Robert H. Tuttle | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Ambassador tothe United Kingdom | |
| In office October 19, 2005 – February 6, 2009 | |
| President | George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | William S. Farish III |
| Succeeded by | Louis Susman |
| Director of theWhite House Presidential Personnel Office | |
| In office February 7, 1985 – January 20, 1989 | |
| President | Ronald Reagan |
| Preceded by | John S. Herrington |
| Succeeded by | Chase Untermeyer |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Holmes Tuttle (1943-08-04)August 4, 1943 (age 82) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Maria Denise Hummer |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | Stanford University (BA) University of Southern California (MBA) |
| Profession | Businessman |
Robert Holmes Tuttle (born August 4, 1943) is an American businessman specializing incar dealerships. He was theUnited States Ambassador to the United Kingdom from July 2005 to February 2009.[1][2]
Tuttle earned aBachelor of Arts fromStanford University, and earned hisMaster of Business Administration degree at theUniversity of Southern California.[3][4] Tuttle is the son ofHolmes Tuttle, founder of the Southern California chain of auto dealerships and, in the 1960s and 1970s, a prominent force behind the political rise of actorRonald Reagan. Tuttle previously worked in the White House during the Reagan administration as an assistant to thePresident in 1982, and director of presidential personnel in 1985. An avid tennis player, he enjoyed occasional games of tennis at the White House tennis court. Tuttle was also on theboard of directors of theWoodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.[citation needed]
A California native, he was nominated to be ambassador byU.S. PresidentGeorge W. Bush. He had raised more than $200,000 forBush's 2004 presidential campaign and inauguration ceremony.[5] Both Tuttle and his predecessorWilliam Stamps Farish III were both wealthy private citizens with personal and financial ties to the Bush family.[6]
Tuttle was the Ambassador to the United Kingdom during the U.S. Embassy's refusal to pay theLondon congestion charge.[7] The embassy has claimed that the charge is a form oftaxation, and the diplomats and their staff are therefore exempt under the 1961Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.Transport for London, which is headed by theMayor of London, considers the charge to be a fee for service rather than a tax, and points out that other embassies in London pay it, and US embassies in other cities pay similar road charges.
In March 2006, the Mayor of London,Ken Livingstone, said that Tuttle was trying to "skive out of [paying] like some chiselling little crook".[8] A survey published in 2007 showed that theUnited States owed £1.5 million in outstanding congestion charge payments. Livingstone again chided Tuttle, and called him a "venal little crook" for his refusal to pay.[9]
Tuttle is a partner in the Tuttle-Click Automotive Group based in Irvine, California, and the Jim Click Automotive Group based out of Tucson, Arizona. He currently serves as the chairman of the board of directors of thePacific Council on International Policy.[10] He is a trustee of theCenter for the Study of the Presidency and Congress in Washington, D.C.[11]
In 2020, Tuttle, along with over 130 other former Republican national security officials, signed a statement that asserted thatPresident Trump was unfit to serve another term, and "To that end, we are firmly convinced that it is in the best interest of our nation that Vice President Joe Biden be elected as the next President of the United States, and we will vote for him."[12]
He is married to the former Maria Denise Hummer. Tuttle and his wife are both avid collectors of contemporary art.[13]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Director of theWhite House Presidential Personnel Office 1985–1989 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom 2005–2009 | Succeeded by |