Robert Gates

Robert Gates
Official portrait, 2006
22nd United States Secretary of Defense
In office
December 18, 2006 – June 30, 2011
PresidentGeorge W. Bush
Barack Obama
DeputyGordon R. England
William J. Lynn III
Preceded byDonald Rumsfeld
Succeeded byLeon Panetta
24th Chancellor of the College of William & Mary
Assumed office
February 3, 2012
PresidentW. Taylor Reveley III
Katherine Rowe
Preceded bySandra Day O'Connor
22nd President of Texas A&M University
In office
August 1, 2002 – December 16, 2006
Preceded byRay M. Bowen
Succeeded byEd J. Davis (Interim)
15th Director of Central Intelligence
In office
November 6, 1991 – January 20, 1993
PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush
DeputyRichard James Kerr
William O. Studeman
Preceded byWilliam H. Webster
Succeeded byR. James Woolsey Jr.
Acting
December 18, 1986 – May 26, 1987
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byWilliam J. Casey
Succeeded byWilliam H. Webster
17th United States Deputy National Security Advisor
In office
March 20, 1989 – November 6, 1991
PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush
Preceded byJohn Negroponte
Succeeded byJonathan Howe
16th Deputy Director of Central Intelligence
In office
April 18, 1986 – March 20, 1989
PresidentRonald Reagan
George H. W. Bush
Preceded byJohn N. McMahon
Succeeded byRichard James Kerr
36th National President of the Boy Scouts of America
In office
2014–2016
Preceded byWayne M. Perry
Succeeded byRandall Stephenson
Personal details
Born
Robert Michael Gates

(1943-09-25) September 25, 1943 (age 80)
Wichita, Kansas, U.S.
Political partyRepublican[1]
Spouse
Becky Wilkie
(m. 1967)
Children2
EducationCollege of William & Mary (BA)
Indiana University Bloomington (MA)
Georgetown University (PhD)
Signature
Military service
AllegianceUnited States
Branch/serviceUnited States Air Force
Years of service1967–1969
RankFirst lieutenant

Robert Michael Gates (born September 25, 1943) is an American intelligence analyst and university president who served as the 22nd United States secretary of defense from 2006 to 2011. He was appointed by President George W. Bush and was retained by President Barack Obama. Gates began his career serving as an officer in the United States Air Force but was quickly recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).[2] Gates served for twenty-six years in the CIA and at the National Security Council, and was director of central intelligence under President George H. W. Bush from 1991 to 1993. After leaving the CIA, Gates became president of Texas A&M University and was a member of several corporate boards. Gates served as a member of the Iraq Study Group, the bipartisan commission co-chaired by James A. Baker III and Lee H. Hamilton that studied the lessons of the Iraq War.

Gates was nominated by Republican president George W. Bush as secretary of defense in 2006, replacing Donald Rumsfeld.[3] He was confirmed with bipartisan support.[4] In 2007, Time named Gates one of the year's most influential people.[4] In 2008, Gates was named one of America's Best Leaders by U.S. News & World Report.[5] He continued to serve as secretary of defense in President Barack Obama's administration[6] and retired in 2011. "He'll be remembered for making us aware of the danger of over-reliance on military intervention as an instrument of American foreign policy," said former senator David L. Boren.[7] Gates was presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian award, by President Obama during his retirement ceremony.[8]

Since leaving the Obama administration, Gates was elected president of the Boy Scouts of America, served as Chancellor of the College of William & Mary, and served as a member on several corporate boards. In 2012, Gates was elected as a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration.[9]

  1. ^ "Gates: Military looks to accelerate Iraq pullout". NBC News. Associated Press. December 1, 2008. Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved May 5, 2009. Gates also cleared up confusion about his political affiliation. During his tenure at the CIA, he said, he thought he should be apolitical so he did not register with a political party. But, he added, "I consider myself a Republican."
  2. ^ Gates, Robert (1996). From The Shadows (2006 Paperback ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 20–21.
  3. ^ "Robert M. Gates – George W. Bush / Barack Obama Administration". Office of the Secretary of Defense – Historical Office. Archived from the original on February 7, 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
  4. ^ a b Brzezinski, Zbigniew (2007). "Robert Gates". Time. Archived from the original on May 5, 2008.
  5. ^ "America's Best Leaders: Robert Gates, U.S. Secretary of Defense". Archived from the original on December 20, 2008. Retrieved November 25, 2008.
  6. ^ "Key members of Obama-Biden national security team announced". change.gov (Press release). December 1, 2008. Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved December 1, 2008.
  7. ^ "Looking Back, Gates Says He's Grown Wary of 'Wars of Choice'". The New York Times. June 18, 2011. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
  8. ^ "Obama Awards Gates Presidential Medal of Freedom". American Forces Press Service via Defense.gov. June 30, 2011. Archived from the original on December 21, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2011.
  9. ^ Incorporated, Prime. "National Academy of Public Administration". National Academy of Public Administration. Retrieved February 10, 2023.

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