fbpx
Wikipedia

John Tower

John Goodwin Tower (September 29, 1925 – April 5, 1991) was an American politician and military officer who represented Texas in the United States Senate from 1961 to 1985. He was the first Republican elected to the U.S. Senate from Texas since Reconstruction. Tower is known for leading the Tower Commission, which investigated the Iran-Contra Affair in the Reagan administration.

John Tower
Tower in 1966
Chair of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board
In office
July 17, 1990 – April 5, 1991
PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush
Preceded byAnne Armstrong
Succeeded byBobby Inman (acting)
Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee
In office
January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1985
Preceded byJohn Stennis
Succeeded byBarry Goldwater
United States Senator
from Texas
In office
June 15, 1961 – January 3, 1985
Preceded byBill Blakley
Succeeded byPhil Gramm
Personal details
Born
John Goodwin Tower

(1925-09-29)September 29, 1925
Houston, Texas, U.S.
DiedApril 5, 1991(1991-04-05) (aged 65)
Brunswick, Georgia, U.S.
Political partyRepublican (1951–1991)
Other political
affiliations
Democratic (before 1951)
Spouses
Joza Bullington
(m. 1952; div. 1976)
Lilla Cummings
(m. 1977; div. 1987)
Children3
EducationSouthwestern University (BA)
Southern Methodist University (MA)
London School of Economics
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Navy
Years of service1943–1946 (Active) 1946-1989 (Reserve)
Rank Master chief petty officer
UnitU.S. Naval Reserve
Battles/wars

Born in Houston, Texas, he served in the Pacific Theater of World War II. After the war, he worked as a radio announcer and taught at Midwestern University (now Midwestern State University) in Wichita Falls. He switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party in the early 1950s and worked on the 1956 presidential campaign of Dwight D. Eisenhower. Tower lost Texas's 1960 Senate election to Democratic Senator Lyndon B. Johnson, but performed relatively well compared to his Republican predecessors. With the Democratic victory in the 1960 presidential election, Johnson vacated his Senate seat to become Vice President of the United States. In the 1961 special election, Tower defeated Johnson's appointed successor, Bill Blakley. He won re-election in 1966, 1972, and 1978.

Upon joining the Senate in 1961, Tower became the first Republican Senator to represent a state in the South since 1913. He was the only Southern Republican in the Senate until Strom Thurmond switched parties in 1964. A political conservative earlier in his career, Tower staunchly opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Starting in 1976 with his support of Gerald Ford rather than Ronald Reagan in the 1976 Republican primaries, Tower began to alienate many fellow conservatives. He became less conservative over time, later voicing support for legal abortion, gay rights,[1] and opposing President Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative in 1983.

Tower retired from the Senate in 1985. After leaving Congress, he served as chief negotiator of the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks with the Soviet Union and led the Tower Commission. The commission's report was highly critical of the Reagan administration's relations with Iran and the Contras. In 1989, incoming President George H. W. Bush chose Tower as his nominee for Secretary of Defense, but his nomination was rejected by the Senate. After the defeat, Tower chaired the President's Intelligence Advisory Board. Tower died in the 1991 Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311 crash.

Early life, education, and military service edit

Tower was born in Houston, the son of Joe Z. Tower (1898–1970) and Beryl Goodwin Tower (1898–1990). The family often moved throughout East Texas due to Joe's career as a Methodist minister.[2]

Having attended public schools in Houston and Beaumont, Texas, Tower graduated from Beaumont High School in 1942.[2] After high school, he enrolled at Southwestern University in fall 1942.[2] In June 1943, Tower paused his college studies to serve in the United States Navy during the Pacific Theater of World War II on an LCS(L) amphibious gunboat.[2]

In March 1946, Tower was discharged from the Navy ranked seaman first class and resumed his studies at Southwestern.[2] He graduated in 1948 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science.[2] While at Southwestern, Tower was a member of the Iota chapter of the Kappa Sigma fraternity, and would later serve the organization in significant alumnus volunteer roles.[3]

Tower worked as a radio announcer for country music station KTAE in Taylor, northeast of Austin, during college and for some time afterward.[2] Tower continued his military service in the United States Naval Reserve until retiring in 1989 with the rank of master chief's boatswain mate.[2]

In 1949, he began graduate studies in political science at Southern Methodist University and worked part time as an insurance agent. Then in 1951, Tower became an assistant professor of political science at Midwestern University (now Midwestern State University), a job he held until 1960. In 1952 and 1953, he pursued graduate coursework at the London School of Economics and conducted field research on the organization of the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom. His research was presented in his thesis, The Conservative Worker in Britain. He received his Master of Arts degree from SMU in 1953.[2]

Early political career edit

Although raised as a Southern Democrat, Tower became a Republican in college about 1951. He rose quickly through the ranks of the Texas Republican Party; he was an unsuccessful candidate for representative to the Texas House of Representatives for the 18th district in 1954. He was a delegate to the 1956 Republican National Convention. In the 1956 presidential election, he was the campaign manager for Dwight D. Eisenhower in the 23rd Senatorial District.

1960 Senate election edit

In 1960, he was chosen by the state convention held in McAllen in Hidalgo County in south Texas, as the Republican candidate for the United States Senate against Lyndon Johnson. Two other Republicans mentioned for the senatorial nomination, Thad Hutcheson, who had sought Texas's other Senate seat in a special election in 1957, and Bruce Alger, the only Republican congressman from Texas at the time, were both uninterested.[4]

Johnson, the incumbent senator and famous nationwide as the Senate Majority Leader, won the election against Tower. As John F. Kennedy's running mate, Johnson was also seeking the vice presidency in the same election. Tower's campaign slogan was "double your pleasure, double your fun — vote against Johnson two times, not one."[5]

1961 Senate election edit

After Johnson became Vice President, Tower ran in the special election held to determine who would fill Johnson's seat in the Senate. Tower came first in the initial round of voting with 30.93% of the vote, and subsequently won the run-off election against Democrat William A. Blakley, who had been appointed as interim Senator, with 50.6% of the vote to Blakley's 49.4%.[6][7] Tower became the first Republican elected to the Senate from Texas since the end of Reconstruction.

United States Senate edit

Committee assignments edit

 
Tower with President of the United States Richard Nixon on May 5, 1971.

In the Senate, Tower was assigned to two major committees: the Labor and Public Welfare Committee and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. Tower left the Labor and Public Welfare Committee in 1964, although in 1965 he was named to the Senate Armed Services Committee, in which he served until his retirement. He was chairman of the Armed Services Committee from 1981 to 1984. Tower also served on the Joint Committee on Defense Production from 1963 until 1977 and on the Senate Republican Policy Committee in 1962 and from 1969 until 1984. Tower served as chairman of the latter from 1973 until his retirement from the Senate. As a member and later chairman of the Armed Services Committee, Tower was a strong proponent of modernizing the armed forces. In the Banking and Currency Committee, he was a champion of small businesses and worked to improve the national infrastructure and financial institutions. Tower supported Texas economic interests, working to improve the business environment of the energy, agricultural, and fishing and maritime sectors.[citation needed]

Civil Rights edit

Tower was a leading opponent of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and voted against both bills,[8][9][10] as well as the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution,[11] but he did not vote on the Civil Rights Act of 1968[12] and voted in favor of the confirmation of Thurgood Marshall to the U.S. Supreme Court.[13]

Although opposing the final passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Tower also voted against an amendment by Albert Gore Sr. that sought to weaken the legislation.[14] He stated:[15]

Mr. President, the motion is merely another assault on title VI, which I believe is a good provision of the bill. I think that if we had enacted a separate measure containing the provisions in title VI some time ago, we would not be asked to enact some of the other measures which we are asked to enact today. I believe that if people in the States and localities are going to accept Federal money and Federal support, they must not engage in any kind of discrimination which is contrary to Federal policy. Therefore I intend to vote against the motion of the Senator from Tennessee.

Post-Senate career edit

 
Tower delivers the Tower Report to President Reagan in the White House Cabinet Room, Edmund Muskie at right, 1987.

According to The Assassination of Robert Maxwell: Israel's Superspy[16] by Gordon Thomas and Martin Dillon, Tower became the liaison for Robert Maxwell, a British publishing mogul and super-agent[clarification needed] for Mossad, to the White House and to US government operations. The relationship began in 1984, and the soon-to-be retired Tower "told Maxwell that his fee as Maxwell's personal consultant would be $200,000."[citation needed] Tower received his fee in four separate payments of $50,000 into a Swiss bank account. Tower arranged for Maxwell to meet with leadership of Sandia National Laboratories, a US nuclear lab. Maxwell sold to Sandia a copy of PROMIS software that had a backdoor which was accessible by Israeli intelligence, giving nuclear details to Israel. Shortly after retirement from the Senate, in 1985, Tower took Maxwell's request for American help in arming Iran, and relayed it to President Reagan as a means to trade for American hostages held in Lebanon. "Two days later the former Senator reported to Maxwell that his meeting with President Reagan had produced a positive response."[citation needed]

Tower retired from the Senate after nearly twenty-four years in office. He continued to be involved in national politics, advising the campaigns of Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. Two weeks after his leaving office, Tower was named chief United States negotiator at the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks in Geneva, Switzerland. Tower resigned from this office in 1987, and for a time was a professor at Southern Methodist University. He became a consultant with Tower, Eggers, and Greene Consulting from 1987 until his death in 1991.[citation needed]

In November 1986, President Reagan asked Tower to chair the President's Special Review Board to study the action of the National Security Council and its staff during the Iran–Contra affair. The board, which became known as the Tower Commission, issued its report on February 26, 1987. The report was highly critical of the Reagan administration and of the National Security Council's dealings with both Iran and the Nicaraguan Contras.

In 1989, Tower was President George H. W. Bush's choice to become Secretary of Defense. In a stunning move, particularly since Tower was himself a former Senate colleague, the Senate rejected his nomination. The largest factors were concern about possible conflicts of interest and Tower's personal life, in particular allegations of alcohol abuse and womanizing.[17][18] The Senate vote was 47–53,[19] and it marked the first time that the Senate had rejected a Cabinet nominee of a newly elected president.[20]

As The New York Times reported in his obituary, "Mr. Tower's repudiation by his former colleagues, who rejected him as President Bush's nominee for Secretary of Defense after public allegations of womanizing and heavy drinking, left a bitterness that could not be assuaged. In the normally clubby Senate, Mr. Tower was regarded by some colleagues as a gut fighter who did not suffer fools gladly, and some lawmakers indicated that they were only too pleased to rebuke him."[18]

In response to the alcohol allegations, Tower told The New York Times in 1990: "Have I ever drunk to excess? Yes. Am I alcohol-dependent? No. Have I always been a good boy? Of course not. But I've never done anything disqualifying. That's the point."[18] The FBI background check indicated that Tower was not an alcoholic but had abused alcohol, albeit with much diminished, sporadic consumption beginning in 1983.[21]

After Tower's defeat, he was named chairman of the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board.[citation needed] Dick Cheney, then a Representative from Wyoming and the House Minority Whip, was later confirmed as Secretary of Defense.

Personal life edit

While a professor at Midwestern State University, Tower met Joza Lou Bullington, whom he married in 1952. A native of San Diego, California, Lou was reared in Wichita Falls and was the organist at the Towers' church. She was five years his senior.

John and Lou Tower had three children during their years in Wichita Falls born in three consecutive years: Penny (1954), Marian (1955–1991), and Jeanne (1956). The couple divorced in 1976. Following his divorce from Lou, who remained single for the rest of her life, Tower married Lilla Burt Cummings in 1977. The couple separated in 1985 and divorced on July 2, 1986.

Death and legacy edit

 
John Tower cenotaph at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin, Texas

On April 5, 1991, Tower was aboard Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311 when it crashed while on approach for landing at Brunswick, Georgia. The crash instantly killed everyone on board, including Tower and his middle daughter, Marian, the astronaut Sonny Carter, and twenty others.[22] An investigation determined that the crash resulted from failure of the plane's propeller control unit.[23]

Tower and his daughter are buried together at the family plot of the Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas. A cenotaph in Tower's honor was erected at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. Tower's personal and political life are chronicled in his autobiography, Consequences: A Personal and Political Memoir, published a few months before his death. He donated his papers to his alma mater, Southwestern University.[24]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Kirchick, James (2022). Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington. New York: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 978-1-62779-233-2.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Eason, Susan. "Tower, John Goodwin". Handbook of Texas. Texas State Historical Association. from the original on September 1, 2000. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  3. ^ John G. Tower Award Winners, p14 2014-06-28 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Rupert Norval Richardson, Ernest Wallace, and Adrian N. Anderson, Texas: The Lone Star State (Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1970) p. 369.
  5. ^ Knaggs, John R. (1986). Two-Party Texas: The John Tower Era, 1961–1984. Eakin Press.[page needed]
  6. ^ "TX US Senate - Special Primary". OurCampaigns.com.
  7. ^ "TX US Senate - Special". Ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
  8. ^ "HR. 7152. Passage".
  9. ^ "To Pass S. 1564, The Voting Rights Act Of 1965".
  10. ^ Davidson, Chandler (1992). Race and Class in Texas Politics. Princeton University Press. p. 234. ISBN 9780691025391.
  11. ^ "S.J. Res. 29. Approval Of Resolution Banning The Poll Tax As Prerequisite For Voting In Federal Elections". GovTrack.us.
  12. ^ "To Pass H.R. 2516, A Bill To Prohibit Discrimination In Sale Or Rental Of Housing, And Prohibit Racially Motivated Interference With A Person Exercising His Civil Rights, And For Other Purposes".
  13. ^ "Confirmation Of Nomination Of Thurgood Marshall, The First Negro Appointed To The Supreme Court". GovTrack.us.
  14. ^ HR. 7152. Gore Motion To Recommit To The Judiciary Comm. W/Instructions That It Report It Back "Forthwith" W/The Amend. Stating That Federal Funds Should Not Be W/Drawn From Any School District Unless That District Had Disobeyed A Court Order That Is Desegregate.. GovTrack.us. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  15. ^ GPO-CRECB-1964-pt11-3-2.pdf. Congressional Record. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  16. ^ Thomas, Gordon; Dillon, Martin (2002). The Assassination of Robert Maxwell: Israel's superspy. London: Robson Books. ISBN 1-86105-558-7. OCLC 50404100.
  17. ^ Oreskes, Michael (March 10, 1989). "Senate Rejects Tower, 53-47; First Cabinet Veto Since '59; Bush Confers on New Choice". The New York Times. Retrieved October 5, 2014.
  18. ^ a b c Tolchin, Martin (April 6, 1991). "John G. Tower, 65, Longtime Senator from Texas". The New York Times.
  19. ^ "U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 101st Congress – 1st Session". United States Senate. March 9, 1989. Retrieved November 15, 2012.
  20. ^ "US Senate Nominations". United States Senate. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
    Though not stated specifically, we can check by process of elimination that this is correct.
  21. ^ Andrew Rosenthal (March 17, 1989). "F.B.I. Document on Tower Cited 'Pattern of Alcohol Abuse'". New York Times. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  22. ^ Schneider, Keith (April 7, 1991). "Inquiry Begins Into Georgia Plane Crash". New York Times. Retrieved December 18, 2007.
  23. ^ Atlantic Southeast Airlines, Inc., Flight 2311, Uncontrolled Collision With Terrain, an Embraer EMB-120, N270AS, Brunswick, Georgia, April 5, 1991 (PDF) (Report). National Transportation Safety Board. April 28, 1992. Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  24. ^ . Southwestern University. Archived from the original on August 17, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2012.

General edit

  • Cunningham, Sean P. (2010). Cowboy Conservatism: Texas and the Rise of the Modern Right.
  • Finley, Keith (2008). Delaying the Dream: Southern Senators Fight against Civil Rights, 1938–1965. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press.
  • Bennetts, Leslie (September 1991). "Remember the Alamo." Vanity Fair. p. 114-

External links edit

  • United States Congress. "John Tower (id: T000322)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved on 2008-02-08
  • Handbook of Texas article on John Tower
  • Oral History Interviews with John Tower, from the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library at the Library of Congress Web Archives (archived 2001-11-16)
  • Appearances on C-SPAN
  • Southwestern University and SMU's John G. Tower Digital Media Collection contains videos and audios by John Tower throughout his career.
  • Booknotes interview with Roger Gittines on Consequences: John G. Tower, A Personal and Political Memoir, June 30, 1991.
  • John G. Tower Papers August 17, 2021, at the Wayback Machine – Official repository for John Tower's Senate and personal papers, Special Collections, Southwestern University.
  • Speech by John Tower given on November 11, 1970. Audio recording from The University of Alabama's Emphasis Symposium on Contemporary Issues
  • article at GenDisasters.com
Party political offices
Preceded by
Carlos Watson
Republican nominee for U.S. Senator from Texas
(Class 2)

1960, 1961, 1966, 1972, 1978
Succeeded by
Preceded by Response to the State of the Union address
1968
Served alongside: Howard Baker, George H. W. Bush, Peter Dominick, Gerald Ford, Robert Griffin, Thomas Kuchel, Mel Laird, Bob Mathias, George Murphy, Dick Poff, Chuck Percy, Al Quie, Charlotte Reid, Hugh Scott, Bill Steiger
Vacant
Title next held by
Donald Fraser, Scoop Jackson, Mike Mansfield, John McCormack, Patsy Mink, Ed Muskie, Bill Proxmire
Preceded by Chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee
1969–1971
Succeeded by
Preceded by Chair of the Senate Republican Policy Committee
1973–1985
Succeeded by
U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. Senator (Class 2) from Texas
1961–1985
Served alongside: Ralph Yarborough, Lloyd Bentsen
Succeeded by
Preceded by Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee
1981–1985
Succeeded by
Honorary titles
Preceded by Baby of the Senate
1961–1962
Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by Chair of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board
1990–1991
Succeeded by

john, tower, other, uses, disambiguation, john, goodwin, tower, september, 1925, april, 1991, american, politician, military, officer, represented, texas, united, states, senate, from, 1961, 1985, first, republican, elected, senate, from, texas, since, reconst. For other uses see John Towers disambiguation John Goodwin Tower September 29 1925 April 5 1991 was an American politician and military officer who represented Texas in the United States Senate from 1961 to 1985 He was the first Republican elected to the U S Senate from Texas since Reconstruction Tower is known for leading the Tower Commission which investigated the Iran Contra Affair in the Reagan administration John TowerTower in 1966Chair of the President s Intelligence Advisory BoardIn office July 17 1990 April 5 1991PresidentGeorge H W BushPreceded byAnne ArmstrongSucceeded byBobby Inman acting Chair of the Senate Armed Services CommitteeIn office January 3 1981 January 3 1985Preceded byJohn StennisSucceeded byBarry GoldwaterUnited States Senatorfrom TexasIn office June 15 1961 January 3 1985Preceded byBill BlakleySucceeded byPhil GrammPersonal detailsBornJohn Goodwin Tower 1925 09 29 September 29 1925Houston Texas U S DiedApril 5 1991 1991 04 05 aged 65 Brunswick Georgia U S Political partyRepublican 1951 1991 Other politicalaffiliationsDemocratic before 1951 SpousesJoza Bullington m 1952 div 1976 wbr Lilla Cummings m 1977 div 1987 wbr Children3EducationSouthwestern University BA Southern Methodist University MA London School of EconomicsMilitary serviceAllegiance United StatesBranch service United States NavyYears of service1943 1946 Active 1946 1989 Reserve RankMaster chief petty officerUnitU S Naval ReserveBattles warsWorld War II Pacific TheaterBorn in Houston Texas he served in the Pacific Theater of World War II After the war he worked as a radio announcer and taught at Midwestern University now Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls He switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party in the early 1950s and worked on the 1956 presidential campaign of Dwight D Eisenhower Tower lost Texas s 1960 Senate election to Democratic Senator Lyndon B Johnson but performed relatively well compared to his Republican predecessors With the Democratic victory in the 1960 presidential election Johnson vacated his Senate seat to become Vice President of the United States In the 1961 special election Tower defeated Johnson s appointed successor Bill Blakley He won re election in 1966 1972 and 1978 Upon joining the Senate in 1961 Tower became the first Republican Senator to represent a state in the South since 1913 He was the only Southern Republican in the Senate until Strom Thurmond switched parties in 1964 A political conservative earlier in his career Tower staunchly opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 Starting in 1976 with his support of Gerald Ford rather than Ronald Reagan in the 1976 Republican primaries Tower began to alienate many fellow conservatives He became less conservative over time later voicing support for legal abortion gay rights 1 and opposing President Reagan s Strategic Defense Initiative in 1983 Tower retired from the Senate in 1985 After leaving Congress he served as chief negotiator of the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks with the Soviet Union and led the Tower Commission The commission s report was highly critical of the Reagan administration s relations with Iran and the Contras In 1989 incoming President George H W Bush chose Tower as his nominee for Secretary of Defense but his nomination was rejected by the Senate After the defeat Tower chaired the President s Intelligence Advisory Board Tower died in the 1991 Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311 crash Contents 1 Early life education and military service 2 Early political career 2 1 1960 Senate election 2 2 1961 Senate election 3 United States Senate 3 1 Committee assignments 3 2 Civil Rights 4 Post Senate career 5 Personal life 6 Death and legacy 7 See also 8 References 8 1 General 9 External linksEarly life education and military service editTower was born in Houston the son of Joe Z Tower 1898 1970 and Beryl Goodwin Tower 1898 1990 The family often moved throughout East Texas due to Joe s career as a Methodist minister 2 Having attended public schools in Houston and Beaumont Texas Tower graduated from Beaumont High School in 1942 2 After high school he enrolled at Southwestern University in fall 1942 2 In June 1943 Tower paused his college studies to serve in the United States Navy during the Pacific Theater of World War II on an LCS L amphibious gunboat 2 In March 1946 Tower was discharged from the Navy ranked seaman first class and resumed his studies at Southwestern 2 He graduated in 1948 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science 2 While at Southwestern Tower was a member of the Iota chapter of the Kappa Sigma fraternity and would later serve the organization in significant alumnus volunteer roles 3 Tower worked as a radio announcer for country music station KTAE in Taylor northeast of Austin during college and for some time afterward 2 Tower continued his military service in the United States Naval Reserve until retiring in 1989 with the rank of master chief s boatswain mate 2 In 1949 he began graduate studies in political science at Southern Methodist University and worked part time as an insurance agent Then in 1951 Tower became an assistant professor of political science at Midwestern University now Midwestern State University a job he held until 1960 In 1952 and 1953 he pursued graduate coursework at the London School of Economics and conducted field research on the organization of the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom His research was presented in his thesis The Conservative Worker in Britain He received his Master of Arts degree from SMU in 1953 2 Early political career editAlthough raised as a Southern Democrat Tower became a Republican in college about 1951 He rose quickly through the ranks of the Texas Republican Party he was an unsuccessful candidate for representative to the Texas House of Representatives for the 18th district in 1954 He was a delegate to the 1956 Republican National Convention In the 1956 presidential election he was the campaign manager for Dwight D Eisenhower in the 23rd Senatorial District 1960 Senate election edit In 1960 he was chosen by the state convention held in McAllen in Hidalgo County in south Texas as the Republican candidate for the United States Senate against Lyndon Johnson Two other Republicans mentioned for the senatorial nomination Thad Hutcheson who had sought Texas s other Senate seat in a special election in 1957 and Bruce Alger the only Republican congressman from Texas at the time were both uninterested 4 Johnson the incumbent senator and famous nationwide as the Senate Majority Leader won the election against Tower As John F Kennedy s running mate Johnson was also seeking the vice presidency in the same election Tower s campaign slogan was double your pleasure double your fun vote against Johnson two times not one 5 1961 Senate election edit After Johnson became Vice President Tower ran in the special election held to determine who would fill Johnson s seat in the Senate Tower came first in the initial round of voting with 30 93 of the vote and subsequently won the run off election against Democrat William A Blakley who had been appointed as interim Senator with 50 6 of the vote to Blakley s 49 4 6 7 Tower became the first Republican elected to the Senate from Texas since the end of Reconstruction United States Senate editCommittee assignments edit nbsp Tower with President of the United States Richard Nixon on May 5 1971 In the Senate Tower was assigned to two major committees the Labor and Public Welfare Committee and the Committee on Banking Housing and Urban Affairs Tower left the Labor and Public Welfare Committee in 1964 although in 1965 he was named to the Senate Armed Services Committee in which he served until his retirement He was chairman of the Armed Services Committee from 1981 to 1984 Tower also served on the Joint Committee on Defense Production from 1963 until 1977 and on the Senate Republican Policy Committee in 1962 and from 1969 until 1984 Tower served as chairman of the latter from 1973 until his retirement from the Senate As a member and later chairman of the Armed Services Committee Tower was a strong proponent of modernizing the armed forces In the Banking and Currency Committee he was a champion of small businesses and worked to improve the national infrastructure and financial institutions Tower supported Texas economic interests working to improve the business environment of the energy agricultural and fishing and maritime sectors citation needed Civil Rights edit Tower was a leading opponent of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and voted against both bills 8 9 10 as well as the 24th Amendment to the U S Constitution 11 but he did not vote on the Civil Rights Act of 1968 12 and voted in favor of the confirmation of Thurgood Marshall to the U S Supreme Court 13 Although opposing the final passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Tower also voted against an amendment by Albert Gore Sr that sought to weaken the legislation 14 He stated 15 Mr President the motion is merely another assault on title VI which I believe is a good provision of the bill I think that if we had enacted a separate measure containing the provisions in title VI some time ago we would not be asked to enact some of the other measures which we are asked to enact today I believe that if people in the States and localities are going to accept Federal money and Federal support they must not engage in any kind of discrimination which is contrary to Federal policy Therefore I intend to vote against the motion of the Senator from Tennessee Post Senate career edit nbsp Tower delivers the Tower Report to President Reagan in the White House Cabinet Room Edmund Muskie at right 1987 According to The Assassination of Robert Maxwell Israel s Superspy 16 by Gordon Thomas and Martin Dillon Tower became the liaison for Robert Maxwell a British publishing mogul and super agent clarification needed for Mossad to the White House and to US government operations The relationship began in 1984 and the soon to be retired Tower told Maxwell that his fee as Maxwell s personal consultant would be 200 000 citation needed Tower received his fee in four separate payments of 50 000 into a Swiss bank account Tower arranged for Maxwell to meet with leadership of Sandia National Laboratories a US nuclear lab Maxwell sold to Sandia a copy of PROMIS software that had a backdoor which was accessible by Israeli intelligence giving nuclear details to Israel Shortly after retirement from the Senate in 1985 Tower took Maxwell s request for American help in arming Iran and relayed it to President Reagan as a means to trade for American hostages held in Lebanon Two days later the former Senator reported to Maxwell that his meeting with President Reagan had produced a positive response citation needed Tower retired from the Senate after nearly twenty four years in office He continued to be involved in national politics advising the campaigns of Ronald Reagan and George H W Bush Two weeks after his leaving office Tower was named chief United States negotiator at the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks in Geneva Switzerland Tower resigned from this office in 1987 and for a time was a professor at Southern Methodist University He became a consultant with Tower Eggers and Greene Consulting from 1987 until his death in 1991 citation needed In November 1986 President Reagan asked Tower to chair the President s Special Review Board to study the action of the National Security Council and its staff during the Iran Contra affair The board which became known as the Tower Commission issued its report on February 26 1987 The report was highly critical of the Reagan administration and of the National Security Council s dealings with both Iran and the Nicaraguan Contras In 1989 Tower was President George H W Bush s choice to become Secretary of Defense In a stunning move particularly since Tower was himself a former Senate colleague the Senate rejected his nomination The largest factors were concern about possible conflicts of interest and Tower s personal life in particular allegations of alcohol abuse and womanizing 17 18 The Senate vote was 47 53 19 and it marked the first time that the Senate had rejected a Cabinet nominee of a newly elected president 20 As The New York Times reported in his obituary Mr Tower s repudiation by his former colleagues who rejected him as President Bush s nominee for Secretary of Defense after public allegations of womanizing and heavy drinking left a bitterness that could not be assuaged In the normally clubby Senate Mr Tower was regarded by some colleagues as a gut fighter who did not suffer fools gladly and some lawmakers indicated that they were only too pleased to rebuke him 18 In response to the alcohol allegations Tower told The New York Times in 1990 Have I ever drunk to excess Yes Am I alcohol dependent No Have I always been a good boy Of course not But I ve never done anything disqualifying That s the point 18 The FBI background check indicated that Tower was not an alcoholic but had abused alcohol albeit with much diminished sporadic consumption beginning in 1983 21 After Tower s defeat he was named chairman of the President s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board citation needed Dick Cheney then a Representative from Wyoming and the House Minority Whip was later confirmed as Secretary of Defense Personal life editWhile a professor at Midwestern State University Tower met Joza Lou Bullington whom he married in 1952 A native of San Diego California Lou was reared in Wichita Falls and was the organist at the Towers church She was five years his senior John and Lou Tower had three children during their years in Wichita Falls born in three consecutive years Penny 1954 Marian 1955 1991 and Jeanne 1956 The couple divorced in 1976 Following his divorce from Lou who remained single for the rest of her life Tower married Lilla Burt Cummings in 1977 The couple separated in 1985 and divorced on July 2 1986 Death and legacy edit nbsp John Tower cenotaph at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin TexasOn April 5 1991 Tower was aboard Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311 when it crashed while on approach for landing at Brunswick Georgia The crash instantly killed everyone on board including Tower and his middle daughter Marian the astronaut Sonny Carter and twenty others 22 An investigation determined that the crash resulted from failure of the plane s propeller control unit 23 Tower and his daughter are buried together at the family plot of the Sparkman Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas A cenotaph in Tower s honor was erected at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin Tower s personal and political life are chronicled in his autobiography Consequences A Personal and Political Memoir published a few months before his death He donated his papers to his alma mater Southwestern University 24 See also editTower Amendment Unsuccessful nominations to the Cabinet of the United States List of members of the American LegionReferences edit Kirchick James 2022 Secret City The Hidden History of Gay Washington New York Henry Holt and Company ISBN 978 1 62779 233 2 a b c d e f g h i Eason Susan Tower John Goodwin Handbook of Texas Texas State Historical Association Archived from the original on September 1 2000 Retrieved April 13 2022 John G Tower Award Winners p14 Archived 2014 06 28 at the Wayback Machine Rupert Norval Richardson Ernest Wallace and Adrian N Anderson Texas The Lone Star State Englewood Cliffs New Jersey Prentice Hall 1970 p 369 Knaggs John R 1986 Two Party Texas The John Tower Era 1961 1984 Eakin Press page needed TX US Senate Special Primary OurCampaigns com TX US Senate Special Ourcampaigns com Retrieved September 11 2023 HR 7152 Passage To Pass S 1564 The Voting Rights Act Of 1965 Davidson Chandler 1992 Race and Class in Texas Politics Princeton University Press p 234 ISBN 9780691025391 S J Res 29 Approval Of Resolution Banning The Poll Tax As Prerequisite For Voting In Federal Elections GovTrack us To Pass H R 2516 A Bill To Prohibit Discrimination In Sale Or Rental Of Housing And Prohibit Racially Motivated Interference With A Person Exercising His Civil Rights And For Other Purposes Confirmation Of Nomination Of Thurgood Marshall The First Negro Appointed To The Supreme Court GovTrack us HR 7152 Gore Motion To Recommit To The Judiciary Comm W Instructions That It Report It Back Forthwith W The Amend Stating That Federal Funds Should Not Be W Drawn From Any School District Unless That District Had Disobeyed A Court Order That Is Desegregate GovTrack us Retrieved August 30 2021 GPO CRECB 1964 pt11 3 2 pdf Congressional Record Retrieved August 30 2021 Thomas Gordon Dillon Martin 2002 The Assassination of Robert Maxwell Israel s superspy London Robson Books ISBN 1 86105 558 7 OCLC 50404100 Oreskes Michael March 10 1989 Senate Rejects Tower 53 47 First Cabinet Veto Since 59 Bush Confers on New Choice The New York Times Retrieved October 5 2014 a b c Tolchin Martin April 6 1991 John G Tower 65 Longtime Senator from Texas The New York Times U S Senate Roll Call Votes 101st Congress 1st Session United States Senate March 9 1989 Retrieved November 15 2012 US Senate Nominations United States Senate Retrieved January 19 2017 Though not stated specifically we can check by process of elimination that this is correct Andrew Rosenthal March 17 1989 F B I Document on Tower Cited Pattern of Alcohol Abuse New York Times Retrieved March 4 2023 Schneider Keith April 7 1991 Inquiry Begins Into Georgia Plane Crash New York Times Retrieved December 18 2007 Atlantic Southeast Airlines Inc Flight 2311 Uncontrolled Collision With Terrain an Embraer EMB 120 N270AS Brunswick Georgia April 5 1991 PDF Report National Transportation Safety Board April 28 1992 Retrieved February 5 2016 John G Tower Papers Southwestern University Archived from the original on August 17 2021 Retrieved November 15 2012 General edit Cunningham Sean P 2010 Cowboy Conservatism Texas and the Rise of the Modern Right Finley Keith 2008 Delaying the Dream Southern Senators Fight against Civil Rights 1938 1965 Baton Rouge Louisiana State University Press Bennetts Leslie September 1991 Remember the Alamo Vanity Fair p 114 External links editUnited States Congress John Tower id T000322 Biographical Directory of the United States Congress Retrieved on 2008 02 08 Handbook of Texas article on John Tower Oral History Interviews with John Tower from the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library at the Library of Congress Web Archives archived 2001 11 16 Appearances on C SPAN Southwestern University and SMU s John G Tower Digital Media Collection contains videos and audios by John Tower throughout his career Booknotes interview with Roger Gittines on Consequences John G Tower A Personal and Political Memoir June 30 1991 John G Tower Papers Archived August 17 2021 at the Wayback Machine Official repository for John Tower s Senate and personal papers Special Collections Southwestern University Speech by John Tower given on November 11 1970 Audio recording from The University of Alabama s Emphasis Symposium on Contemporary Issues Brunswick GA Commuter Plane Crash Kills John Tower Sonny Carter and 21 others Apr 1991 article at GenDisasters comParty political officesPreceded byCarlos Watson Republican nominee for U S Senator from Texas Class 2 1960 1961 1966 1972 1978 Succeeded byPhil GrammPreceded byEverett DirksenGerald Ford Response to the State of the Union address1968 Served alongside Howard Baker George H W Bush Peter Dominick Gerald Ford Robert Griffin Thomas Kuchel Mel Laird Bob Mathias George Murphy Dick Poff Chuck Percy Al Quie Charlotte Reid Hugh Scott Bill Steiger VacantTitle next held byDonald Fraser Scoop Jackson Mike Mansfield John McCormack Patsy Mink Ed Muskie Bill ProxmirePreceded byGeorge Murphy Chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee1969 1971 Succeeded byPeter DominickPreceded byGordon Allott Chair of the Senate Republican Policy Committee1973 1985 Succeeded byBill ArmstrongU S SenatePreceded byBill Blakley U S Senator Class 2 from Texas1961 1985 Served alongside Ralph Yarborough Lloyd Bentsen Succeeded byPhil GrammPreceded byJohn Stennis Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee1981 1985 Succeeded byBarry GoldwaterHonorary titlesPreceded byFrank Church Baby of the Senate1961 1962 Succeeded byMaurice MurphyGovernment officesPreceded byAnne Armstrong Chair of the President s Intelligence Advisory Board1990 1991 Succeeded byBobby InmanActing Portals nbsp Biography nbsp Texas nbsp Education nbsp Radio nbsp Politics Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title John Tower amp oldid 1205285824, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.