Lee Hamilton | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait for the 9/11 Commission | |
| Vice Chair of the9/11 Commission | |
| In office December 11, 2002 – August 21, 2004 | |
| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | George J. Mitchell |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Chair of theHouse Foreign Affairs Committee | |
| In office January 3, 1993 – January 3, 1995 | |
| Preceded by | Dante Fascell |
| Succeeded by | Benjamin Gilman |
| Chair of theHouse Intelligence Committee | |
| In office January 3, 1985 – January 3, 1987 | |
| Preceded by | Edward Boland |
| Succeeded by | Louis Stokes |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIndiana's9th district | |
| In office January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1999 | |
| Preceded by | Earl Wilson |
| Succeeded by | Baron Hill |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Lee Herbert Hamilton (1931-04-20)April 20, 1931 (age 94) Daytona Beach,Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Education | DePauw University (BA) Indiana University, Bloomington (JD) |
| Awards | Presidential Medal of Freedom |
Lee Herbert Hamilton (born April 20, 1931) is an American politician and lawyer fromIndiana. He is a former member of theUnited States House of Representatives and a former member of the U.S.Homeland Security Advisory Council. A member of theDemocratic Party, Hamilton represented the9th congressional district ofIndiana from 1965 to 1999. Following his departure from Congress, he has served on a number of governmental advisory boards, most notably as the vice chairman of the9/11 Commission.
Hamilton was born inDaytona Beach, Florida, and raised inEvansville, Indiana. He attended public schools and graduated fromEvansville Central High School in 1948.[1] An outstanding basketball player, he led the Central Bears to the state title game in March 1948; he then continued his playing career atDePauw University,[2] where he played for CoachJay McCreary. Hamilton graduated from DePauw in 1952, and from the Indiana University School of Law in 1956. He worked as a lawyer in private practice for the next ten years inColumbus, Indiana.[3]
Hamilton was elected to the House of Representatives as aDemocrat as part of the national Democratic landslide of 1964. He chaired many committees during his tenure in office, including theHouse Committee on Foreign Affairs, theU.S. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, theJoint Committee on Printing, and others.[4]
As chairman of theHouse Select Committee to Investigate Covert Arms Transactions with Iran (1987), Hamilton chose not to investigate PresidentRonald Reagan or PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush, stating that he did not think it would be "good for the country" to put the public through another impeachment trial.[5] Hamilton was later chair of theHouse October Surprise Task Force (1992).[6]
He remained in Congress until 1999; at the time he was one of two surviving members of the large Democratic freshman class of 1965 (the other beingJohn Conyers). He was viewed as a potential Democratic vice-presidential running mate in 1984, 1988, and 1992, due to his foreign policy credentials and Indiana's potential to turn toward the Democratic Party due to economic concerns.
In November 2002, George W. Bush nominated Hamilton as the vice-chairman of the9/11 Commission, officially titled The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks on the United States. On March 15, 2006, Congress announced the formation of theIraq Study Group, organized by theUnited States Institute of Peace, of which Hamilton was the Democratic co-chairman, along with the former Secretary of State (under President George H. W. Bush)James A. Baker III. Hamilton, like Baker, was considered a master negotiator.
Since leaving Congress, Mr. Hamilton has served as a member of the Hart-Rudman Commission, and was co-chairman of the Commission to Investigate Certain Security Issues at Los Alamos. He sits on many advisory boards, including those to theCIA, the President'sHomeland Security Advisory Council, and theUnited States Army. Hamilton is an Advisory Board member and Co-Chair for thePartnership for a Secure America, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to recreating the bipartisan center in American national security and foreign policy. He is previously the president and director of theWoodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and was appointed to serve as the vice chair of the9/11 Commission. In 2000–2001, he served as the American member of theInternational Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty, which prepared the U.N policy ofResponsibility to Protect, adopted in 2005. He is also a member of the Board of Advisors ofAlbright Stonebridge Group.[7] He was appointed Co-Chair of theBlue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future from 2010 to 2012 alongsideBrent Scowcroft. He is also a member of Washington D.C.–based think tank, theInter-American Dialogue.[8]
Hamilton serves as a co-chair of the National Security Preparedness Group (NSPG) at theBipartisan Policy Center.[9] Hamilton is a co-chair withSandra Day O'Connor of the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools.[10] He also serves as an Advisory Board member for thePartnership for a Secure America and forAmerica Abroad Media.[11]
In 2004, Hamilton released the book "How Congress Works and Why You Should Care", in which he explains the role, workings and the importance of Congress to everyday Americans, drawing on reflections of his time as House Representative. He also suggests improvements to Congress.
On February 25, 2011, Hamilton wrote a letter to President Barack Obama urging him to commuteJonathan Pollard's sentence to time served. Pollard was serving a life sentence for providing Israel with classified information, without the intent to harm the United States, a crime which normally carries a sentence of two to four years. In his letter, he stated, "I do believe that he has served a disproportionately severe sentence." He also stated, "I have been acquainted for many years with members of his family, especially his parents, and I know how much pain and anguish they have suffered because of their son's incarceration." He contended that "commuting his sentence is a matter of basic compassion and justice."[12][13][14][15][16] Pollard was granted parole on July 7, 2015, and released on November 20, 2015.
On August 11, 2012, Hamilton's wife Nancy died in an auto-related accident; no one else was injured. Prior to her death, Mrs. Hamilton was an accomplished artist. In 1981 her oil paintings and watercolors were featured in an exhibit at The Commons and in 1984 she had a one-woman show at aSeymour art gallery.[17] Mrs. Hamilton also contributed thousands of hours at the INOVA Alexandria Virginia Hospital.[18][19]
Hamilton endorsedBarack Obama in the2008 presidential election.[20]
Hamilton is a member of the ReFormers Caucus ofIssue One.[21]
Lee H. Hamilton serves as an honorary co-chair for theWorld Justice Project, an organization that works to strengthen therule of law worldwide.
A nine-mile stretch ofI-265 and Indiana 265 inFloyd andClark counties, part of Hamilton's former House district, was designated the "Lee H. Hamilton Highway" shortly after his retirement from the House in 1999. Themoniker is largely symbolic, as locals generally do not refer to the road by that name, although the name is used frequently by the traffic reporter for the area's largest radio station, WHAS 840-AM in nearbyLouisville, Kentucky.
In 1982, Hamilton was inducted into theIndiana Basketball Hall of Fame, in honor of his outstanding prep basketball career; he led theEvansville Central Bears to three deep runs in theIHSAA tournament. In 1946, the Bears made the state semi-finals, in 1947, they made the state quarter-finals; as a senior, he led them to the championship game. He was selected All-State his senior season and was awarded the Trestor Award for mental attitude. He later starred for theDePauw Tigers, leading them in scoring average in 1951 and rebounds in 1951 and 1952.
In 2001 Lee H. Hamilton was presented the Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy Award by theAmerican Foreign Service Association.
In 2005, Hamilton received the U.S. Senator John Heinz Award for Greatest Public Service by an Elected or Appointed Official, an award given out annually byJefferson Awards.[22]
In 2007, Hamilton was elected as an honorary fellow in theNational Academy of Public Administration.[23]
In 2011, Hamilton received theBenjamin Harrison Presidential Site Advancing American Democracy Award.
In November 2015, Hamilton was awarded thePresidential Medal of Freedom by PresidentBarack Obama in a ceremony at theWhite House.[24][25]
In 2018,Indiana University Bloomington announced that the School of Global and International Studies will be renamed theHamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies in honor of Hamilton and former U.S. senatorRichard Lugar, describing both as "two immensely accomplished Indiana statesmen and two of the nation's most distinguished and influential voices in foreign policy."[26]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIndiana's 9th congressional district 1965–1999 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair of theHouse Intelligence Committee 1985–1987 | Succeeded by |
| New office | Chair of theHouse Iran-Contra Committee 1987 | Position abolished |
| Chair of theJoint Reorganization Committee 1992–1994 Served alongside:David Boren | ||
| Preceded by | Chair of theHouse Foreign Affairs Committee 1993–1995 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Ranking Member of theHouse Foreign Affairs Committee 1995–1999 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
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