Andrew Hill Card Jr. (born May 10, 1947) is an American politician and

academic administrator Academic administration is a branch of university or college employees responsible for the maintenance and supervision of the institution and separate from the faculty or academics, although some personnel may have joint responsibilities. Some ...

who was

White House Chief of Staff The White House chief of staff is the head of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, a position in the federal government of the United States. The chief of staff is a Political appointments in the United States, politi ...

under President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

from 2001 to 2006, as well as head of Bush's

White House Iraq Group The White House Iraq Group (aka, White House Information Group or WHIG) was a working group of the White House set up in August 2002 and tasked with disseminating information supporting the positions of the George W. Bush administration relati ...

. Card served as

United States Secretary of Transportation The United States secretary of transportation is the head of the United States Department of Transportation. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to transportation. The secre ...

under President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

from 1992 to 1993. Card announced his resignation as Chief of Staff on March 28, 2006, effective April 14, 2006. Card was the Acting Dean of the

Bush School of Government and Public Service The Bush School of Government & Public Service is an academic college of Texas A&M University founded in 1997 under former President of the United States, President George H. W. Bush's philosophy that "public service is a noble calling." Since t ...

, at

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

from 2011 to 2013. In 2014, Card became the president of

Franklin Pierce University Franklin Pierce University is a private university in Rindge, New Hampshire, United States. It was founded as Franklin Pierce College in 1962, combining a liberal arts foundation with coursework for professional development, professional preparat ...

, serving until he retired from that post in the summer of 2016.

Early life and education

Card was born on May 10, 1947, the son of Joyce (née Whitaker) and Andrew Hill Card, Sr. He was active in the

Boy Scouts of America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...

's Old Colony Council and earned the rank of

Life Scout Advancement and recognition in Scouting America is a tradition dating from the inception of the Scouting movement. A fundamental purpose of advancement is the self-confidence a young man or woman acquires from his participation in Scouting. Advanc ...

. He grew up in Holbrook, Massachusetts and graduated from Holbrook High School in 1965. He attended the

United States Merchant Marine Academy The United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA or Kings Point) is a United States service academies, United States service academy in Kings Point, New York. It trains its midshipman, midshipmen (as students at the academy are called) to serv ...

from 1966 to 1967 before graduating from the

University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...

with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...

in 1971. He also attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Career

Early career

Card got his start in politics serving in the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...

from 1975 to 1983. He ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for

Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The governor is the chief executive, head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonw ...

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

Private career

From 1993 to 1998, Card was president and

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the American Automobile Manufacturers Association (AAMA), the trade association whose members were

Chrysler Corporation FCA US, LLC, doing business as Stellantis North America and known historically as Chrysler ( ), is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of ...

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...

and

General Motors Corporation General Motors Company (GM) is an American multinational automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing four automobile brands: Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, ...

. The AAMA dissolved in December 1998. From 1999 until his selection as President Bush's Chief of Staff, Card was

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

' Vice President of Government Relations. Card directed the company's international, national, state and local government affairs activities and represented GM on matters of public policy before

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

and the administration. He serves on the

board of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

. The railroad announced on July 27, 2006, that Card was elected to the board, increasing the board's size to 10 members. He is also a senior counselor at public relations firm Fleishman-Hillard. On November 7, 2019, he joined the board of directors of Draganfly, industry-leading manufacturer within the commercial Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (“UAV”) and the Unmanned Vehicle Systems (“UVS”) space.

Government career

Under Ronald Reagan

Card first served in the West Wing under President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

, as Special Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and subsequently as Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, where he was liaison to governors, statewide elected officials, state legislators, mayors and other elected officials.

Under George H. W. Bush

From 1989 to 1992, Card served in President

's administration as Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff. From 1992 until 1993, Card served as the 11th U.S. Secretary of Transportation under President Bush. In August 1992, at the request of President Bush, Secretary Card coordinated the administration's disaster relief efforts in the wake of

Hurricane Andrew Hurricane Andrew was a compact, but very powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that struck the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana in August 1992. It was the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida in terms of structures dama ...

. Later that year, Secretary Card directed President Bush's transition office during the transition from the Bush administration to the

Clinton administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican in ...

Under George W. Bush

In 2000, Card was asked by Texas Governor George W. Bush to run the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. On November 26, 2000, Card was appointed to be chief of staff for President-elect George W. Bush upon Bush's January 20, 2001

inauguration In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inau ...

. On September 11, 2001, Card approached Bush as he was visiting Emma E. Booker Elementary School in

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...

, and whispered in his ear the news that a second plane had hit the World Trade Center, confirming that a terrorist attack was underway. Card later recounted his story, saying that he whispered "A second plane hit the second tower. America is under attack." On March 28, 2006, the White House announced that Card would resign as Chief of Staff and be replaced by

United States Office of Management and Budget The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). The office's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, while it also examines agency pro ...

director Joshua B. Bolten. Card's resignation was effective April 14, 2006. At 5 years and 84 days, his tenure as Chief of Staff was the second-longest in the office's history.

Post-government career

Card received an honorary degree from the

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the ...

on May 25, 2007. While accepting the degree, Card was booed loudly by students and faculty who deplored the choice to bestow the honor. Card considered running in the 2010 special election to fill the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

seat held by

Ted Kennedy Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician from Massachusetts who served as a member of the United States Senate from 1962 to his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic Party and ...

, who had died in office. State Senator Scott Brown, who considered entering the race, promised to drop out if Card decided to run. Card announced on September 11, 2009, that he would not enter the race and that he was throwing his support to Brown, who went on to win the election. On July 5, 2011, Card was named acting dean of The Bush School of Government and Public Service at

. In 2014, Card was selected as the fifth president of

Rindge, New Hampshire Rindge is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 6,476 at the 2020 census, up from 6,014 at the 2010 census. Rindge is home to Franklin Pierce University, the Cathedral of the Pines and part of Annett Stat ...

. He began his tenure in December 2014, and resigned in summer of 2016. Since December 2023, Card has served as the Chief Executive Officer of the George & Barbara Bush Foundation.

Personal life

Card is married to Reverend Kathleene Card. They reside in

Jaffrey, New Hampshire Jaffrey is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,320 at the 2020 census. The main village in town, where 3,058 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Jaffrey census-designated place (CDP) a ...

. They have three grown children and six grandchildren.

References

External links

* , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Card, Andrew 1947 births Franklin Pierce University faculty George W. Bush administration cabinet members George H. W. Bush administration cabinet members Harvard Kennedy School alumni Living people Republican Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives People from McLean, Virginia People from Holbrook, Massachusetts Politicians from Brockton, Massachusetts Texas A&M University people Union Pacific Railroad people United States Merchant Marine Academy alumni Secretaries of transportation of the United States University of South Carolina alumni Virginia Republicans White House chiefs of staff White House deputy chiefs of staff 20th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court