Ron Ziegler
Encyclopedia
White House Press Secretary
The White House Press Secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the government administration....
and Assistant to the President during United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
President Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
's administration.
Early life
Ziegler was born to Louis Daniel Ziegler, a production manager, and Ruby Parsons, in Covington, KentuckyCovington, Kentucky
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 43,370 people, 18,257 households, and 10,132 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,301.3 people per square mile . There were 20,448 housing units at an average density of 1,556.5 per square mile...
. He was raised Presbyterian.
Studies
He graduated from Dixie Heights High SchoolDixie Heights High School
Dixie Heights High School is a 5-A high school located at 3010 Dixie Highway in Edgewood, Kentucky.-History:The school was built by the Works Progress Administration. It opened for classes in 1936 and was dedicated by Eleanor Roosevelt. The main building is nearly identical in construction and...
in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky
Fort Mitchell, Kentucky
As of the census of 2010, there were 8,207 people, 3,530 households, and 2,033 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,581.8 people per square mile . There were 3,744 housing units at an average density of 1,195.0 per square mile...
. Ziegler first attended college in Cincinnati. He transferred to the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
in 1958 and graduated in 1961 with a degree in government and politics. While at USC, he was initiated into the Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi is the largest and one of the oldest college Greek-letter secret and social fraternities in North America with 244 active chapters and more than . Sigma Chi was founded on June 28, 1855 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio when members split from Delta Kappa Epsilon...
fraternity.
Work
He worked at Disneyland as a skipper on the popular Adventureland attraction, The Jungle CruiseJungle Cruise
The Jungle Cruise is an attraction located in Adventureland at many Disney Parks, including Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Tokyo Disneyland. At Hong Kong Disneyland, the attraction is named Jungle River Cruise...
. He later worked as a press aide on Nixon's unsuccessful California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
gubernatorial campaign in 1962. Subsequently Ziegler worked with H. R. Haldeman
H. R. Haldeman
Harry Robbins "Bob" Haldeman was an American political aide and businessman, best known for his service as White House Chief of Staff to President Richard Nixon and for his role in events leading to the Watergate burglaries and the Watergate scandal – for which he was found guilty of conspiracy...
, who later served as President Nixon's White House Chief of Staff
White House Chief of Staff
The White House Chief of Staff is the highest ranking member of the Executive Office of the President of the United States and a senior aide to the President.The current White House Chief of Staff is Bill Daley.-History:...
, at advertising firm J. Walter Thompson.
White House appointments from 1969
In 1969, when he was just 29, Ziegler became the youngest White House Press Secretary in history. He was also the first Press Secretary to use the White House Press Briefing Room when it was completed in 1970. Historically, White House Press Secretaries were recruited from the ranks of individuals with substantial journalistic experience; among these were Stephen EarlyStephen Early
Stephen Tyree Early was a U.S. journalist and government official. He served as White House Press Secretary under Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1933 to 1945 and again under President Harry S. Truman in 1950.-Career:...
and Pierre Salinger
Pierre Salinger
Pierre Emil George Salinger was a White House Press Secretary to U.S. Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson...
.
He was the White House press secretary for the Nixon administration during the political scandal known as Watergate
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
. In 1972, he dismissed the first report of the break-in at the Watergate Hotel
Watergate complex
The Watergate complex is a group of five buildings next to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of Washington, D.C. in the United States. The site contains an office building, three apartment buildings, and a hotel-office building...
as the discussion of a "third rate burglary," but within two years Nixon had resigned under threat of impeachment
Impeachment
Impeachment is a formal process in which an official is accused of unlawful activity, the outcome of which, depending on the country, may include the removal of that official from office as well as other punishment....
.
Some of Ziegler's public statements from this period reflect an ostensible commitment to democratic civics which in hindsight was not borne out by the facts. For example, in 1970 CIA
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
security adviser Dan Mitrione
Dan Mitrione
Daniel A. Mitrione was an Italian-born American police officer, Federal Bureau of Investigation agent and a United States government advisor for the Central Intelligence Agency in Latin America.- Career :...
, whose later reputation as the promoter of torture techniques became substantiated, was assassinated in Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
. It fell to Ziegler to give to reporters a eulogy which in hindsight seemed generously optimistic.
In 1974 he became Assistant to the President.
Strong personal identification with Nixon
Particularly in the period following the resignations of such senior administration officials as Bob Haldeman and John EhrlichmanJohn Ehrlichman
John Daniel Ehrlichman was counsel and Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs under President Richard Nixon. He was a key figure in events leading to the Watergate first break-in and the ensuing Watergate scandal, for which he was convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury...
, Ziegler became one of Nixon's closest aides and confidants, defending the President until the bitter end, urging Nixon not to resign, but rather fight impeachment in the Senate.
During the unfolding political scandal, Ziegler himself appeared at least 33 times before Congress.
Continuing closeness to Nixon
Unlike many other former aides after President Nixon's resignation in 1974, Ziegler remained very close to him. Ziegler was on the airplane that Mr. Nixon took to San Clemente as Gerald FordGerald 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...
was sworn into office.
On November 12, 1999, Ziegler was due to participate by telephone in a television panel discussion that included several former Nixon and Ford aides, including his successor as White House Press Secretary, Jerald terHorst
Jerald terHorst
Jerald Franklin "Jerry" terHorst was the first person to serve as press secretary for U.S. President Gerald Ford. Before being appointed press secretary, terHorst had been a newspaper reporter from Michigan who had covered Ford's career since 1948.-Early career:Jerald terHorst was born in Grand...
, who resigned in protest at President Ford's pardon of Nixon. However, Ziegler's feed failed to hook up for the session, which went on without him. [See: Jerald terHorst#Reflections .]
Truck stop and chain drug store advocacy
In 1988, Ziegler became president and chief executive of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, living in Alexandria, Va. He was previously known as President of the National Association of Truck Stop Operators. He was described by leading truck stop advocate William Fay as "a significant factor in expanding the travel plaza and truckstop industry's presence in the nation's capital." Hay further credited Ziegler as having achieved "great strides in membership recruitment and expansion of member services."Death
He moved to Coronado Shores (Coronado, Ca.) where he died of a heart attackMyocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
at age 63.
Legacy
Ziegler in his post-White House life may be said to have successfully moved on in his business career away from the aspects of the Nixon Administration most open to criticism. He was for many years an advocate for free enterprise, especially truck stops.But particularly in regard of numerous quotes from him while Press Secretary, he is often remembered as the public face of the known Nixonian mendacity which he would attempt to dismiss as being merely 'inoperative'.
In popular culture
Ziegler appears in the 1976 film All the President's MenAll the President's Men
All the President's Men is a 1974 non-fiction book by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, two of the journalists investigating the first Watergate break-in and ensuing scandal for The Washington Post. The book chronicles the investigative reporting of Woodward and Bernstein from Woodward's initial...
as himself in archival news footage.
Ziegler is portrayed in the 1995 Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
film Nixon
Nixon (film)
Nixon is a 1995 American biographical film directed by Oliver Stone for Cinergi Pictures that tells the story of the political and personal life of former US President Richard Nixon, played by Anthony Hopkins....
by David Paymer
David Paymer
David Paymer is an American actor and television director, seen in such films as Quiz Show, Searching for Bobby Fischer, City Slickers, Crazy People, State and Main, Payback, Get Shorty, Carpool, The American President, Ocean's Thirteen, and Drag Me to Hell...
.
Notable quotes
- "Certain elements may try to stretch the Watergate burglary beyond what it is." –1972, referring to Washington Post reporters Carl BernsteinCarl BernsteinCarl Bernstein is an American investigative journalist who, at The Washington Post, teamed up with Bob Woodward; the two did the majority of the most important news reporting on the Watergate scandal. These scandals led to numerous government investigations, the indictment of a vast number of...
and Bob WoodwardBob WoodwardRobert Upshur Woodward is an American investigative journalist and non-fiction author. He has worked for The Washington Post since 1971 as a reporter, and is currently an associate editor of the Post....
. - "This is the operative statement. The others are inoperative." –April 17, 1973, retracting previous statements that had been revealed to be false.
- "I would apologize to the Post, and I would apologize to Mr. Woodward and Mr. Bernstein." He continued, "We would all have to say that mistakes were made in terms of comments. I was overenthusiastic in my comments about the Post, particularly if you look at them in the context of developments that have taken place." May 1, 1973; the previous day, White House counsel John DeanJohn DeanJohn Wesley Dean III is an American lawyer who served as White House Counsel to United States President Richard Nixon from July 1970 until April 1973. In this position, he became deeply involved in events leading up to the Watergate burglaries and the subsequent Watergate scandal cover-up...
and NixonRichard NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
aides John EhrlichmanJohn EhrlichmanJohn Daniel Ehrlichman was counsel and Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs under President Richard Nixon. He was a key figure in events leading to the Watergate first break-in and the ensuing Watergate scandal, for which he was convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury...
and H.R. Haldeman had resigned, as the Watergate scandalWatergate scandalThe Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
progressed. - "If my answers sound confusing, I think they are confusing because the questions are confusing and the situation is confusing."
- "Thank goodness, I was one of the few members of the Nixon White House staff who was never indicted and I was not part of the cover-up." — on Larry King LiveLarry King LiveLarry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
, alluding to the 11 convictions and numerous indictments in the scandal. http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/state/20030210-1956-cnsziegler-obit.html - "I was the only one on that plane to San Clemente with Nixon when power changed hands. I was there with Nixon in exile. I will publish a good book someday." –1981.
- "I'm proud of what I did as press secretary, I don't feel the need to apologize; there are some things, however, I would have done differently" –1981. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2752761.stm
- "The president is aware of what is going on in Southeast Asia. That is not to say that there is anything going on in Southeast Asia." –1971, answering a question if the allied troops were preparing to invade Laos.
- "Devoted service to the cause of peaceful progress in an orderly world (which) will remain as an example for free men everywhere" - 1970, in reference to the career of CIA security adviser Dan MitrioneDan MitrioneDaniel A. Mitrione was an Italian-born American police officer, Federal Bureau of Investigation agent and a United States government advisor for the Central Intelligence Agency in Latin America.- Career :...
, killed in UruguayUruguayUruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, whose promotion of torture later became substantiated.
External links
- Former NACDS President & CEO Ronald L. Ziegler Dies
- Ron Ziegler's Obituary with summary of his years with Nixon
- Ron Ziegler, former Nixon press secretary, dies in Coronado
- Washington Post editorial, June 21, 1972, published soon after the burglary.
- Watergate 'Spin Doctor' Dies, BBC News.