Richard Gordon Darman known as Dick Darman, was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 economist

Economist

An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...

 and businessman who served under five U.S. presidents but is best remembered as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget during the administration of George H. W. Bush

George H. W. Bush

George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...

 (1989–1993).

Education and early life

Darman was born in Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...

, and grew up in, first, Woonsocket, Rhode Island

Woonsocket, Rhode Island

Woonsocket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 41,186 at the 2010 census, making it the sixth largest city in the state. Woonsocket lies directly south of the Massachusetts border....

, and then the exclusive Wellesley Hills neighborhood of Wellesley

Wellesley, Massachusetts

Wellesley is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of Greater Boston. The population was 27,982 at the time of the 2010 census.It is best known as the home of Wellesley College and Babson College...

 in southeastern Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. His father owned textile

Textile

A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...

 mills and marketed oil

Oil

An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....

 and gasoline

Gasoline

Gasoline , or petrol , is a toxic, translucent, petroleum-derived liquid that is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines also contain...

. In 1960, Darman graduated at the age of seventeen from The Rivers School a college preparatory school in Weston

Weston, Massachusetts

Weston is a suburb of Boston located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States in the Boston metro area. The population of Weston, according to the 2010 U.S. Census, is 11,261....

 in Middlesex County

Middlesex County, Massachusetts

-National protected areas:* Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge* Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge* Longfellow National Historic Site* Lowell National Historical Park* Minute Man National Historical Park* Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge...

. He then finished with honors from Harvard in 1964 and from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration

Harvard Business School

Harvard Business School is the graduate business school of Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, United States and is widely recognized as one of the top business schools in the world. The school offers the world's largest full-time MBA program, doctoral programs, and many executive...

 in 1967.

Career

Prior to serving at OMB, Darman held other governmental positions under President Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan

Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....

, including: Assistant to the President of the United States (1981–1985); Deputy Secretary of the Treasury (1985–1987) to his close friend James A. Baker, III, of Houston

Houston, Texas

Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...

; and Assistant Secretary of Commerce (1976–1977). He also was a member of the faculty of the Kennedy School of Government and Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

 in Cambridge, Massachusetts

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...

, on three different occasions between 1977 and 2002: as an Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy, a Lecturer in Public Policy, and a Public Service Professor

Professor

A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...

.

Darman joined the administration of President Richard M. Nixon in 1970 and worked under Elliot L. Richardson of Massachusetts in a succession of Cabinet

Cabinet (government)

A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...

 departments: (1) Health, Education and Welfare, (2) Defense, and (3) Justice. At the Justice Department, Darman helped to develop the plea bargain

Plea bargain

A plea bargain is an agreement in a criminal case whereby the prosecutor offers the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty, usually to a lesser charge or to the original criminal charge with a recommendation of a lighter than the maximum sentence.A plea bargain allows criminal defendants to...

 which brought about the resignation of Vice President of the United States

Vice President of the United States

The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...

 Spiro T. Agnew from office.

When Richardson resigned as attorney general

Attorney General

In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...

 in refusing to follow Nixon's orders to dismiss Archibald Cox

Archibald Cox

Archibald Cox, Jr., was an American lawyer and law professor who served as U.S. Solicitor General under President John F. Kennedy. He became known as the first special prosecutor for the Watergate scandal. During his career, he was a pioneering expert on labor law and also an authority on...

, also of Massachusetts, as the Watergate special prosecutor, Darman quit as well. He returned to government as an assistant secretary of commerce under Richardson during the Gerald Ford

Gerald Ford

Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...

 presidency and then under Richardson's successor, James A. Baker. At the Commerce Department, Darman worked on negotiations of the unratified

Ratification

Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent where the agent lacked authority to legally bind the principal. The term applies to private contract law, international treaties, and constitutionals in federations such as the United States and Canada.- Private law :In contract law, the...

 Law of the Sea Treaty. He continued this work for several months into the Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter

James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...

 administration, having hence served under five Presidents.

Darman consulted and taught until he was appointed executive director of Reagan's transition team in 1980. As "assistant to the President" under Reagan, Darman was called the "nerve center" of the administration by the presidential counselor Edwin A. Meese, III, who was later Reagan's attorney general. Darman became Reagan's principal legislative strategist and participated in foreign-policy decisions.

Darman's pragmatism, willingness to work with Democrats

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

, and desire to make a career of government rankled movement conservatives. In Revolution: The Reagan Legacy, author Martin Anderson

Martin Anderson (economist)

Martin Anderson is an economist, policy analyst, author and was one of President Ronald Reagan's leading advisors.-Biography:Born in Lowell, Massachusetts, August 5, 1936 He received his A.B. from Dartmouth College in 1957, his M.S...

, a former Reagan aide

Aide

Aide may refer to:* A person who assists another; an assistant. In military contexts; an officer who acts as assistant to a more senior one; an aide-de-camp.* Aide , a purported Basque deity....

, called Darman "easily the most disliked man in the White House." Darman helped to elect Reagan by coaching him for his debates in 1980 and 1984 campaigns. He reprised the role for the first Bush in 1988 and 1992, playing Democratic challengers Michael Dukakis and Bill Clinton in debate prep sessions.

From 1987-1988, Darman was also a contributing editor to the magazine U.S. News and World Report.

Later life and death

From 1993 until his death, Darman was a partner in the Carlyle Group

Carlyle Group

The Carlyle Group is an American-based global asset management firm, specializing in private equity, based in Washington, D.C. The Carlyle Group operates in four business areas: corporate private equity, real assets, market strategies and fund-of-funds, through its AlpInvest subsidiary...

, the private equity firm based in Washington. Since May 1, 2003, he also served as Chairman of the Board of AES Corporation

AES Corporation

AES Corporation is a Fortune 500 company that generates and distributes electrical power. The company was founded on January 28, 1981, as Applied Energy Services by Roger Sant from the US Federal Energy Administration and Dennis Bakke from the Office of Management and Budget. AES Corporation is...

, a global power company. At the time of his death, Darman resided with his family in McLean

McLean, Virginia

McLean is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Fairfax County in Northern Virginia. The community had a total population of 48,115 as of the 2010 census....

 in Fairfax County

Fairfax County, Virginia

Fairfax County is a county in Virginia, in the United States. Per the 2010 Census, the population of the county is 1,081,726, making it the most populous jurisdiction in the Commonwealth of Virginia, with 13.5% of Virginia's population...

, Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

, outside Washington.

Darman was a trustee of the Loomis Sayles

Loomis, Sayles & Company

Loomis, Sayles & Company is a United States investment management firm based in Boston. As of the end of 2009, Loomis, Sayles had roughly $142 billion of assets under management.Loomis, Sayles was founded in 1926...

 Funds, IXIS Funds, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Howard Hughes Medical Institute is a United States non-profit medical research organization based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It was founded by the American businessman Howard Hughes in 1953. It is one of the largest private funding organizations for biological and medical research in the United...

. He served as Chairman of the Board of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Some sources suggest that Darman was a member of the Trilateral Commission

Trilateral Commission

The Trilateral Commission is a non-governmental, non-partisan discussion group founded by David Rockefeller in July 1973 to foster closer cooperation among the United States, Europe and Japan.-History:...

.

Darman died at the age of sixty-four of acute myelogenous leukemia. Survivors included his wife, the former Kathleen Emmet, a writer

Writer

A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....

 whom he married on September 1, 1967; three sons, Jonathan W.E. Darman of New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, William T.E. Darman of Brooklyn, New York, and C.T. Emmet Darman of McLean; a granddaughter, Jane Darman; his mother, Eleanor Darman of Lincoln, Massachusetts

Lincoln, Massachusetts

Lincoln is a town in the historic area of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,362 at the 2010 census, including residents of Hanscom Air Force Base that live within town limits...

; a sister Lynn Darman, of Washington, DC, and a brother, John Darman, of West Bridgewater, Massachusetts

West Bridgewater, Massachusetts

West Bridgewater is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,634 at the 2000 census.- History :West Bridgewater was first settled in 1651 as a part of Olde Bridgewater...

.

Baker described Darman as "absolutely brilliant at boiling down complex issues to their simplest forms. He always provided me with an unvarnished perspective." At the time of Darman's death, President George H.W. Bush said Darman was "wonderfully supportive of me through thick and thin -- a trusted ally and loyal friend."

Criticism

Darman was regarded as provocative and intelligent by insiders in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, but he was criticized by some economists for being too focused on the budget deficit and was sometimes blamed for convincing Bush to renege on his promise of "Read my lips: No new taxes

Read my lips: no new taxes

"Read my lips: no new taxes" is a now-famous phrase spoken by then presidential candidate George H. W. Bush at the 1988 Republican National Convention as he accepted the nomination on August 18. Written by speechwriter Peggy Noonan, the line was the most prominent sound bite from the speech...

", which is widely believed to have contributed to Bush's defeat for a second term by Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton

William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...

 in the election of 1992

United States presidential election, 1992

The United States presidential election of 1992 had three major candidates: Incumbent Republican President George Bush; Democratic Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton, and independent Texas businessman Ross Perot....

. National Review

National Review

National Review is a biweekly magazine founded by the late author William F. Buckley, Jr., in 1955 and based in New York City. It describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and web site for conservative news, commentary, and opinion."Although the print version of the...

the conservative magazine

Magazine

Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...

 begun by William F. Buckley, Jr.

William F. Buckley, Jr.

William Frank Buckley, Jr. was an American conservative author and commentator. He founded the political magazine National Review in 1955, hosted 1,429 episodes of the television show Firing Line from 1966 until 1999, and was a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist. His writing was noted for...

, called Darman's work at the time "the most catastrophic budget deal of all time," and Bush himself later said that the new taxes were the biggest mistake of his presidency. However, several nonpartisan analyses later determined that the 1990 budget accord, which Darman spearheaded, played a significant role in stimulating the economy and creating budget surpluses in the 1990s.

Further reading

• Who's in Control? Polar Politics and the Sensible Center (1996; ISBN 0-684-81123-5)

External links

• Martin, Douglas, "Richard Darman, Former Budget Director, Dies", The New York Times, January 26, 2008 http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/26/washington/26darman.html?hp=&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1201301295-KEXn3UTv/+YTNK6tp5hDAg
• http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/deaths/5487176.html
• http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2004147668_darmanobit27.html
• http://www.nndb.com/people/607/000056439/
• Who's Who in America, 2007 edition