White House Staff, Cabinet & Administration
Frank Carlucci
Frank Carlucci first served as President Nixon’s Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity. He would then become U.S. Ambassador to Portugal under Presidents Gerald R. Ford and Jimmy Carter. He also served as President Carter’s Deputy Director of the CIA and as President Reagan’s Deputy Secretary of Defense, National Security Advisor and Secretary of Defense.
Dorothy Downton
Dorothy Downton joined Gerald R. Ford’s congressional staff in 1967. She later served as personal secretary during his time as Vice President and as President. She also served as President Ford’s personal secretary in his Rancho Mirage office.
Don Rumsfeld
Donald Rumsfeld served with Gerald R. Ford in the U.S. House of Representatives, as a four-term Congressman from Illinois. In the Nixon Administration, he served in the Office of Economic Opportunity, Counselor to the President, and as the United States Permanent Representative to NATO. President Ford appointed him as his White House Chief of Staff and later as Secretary of Defense. He also served as Secretary of Defense under President George W. Bush. He is a Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
Don Penny
Don Penny served as Deputy Director for White House Communications in the Ford Administration. Don Penny was interviewed for the Gerald R. Ford Oral History Project on December 13, 2009 by Richard Norton Smith.
Dick Cheney
Dick Cheney served as Chief of Staff to President Gerald R. Ford. He was the youngest person in U.S. history to serve in that position. He served as the U.S. Congressman from the state of Wyoming from 1979 until 1989. President George H.W. Bush appointed him Secretary of Defense. Cheney served two terms as Vice President of the United States during the Presidency of George W. Bush. He is a Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
David Mathews
Forrest David Mathews served under President Gerald R. Ford as the 11th Secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Mathews currently serves as president and CEO of the Kettering Foundation. He is a Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
David Kennerly
Prior to joining the Ford Administration, David Kennerly worked as the staff photographer for a number of newspapers and magazines, including Time magazine. In 1972 he won the Pulitzer Prize for Photography for the photo collection he took while covering the Vietnam War. Kennerly was appointed as Personal Photographer to the President the day President Ford was sworn in. He was only the third civilian ever to hold that position. He is a Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
Carla Hills
Carla A. Hills was appointed by President Gerald R. Ford as the first woman to serve as U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. She was the third woman in U.S. history to hold a Cabinet position. Hills previously served President Ford as U.S. Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Division at the U.S. Department of Justice. Hills would later be selected by President George H.W. Bush to serve as U.S. Trade Representative. She was the primary U.S. negotiator on the North American Free Trade Agreement. She is a Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
Bonnie Angelo
Bonnie Angelo served as Washington correspondent for Time Magazine from 1967 until 1978. Angelo was president of the Women’s National Press Club. Angelo published “First Mothers: The Women Who Shaped the Presidents” which sought to encompass the lives of women who played important roles for contemporary Presidents.
Bobbie Kilberg
Bobbie Kilberg began her White House career as a White House Fellow, where she served on President Richard Nixon’s Domestic Policy Council. She was appointed as Associate Counsel to President Gerald R. Ford. She would later serve as Deputy Assistant to the President for Public Liaison and Director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs under President George H.W. Bush.
Bob Schieffer
Bob Schieffer became the White House Correspondent for CBS in 1974 and would later become Chief Washington Correspondent in 1982. Bob Schieffer was interviewed for the Gerald R. Ford Oral History Project on April 30, 2009 by Richard Norton Smith.
Bob Orben
Bob Orben served as a speechwriter for President Gerald R. Ford having been appointed Special Assistant to the President and Director of the White House Speechwriting Department in 1974.
Bob Hynes
Bob Hynes served as Minority Counsel to the Rules Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives. When Gerald R. Ford was nominated as Vice President, Bob was a member of the team that handled the Congressional confirmation hearings. He later joined NBC’s Washington office where he served for twenty-one years, the last nine as NBC’s Vice President. Hynes is a Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
Bob Goodwin
Bob Goodwin served as White House Staff Assistant to President Gerald R. Ford in the Advance Office. Goodwin would later be appointed as Ambassador to New Zealand by President George H.W. Bush.
Bob Barrett
Robert Barrett served as the Army Military Aide to President Gerald R. Ford. After leaving the military, Barrett served for several years as former President Ford’s Chief of Staff. He is a Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
Birge Watkins
Birge Watkins served as White House Staff Assistant for President Ford in the Office of Economic Affairs. In later administrations he served as National Investor Outreach Director for the Resolution Trust Corporation and Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Bill Timmons
Bill Timmons was the Assistant for Legislative Affairs for both Presidents Gerald R. Ford and Richard Nixon. After leaving the White House he formed Timmons & Company, a lobbying and political consulting firm.
Bill Coleman
Bill Coleman served as Secretary of Transportation to President Gerald R. Ford. After leaving government, Coleman became a partner in the Washington office of O’Melveny & Myers law firm. Coleman was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton. President George W. Bush appointed him to the United States Court of Military Commission Review. Coleman served as an Honorary Pallbearer during the State Funeral of Gerald R. Ford. He is an Honorary Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
Benton Becker
Benton Becker played an important role in President Ford’s decision to pardon former President Richard Nixon in 1974. Becker is a former Department of Justice trial attorney and U.S. Attorney. He is also a Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.
Aram Bakshian
Aram Bakshian served as one of President Ford’s speechwriters. He also served as speechwriter for Presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. Bakshian was interviewed for the Gerald R. Ford Oral History Project on April 28, 2010 by Richard Norton Smith.
Alan Greenspan
Alan Greenspan was President Gerald R. Ford’s Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors. Under President Ronald Reagan he was appointed Federal Reserve Chairman and served in that capacity from 1987 until 2006. He is an Honorary Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.