Donald Rumsfeld

American politician, government official, and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under George W. Bush. He was both the youngest and the second-oldest person to have served as Secretary of Defense. Additionally, Rumsfeld was a three-term U.S. Congressman from Illinois (1963–1969), director of the Office of Economic Opportunity (1969–1970), counsellor to the president (1969–1973), the United States Permanent Representative to NATO (1973–1974), and White House Chief of Staff (1974–1975). Between his terms as Secretary of Defense, he served as the CEO and chairman of several companies.

Donald Rumsfeld was born to George and Jeannette (Husted) Rumsfeld who resided in Evanston, Illinois. Five years later, the family moved to nearby Winnetka where he and his sister, Joan, enjoyed the suburban lifestyle of children of a successful realtor. He attended New Trier High School in Winnetka, graduating in 1950 with an academic scholarship to Princeton. At Princeton, he distinguished himself in sports as captain of the wrestling team.

Upon graduation in 1954, Rumsfeld joined the U.S. Navy as an ensign and served until 1957, eventually earning the rank of lieutenant.

After his discharge from the Navy in 1957, he joined the administrative staff of Congressman David Dennison of Ohio. Later that year, he entered a banking and investment firm in Chicago. He won a seat in the House in 1962, and served three more terms.

President Nixon named Rumsfeld Chief of the Office of Economic Opportunity on 21 April 1969, only months after becoming president. He resigned from Congress and was confirmed by the Senate and sworn in on 26 May 1969.

In January 1973 he was posted to Brussels, Belgium as NATO ambassador. In August 1974 he was called back to Washington to serve as Chief of Staff of the White House for President Ford. He served as a cabinet member from 1974 to 1975, and as the 13th U.S.