About Caspar Weinberger
Caspar Willard Weinberger (August 18, 1917 – March 28, 2006) was an American politician and businessman who served in a variety of state and federal positions for three decades as a Republican, most notably as Secretary of Defense under President Ronald Reagan from 1981 to 1987. During the Iran–Contra investigation, he was indicted on charges of lying to Congress and obstructing government investigations but was pardoned by President George H. W. Bush before facing trial. Weinberger was a member of the California State Assembly from 1953 to 1959. He also served as Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission and Director of the Office of Management and Budget under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. He later became vice president and general counsel of Bechtel Corporation. Weinberger's tenure as Secretary of Defense was marked by his hard line against the Soviet Union, in disagreement with the State Department. He promoted the Strategic Defense Initiative, an orbital weapons program. Weinberger was awarded both the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Ronald Reagan in 1987 and an honorary British knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II. In 1993, he became Chairman of Forbes magazine. == Early life == Weinberger was born on August 18, 1917, in San Francisco, the younger of two sons of Herman Weinberger (1886–1944), an attorney, and Cerise Carpenter Weinberger (née Hampson; 1886–1975), a music teacher. His father was of Jewish descent from Bohemia of Austria-Hungary, while his maternal grandparents were of Christian descent from Wisconsin.
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