johnson. He served as Deputy Secretary of State under President Jimmy Carter, holding that position from 1977 to 1981. In 1991, he chaired the Christopher Commission, which investigated the Los Angeles Police Department in the wake of the Rodney King incident.

During the 1992 presidential election, Christopher headed Bill Clinton's search for a running mate, and Clinton chose Senator Al Gore. After Clinton won the 1992 election, Christopher led the Clinton administration's transition process, and he took office as Secretary of State in 1993. As Secretary of State, Christopher sought to expand NATO, broker peace in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, and pressure China regarding its human rights practices. He also helped negotiate the Dayton Agreement, which ended the Bosnian War. He left office in 1997, and was succeeded by Madeleine Albright.

Christopher oversaw the Gore campaign's Florida recount effort in the aftermath of the disputed 2000 presidential election. At the time of his death in 2011, he was a senior partner at O'Melveny & Myers in the firm's Century City, California, office. He also served as a professor at the University of California at Los Angeles.