Anthony Joseph Principi (born April 16, 1944) was the fourth

United States secretary of veterans affairs The United States secretary of veterans affairs is the head of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, the department concerned with veterans' benefits, health care, and national veterans' memorials and cemeteries. The secretary is a me ...

. He was appointed by

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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 ...

on January 23, 2001, and resigned on January 26, 2005. He Chaired the 2005 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission, BRAC and is currently serving as a Consultant & Board member of several diverse Foundations & Corporations.

Early life

Principi was born in the

East Bronx The East Bronx is the part of the New York City borough of the Bronx which lies east of the Bronx River; this roughly corresponds to the eastern half of the borough. Neighborhoods include: Baychester, Castle Hill, City Island, Co-op City ...

on April 16, 1944. He grew up in Teaneck, New Jersey and attended St. Anastasia School there during his younger years. He graduated from

Mount Saint Michael Academy Mount Saint Michael Academy is an all-boys' private, catholic, college preparatory school in the Wakefield neighborhood of the New York City borough of the Bronx. The school's campus also borders the city of Mount Vernon in neighboring West ...

in 1962 as the school's top athlete and

student council A student council (also known as a student union, associated student body or student parliament) is an administrative organization of students in different educational institutes ranging from elementary schools to universities and research or ...

president. In 1967, Principi graduated from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

, Maryland. He first saw active duty aboard the destroyer '' USS Joseph P. Kennedy''. Principi later served in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

, commanding a River Patrol Unit in the

Mekong Delta The Mekong Delta ( or simply ), also known as the Western Region () or South-western region (), is the list of regions of Vietnam, region in southwestern Vietnam where the Mekong, Mekong River River delta, approaches and empties into the sea th ...

. Principi earned his

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degree from

Seton Hall Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...

in 1975, transferred from the Unrestricted Line as a

Surface Warfare Officer The surface warfare insignia is a Military badges of the United States, military badge of the United States Navy which is issued to U.S. Navy personnel who are trained and qualified to perform duties aboard United States surface warships. There ...

to the

Judge Advocate General Corps The Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAG or JAG Corps) is the military justice branch or specialty of the United States Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and Navy. Officers serving in the JAG Corps are typically called judge advocates. ...

(JAGC) and was assigned to the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

's JAGC office in

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

. In 1980, he was transferred to

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as a legislative counsel for the Department of the Navy. He left active duty in 1980 after 14 years of commissioned service to serve as Republican counsel to the Senate Armed Services Committee at the invitation of Senator John Tower of Texas.

Career

Principi has worked on national policy issues and has held several executive-level positions in federal government throughout his career. He chaired the Federal Quality Institute in 1991, and was chairman of the Commission on Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Assistance established by

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 ...

in 1996. Principi served as Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs, VA's second-highest executive position, from March 17, 1989, to September 26, 1992, when he was named Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs by 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 ...

. He served in that position until January 1993. Following that appointment, he served as Republican chief counsel and staff director of 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 ...

Committee on Armed Services. From 1984 to 1988, he served as Republican chief counsel and staff director of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs. He was the Veterans Administration's assistant deputy administrator for congressional and public affairs from 1983 to 1984, following three years as counsel to the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. On March 15, 2005, President George W. Bush appointed nine members to serve on the 2005 BRAC Commission, with Principi to serve as the chairman. In October 2015, Principi was elected to 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 ...

of Imprimis Pharmaceuticals.

References

External links

* , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Principi, Anthony 1944 births 21st-century American politicians United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War California lawyers California Republicans George W. Bush administration cabinet members Lawyers who have represented the United States government Living people People from Teaneck, New Jersey Seton Hall University School of Law alumni United States deputy secretaries of veterans affairs United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy officers United States secretaries of veterans affairs