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Alexander Haig
Alexander Haig Official Portrait
59th United States Secretary of State

In office
January 22, 1981 (1981-January-22) – July 5, 1982 (1982-July-05)
President Ronald Reagan
Deputy William P. Clark
Walter John Stoessel, Jr.
Preceded by Edmund Muskie
Succeeded by George P. Shultz
7th Supreme Allied Commander Europe

In office
December 16, 1974 (1974-December-16) – July 1, 1979 (1979-July-01)
President Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter
Deputy John Mogg
Harry Tuzo
Gerd Schmückle
Preceded by Andrew Goodpaster
Succeeded by Bernard W. Rogers
5th White House Chief of Staff

In office
April 30, 1973 – September 21, 1974
President Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Preceded by H. R. Haldeman
Succeeded by Donald Rumsfeld
Deputy National Security Advisor

In office
1970–1973
President Richard Nixon
Preceded by Robert Komer
Succeeded by Brent Scowcroft
Personal details
Born Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr.
December 2, 1924
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Died February 20, 2010(2010-02-20) (aged 85)
Baltimore, Maryland
Political party Republican
Spouse(s) Patricia
(née Fox, 1950–2010; his death)
Alma mater U.S. Military Academy (B.S.)
Columbia Business School (Master)
Georgetown University (Master of Arts)
Profession Soldier, civil servant
Religion Roman Catholic
Signature Alexander Haig Signature 2
Military service
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service 1947–1979
Rank US-O10 insignia General
Battles/wars Korean War
Vietnam War
Awards Distinguished Service Cross
Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Silver Star
Bronze Star
Purple Heart
Combat Infantryman Badge

Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr. (December 2, 1924 – February 20, 2010) was a United States Army general who served as the United States Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan and White House Chief of Staff under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.[1] He also served as Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, the second-highest ranking officer in the Army,[2] and as Supreme Allied Commander Europe commanding all US and NATO forces in Europe.

A veteran of the Korean War and Vietnam War, Haig was a recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star with oak leaf cluster, and the Purple Heart.[3]

Early life and education[]

Haig was born in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, the middle of three children of Alexander Meigs Haig, Sr., a Republican lawyer, and his wife Regina Anne (née Murphy).[4] When Haig was 10, his father, aged 38, died of cancer. His Irish-American mother raised her children in the Roman Catholic faith.[5] He attended Saint Joseph's Preparatory School in North Philadelphia. He then studied at the University of Notre Dame for two years, before transferring to the United States Military Academy, where he graduated in 1947. Haig later earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Columbia Business School in 1955 and a Master of Arts degree in international relations from Georgetown University in 1961. His thesis examined the role of military officers in making national policy.

Early military career[]

Korean War[]

As a young officer, Haig served on the staff of General Douglas MacArthur in Japan. In the early days of the Korean War, Haig was responsible for maintaining General MacArthur's situation map and briefing MacArthur each evening on the day's battlefield events.[6] Haig later served (1950–51) with the X Corps, as aide to MacArthur's Chief of Staff, General Edward Almond,[3] who awarded Haig two Silver Stars and a Bronze Star with Valor device.[7] Haig participated in four Korean War campaigns, including the Battle of Inchon, the Battle of Chosin Reservoir, and the evacuation of Hŭngnam[6] as Almond's aide.

Pentagon assignments[]

Haig served as a staff officer in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations (DCSOPS) at the Pentagon (1962–64), and then was appointed Military Assistant to Secretary of the Army Stephen Ailes in 1964. He then was appointed Military Assistant to Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, continuing in that service until the end of 1965.[citation needed]

Vietnam War[]

In 1966, Haig took command of a battalion of the 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam. On May 22, 1967, Lieutenant Colonel Haig was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the US Army's second highest medal for valor, by General William Westmoreland as a result of his actions during the Battle of Ap Gu in March 1967.[8] During the battle, Haig's troops (of the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division (United States)) became pinned down by a Viet Cong force that outnumbered US forces by three to one. In an attempt to survey the battlefield, Haig boarded a helicopter and flew to the point of contact. His helicopter was subsequently shot down. Two days of bloody hand-to-hand combat ensued. An excerpt from Haig's official Army citation follows:

When two of his companies were engaged by a large hostile force, Colonel Haig landed amid a hail of fire, personally took charge of the units, called for artillery and air fire support and succeeded in soundly defeating the insurgent force ... the next day a barrage of 400 rounds was fired by the Viet Cong, but it was ineffective because of the warning and preparations by Colonel Haig. As the barrage subsided, a force three times larger than his began a series of human wave assaults on the camp. Heedless of the danger himself, Colonel Haig repeatedly braved intense hostile fire to survey the battlefield. His personal courage and determination, and his skillful employment of every defense and support tactic possible, inspired his men to fight with previously unimagined power. Although his force was outnumbered three to one, Colonel Haig succeeded in inflicting 592 casualties on the Viet Cong ... (HQ US Army, Vietnam, General Orders No. 2318 (May 22, 1967)[9]

Haig was also awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart during his tour in Vietnam,[8] and was eventually promoted to Colonel, becoming a brigade commander of the 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam.

West Point[]

At the end of his one-year tour, Alexander Haig returned to the continental United States to become Regimental Commander of the Third Regiment of the Corps of Cadets at West Point, under the also newly arrived Commandant, Brigadier General Bernard W. Rogers. (Both had served together in the 1st Infantry Division, Rogers as Assistant Division Commander and Haig as Brigade Commander.)

Security adviser (1969–1972)[]

In 1969, he was appointed Military Assistant to the Presidential Assistant for National Security Affairs, Henry Kissinger, a position he retained until 1970 when President Richard Nixon promoted Haig to Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. During this time he was promoted to Brig. General (Sep. 1969), and Maj. General (Mar. 1972). In this position, Haig helped South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu negotiate the final cease-fire talks in 1972. Haig continued in this position until 1973, when he was appointed to be Vice Chief of Staff of the Army. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in Oct. 1972 as Vice Chief of Staff, a four-star position, thus skipping the rank of Lt. General.

White House Chief of Staff (1973–74)[]

Nixon administration[]

Kissinger Nixon Ford Haig

Chief of Staff Haig (far right), Sec. of State Kissinger, Rep. Ford and President Richard Nixon meet on October 13, 1973, regarding Ford's upcoming appointment to vice-president.

Haig served as White House Chief of Staff, while still retaining his Army commission, during the height of the Watergate affair from May 1973 until Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. He took over the position from H.R. Haldeman, who resigned on April 30, 1973, while under pressure from Watergate prosecutors.

Haig has been largely credited with keeping the government running while President Nixon was preoccupied with Watergate,[1] and was essentially seen as the "acting president" during Nixon's last few months in office.[10] During July and early August 1974, Haig also played an instrumental role in finally persuading Nixon to resign. Haig presented several pardon options to Ford a few days before Nixon eventually resigned. In this regard, in his 1999 book Shadow, author Bob Woodward describes Haig's role as the point man between Nixon and Ford during the final days of Nixon's presidency. According to Woodward, Haig played a major behind-the-scenes role in the delicate negotiations of the transfer of power from President Nixon to President Ford.[11] Indeed, about one month after taking office, Ford did pardon Nixon, resulting in much controversy.

However, authors Len Colodny and Robert Gettlin were highly critical of much of Haig's behind-the-scenes work as Nixon's chief of staff in their 1991 book Silent Coup: The Removal of a President. They described several episodes where Haig misled the president and others, particularly those surrounding the court battles over Nixon's White House tape recordings, and Ford's eventual pardon of Nixon in September 1974. Having conducted dozens of interviews of key participants, including Gerald Ford, Robert Hartmann, H.R. Haldeman, John Ehrlichman, John Mitchell, John Dean, Alexander Butterfield, Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein, Samuel Dash, Seymour Hersh, Jeb Magruder, Gordon Liddy, Herbert Kalmbach, Robert Bork, and many others, as well as researching Congressional proceedings and a wide variety of contemporary news sources, the two authors were able to find many inconsistencies in what Haig claimed he had done. Haig refused to be interviewed for this book. Colodny and Gettlin stated that on several occasions, Haig seemed more concerned with shielding himself from investigation than in helping Nixon. Colodny and Gettlin also presented the most thorough explanation and analysis which had been seen, up to that time, of the so-called Moorer-Radford military espionage affair, an episode where Haig played a key role; several key documents from this matter wound up being hidden from public view, perhaps permanently, among Nixon's presidential papers.[12]

Ford administration[]

Haig remained White House Chief of Staff during these early days of the Ford Administration, for just over about one month, and was replaced by Donald Rumsfeld in September 1974. Author Roger Morris, a former colleague of Haig's on the National Security Council early in Nixon's first term, wrote that when Ford pardoned Nixon, he effectively pardoned Haig as well.[13]

NATO Supreme Commander (1974–79)[]

General Alexander M

General Alexander Haig, USA as SACEUR.

From 1974 to 1979, Haig served as the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), the Commander of NATO forces in Europe, and Commander-in-Chief of United States European Command (CinCUSEUR). A creature of habit, Haig took the same route to SHAPE every day – a pattern of behavior that did not go unnoticed by terrorist groups. On June 25, 1979, Haig was the target of an assassination attempt in Mons, Belgium. A land mine blew up under the bridge on which Haig's car was traveling, narrowly missing Haig's car and wounding three of his bodyguards in a following car.[14] Authorities later attributed responsibility for the attack to the Red Army Faction (RAF). In 1993 a German Court sentenced Rolf Clemens Wagner, a former RAF member, to life imprisonment for the assassination attempt.[14]

Civilian positions[]

Haig retired as a four-star general from the Army in 1979, and moved on to civilian employment. In 1979, he worked at the Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute briefly, and would later serve on that organization's board.[15] Later that year, he was named president and Director of United Technologies Corporation (UTC) under chief executive officer (CEO) Harry J. Gray, a job he retained until 1981. He served as a founding corporate director at AOL. [16]

Secretary of State (1981–1982)[]

He was the second of three career military officers to become Secretary of State (George C. Marshall and Colin Powell were the others). His speeches in this role in particular led to the coining of the neologism "Haigspeak", described in a dictionary of neologisms as "Language characterized by pompous obscurity resulting from redundancy, the semantically strained use of words, and verbosity",[17] leading ambassador Nicko Henderson to offer a prize for the best rendering of the Gettysburg address in Haigspeak.[18]

Reagan assassination attempt[]

"I am in control here"[]

Al Haig speaks to press 1981

Secretary of State Haig speaks to the press after the attempted assassination on President Ronald Reagan

In 1981, following the March 30 assassination attempt on Reagan, Haig asserted before reporters "I am in control here" as a result of Reagan's hospitalization, indicating that, while President Reagan had not "transfer[red] the helm", Haig was in fact directing White House Crisis Management until Vice President Bush arrived in Washington to assume that role.

Constitutionally, gentlemen, you have the President, the Vice President, and the Secretary of State in that order, and should the President decide he wants to transfer the helm to the Vice President, he will do so. He has not done that. As of now, I am in control here, in the White House, pending return of the Vice President and in close touch with him. If something came up, I would check with him, of course.

—Alexander Haig, Alexander Haig, autobiographical profile in TIME Magazine, April 2, 1984[19]

The US Constitution, including both the presidential line of succession and the 25th Amendment, dictates what happens when a president is incapacitated. However, the holders of the two offices between the Vice President and the Secretary of State, the Speaker of the House (at the time, Tip O'Neill) and the President pro tempore of the Senate (at the time, Strom Thurmond), would be required under US law (3 U.S.C. § 19) to resign their positions in order for either of them to become acting president, an unlikely event. Considering that Vice President Bush was not immediately available, Haig's statement reflected political reality, if not necessarily legal reality. Haig later said,

I wasn't talking about transition. I was talking about the executive branch, who is running the government. That was the question asked. It was not, "Who is in line should the President die?"

—Alexander Haig, Alexander Haig interview with 60 Minutes II April 23, 2001

Falklands War[]

Haig and Thatcher DF-SC-83-06152

Haig as Secretary of State with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 1982.

In April 1982 Haig conducted shuttle diplomacy between the governments of Argentina in Buenos Aires and the United Kingdom in London after Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands. Negotiations broke down and Haig returned to Washington on April 19. The British fleet then entered the war zone. In December 2012 documents released under the UK "30 Year Rule" disclosed that Haig planned to reveal British classified military information to Argentina in advance of the recapture of south Georgia. The proposal, which would have revealed British plans for the retaking of the island, was intended to show the military junta in Buenos Aires that America was a neutral player and could be trusted to act impartially during negotiations to end the conflict. [1]

1982 Lebanon War[]

Haig's report to Reagan on January 30, 1982, shows that Haig feared that the Israelis might start a war against Lebanon.[20] Critics accused Haig of "greenlighting" the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in June 1982. Haig denied this and said he urged restraint.[21]

Resignation[]

Haig caused some alarm with his suggestion that a "nuclear warning shot" in Europe might be effective in deterring the Soviet Union.[22] His tenure as Secretary of State was often characterized by his clashes with the Defense Secretary, Caspar Weinberger.

Secretary of State Haig, who repeatedly had difficulty with various members of the Reagan administration during his year-and-a-half into office, decided to resign his post on June 25.[23]

President Reagan accepted Haig's resignation from State on July 5, 1982.[24] Haig was succeeded by George P. Shultz, who was confirmed on July 16, 1982.[25]

1988 Republican presidential nomination[]

Question book-new

This article does not contain any citations or references. Please improve this article by adding a reference. For information about how to add references, see Template:Citation.

Haig ran unsuccessfully for the Republican Party nomination for president in 1988. Although he enjoyed relatively high name recognition, Haig never broke out of single digits in national public opinion polls. He was a fierce critic of then Vice President George H. W. Bush, often doubting Bush's leadership abilities, questioning his role in the Iran Contra Scandal, and using the word "wimp" in relation to Bush in an October 1987 debate in Texas. Despite extensive personal campaigning and paid advertising in New Hampshire, Haig remained stuck in last place in the polls. Four days before the February 1988 NH primary election, Haig withdrew his candidacy and endorsed Senator Bob Dole, who made an appearance at the press conference, heavily covered by political reporters partly because a snow storm had limited travel by candidates and reporters. Dole, steadily gaining on Bush after beating him handily a week earlier in the Iowa caucus, ended up losing to Bush in the New Hampshire primary by ten percentage points. With his momentum regained, Bush easily won the nomination.

In popular culture[]

File:Haig-in-88.gif

In Part 2 of "Who Shot Mr. Burns?", an episode of The Simpsons, a mug shot of Homer Simpson is shown, in which he is wearing a T-shirt with the campaign slogan "Haig in '88" on it.

The internet animated series, Dino Yacht Club, features Haig as a main character, often being the one to report the disasters to Reagan. Despite Reagan's complete faith in the Dino Yacht Club, Haig is shown to have a great dislike for them, even trying to kill them upon meeting them for the first time.

Haig was played by Powers Boothe in the 1995 film Nixon, by Matt Frewer in the 1995 TV miniseries Kissinger And Nixon, and by Richard Dreyfuss in the 2001 cable film The Day Reagan Was Shot.

Haig was also mentioned in the last level of Interstate '82 where Ronald Reagan claims that Haig was pressured to resign from office by the president himself.

Later life, health, and death[]

In 1980, Haig had a double heart bypass operation.[26]

Haig was the host for several years of the television program World Business Review. At the time of his death, he was the host of 21st Century Business, with each program a weekly business education forum that included business solutions, expert interview, commentary and field reports.[27] Haig served as a founding member of the advisory board of Newsmax Media, which publishes the conservative web site, Newsmax.com.[28] Haig was co-chairman of the American Committee for Peace in the Caucasus, along with Zbigniew Brzezinski and Stephen J. Solarz. A member of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) Board of Advisors, Haig was also a founding Board Member of America Online.[29]

On January 5, 2006, Haig participated in a meeting at the White House of former Secretaries of Defense and State to discuss United States foreign policy with Bush administration officials.[30] On May 12, 2006, Haig participated in a second White House meeting with 10 former Secretaries of State and Defense. The meeting including briefings by Donald Rumsfeld and Condoleezza Rice, and was followed by a discussion with President George W. Bush.[31] Haig's memoirs – Inner Circles: How America Changed The World – were published in 1992.

On February 19, 2010, a hospital spokesman revealed that the 85-year-old Haig had been hospitalized at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore since January 28 and remained in critical condition.[32]

On February 20, Haig died at age 85 from complications from a staphylococcal infection that he had prior to admission. According to The New York Times, his brother, Father Haig, said the Army was coordinating a Mass at Fort Myer in Washington and an interment at Arlington National Cemetery, but both would be delayed by about two weeks due to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.[10] A Mass of Christian Burial was held at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. on March 2, 2010. Eulogies were given by Dr. Henry Kissinger and Sherwood "Woody" D. Goldberg.[33]

President Barack Obama said in a statement that, "General Haig exemplified our finest warrior-diplomat tradition of those who dedicate their lives to public service."[34] Secretary of State Hillary Clinton described Haig as a man who "served his country in many capacities for many years, earning honor on the battlefield, the confidence of Presidents and Prime Ministers, and the thanks of a grateful nation."[35]

Family[]

Alexander Haig was married to Patricia (née Fox) from 1950 until his death; the couple had three children: Alexander Patrick Haig Jr., Managing Director of Worldwide Associates, Inc., and Barbara Haig, "Deputy to President for Policy & Strategy" at the National Endowment for Democracy both of Washington, DC, and Brian Haig, author and military analyst of Hopewell, N.J. Haig's younger brother, Rev. Frank Haig, is a Jesuit priest and professor emeritus of physics at Loyola University in Baltimore, Maryland. Rev. Haig also served as the seventh president of Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York.[36] Alexander Haig's sister, Mrs. Regina Meredith was a practicing attorney licensed in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and was a co-founding partner of the firm Meredith, Chase and Taggart, located in Princeton and Trenton, New Jersey. She died in 2008.

Awards and decorations[]

Badges
Combat Infantry Badge Combat Infantryman Badge
US - Presidential Service Badge Presidential Service Badge
Decorations
US-DSC-RIBBON Distinguished Service Cross
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Defense Distinguished Service ribbon
Defense Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Distinguished Service Medal ribbon Army Distinguished Service Medal
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Silver Star ribbon
Silver Star with oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Legion of Merit ribbon
Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Distinguished Flying Cross ribbon
Distinguished Flying Cross with two oak leaf clusters
V
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Bronze Star ribbon
Bronze Star with "V" device and two oak leaf clusters
Purple Heart BAR Purple Heart
Air Medal ribbonRibbon numeral 2Ribbon numeral 4 Air Medal with award numeral 24
Army Commendation Medal ribbon Army Commendation Medal
Service Medals
American Campaign Medal ribbon American Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal ribbon World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation ribbon Army of Occupation Medal
Bronze star
National Defense Service Medal ribbon
National Defense Service Medal with service star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
KSMRib
Korean Service Medal with four service stars
Bronze star
Bronze star
Vietnam Service Ribbon
Vietnam Service Medal with two service stars
Foreign Awards
VPD National Order of Vietnam - Knight BAR National Order of Vietnam
Vietnam gallantry cross-w-palm-3d Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm
United Nations Service Medal for Korea ribbon United Nations Service Medal
Vietnam Campaign Medal Ribbon Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Alexander Haig, MSN Encarta". Alexander Haig, MSN Encarta. Archived from the original on October 31, 2009. http://www.webcitation.org/5kwDfej0s. 
  2. "ALEXANDER M. HAIG, Assistant to the President: Files, 1973–74". http://www.ford.utexas.edu/library/guides/Finding%20Aids/Haig,%20Alexander%20-%20Files.htm. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Premier Speakers Bureau". http://premierespeakers.com/alexander_haig. [dead link]
  4. Hohmann, James (February 21, 2010). "Alexander Haig, 85; soldier-statesman managed Nixon resignation". Archived from the original on February 21, 2010. http://www.webcitation.org/5nhqZ4BwM. Retrieved February 21, 2010. 
  5. "Haig's Future Uncertain After a Shaky Start". Anchorage Daily News. April 11, 1981. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6Yg1AAAAIBAJ&sjid=pJ4FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1406,2881203&dq=haig's-future-uncertain-after-a-shaky-start-as-secretary-of&hl=en. Retrieved December 22, 2009. 
  6. 6.0 6.1 Alexander M. Haig, Jr.. "Lessons of the forgotten war". http://www.historycentral.com/Documents/HaigKorea.html. 
  7. "UT Biography". https://my.tennessee.edu/portal/page?_pageid=91,55081&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL. [dead link]
  8. 8.0 8.1 "West Point Citation". http://www.aogusma.org/aog/awards/DGA/96-Haigl.htm. [verification needed]
  9. "Full Text Citations For Award of The Distinguished Service Cross, US Army Recipients – Vietnam". http://militarytimes.com/citations-medals-awards/recipient.php?recipientid=4574. 
  10. 10.0 10.1 Weiner, Tim (February 20, 2010). "Alexander M. Haig Jr., 85, Forceful Aide to 2 Presidents, Dies". Archived from the original on February 21, 2010. http://www.webcitation.org/5nhqLAZBM. Retrieved February 20, 2010. 
  11. The Final Days, by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, 1976, New York, Simon & Schuster; Shadow, by Bob Woodward, 1999, New York, Simon & Schuster, pp. 4-38.
  12. Silent Coup: The Removal of a President, by Len Colodny and Robert Gettlin, St. Martin's Press, New York, 1991
  13. Haig: The General's Progress, by Roger Morris (American writer), Playboy Press, 1982, pp. 320–25.
  14. 14.0 14.1 "German Guilty in '79 Attack At NATO on Alexander Haig". November 25, 1993. http://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/25/world/german-guilty-in-79-attack-at-nato-on-alexander-haig.html. 
  15. Maykuth, Andrew (February 21, 2010). "Philadelphia dominated Haig's formative years". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on February 23, 2010. http://web.archive.org/web/20100223061252/http://www.philly.com/inquirer/world_us/20100221_Philadelphia_dominated_Haig_s_formative_years.html. 
  16. http://www.acus.org/new_atlanticist/general-alexander-haig-former-saceur-and-atlantic-council-director-dead-85
  17. Fifty years among the new words: a dictionary of neologisms, 1941–1991, John Algeo, p.231
  18. Financial Times, London, March 21, 2009
  19. "Alexander Haig". Time magazine. April 2, 1984. p. 22 of 24 page article. Archived from the original on April 6, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080406153932/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,954230,00.html. Retrieved May 21, 2008. 
  20. Ronald Reagan edited by Douglas Brinkley (2007) The Reagan Diaries Harper Collins ISBN 978-0-06-087600-5 p 66 Saturday, January 30
  21. "Alexander Haig". Time magazine. April 9, 1984. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,952421,00.html. 
  22. Waller, Douglas C. Congress and the Nuclear Freeze: An Inside Look at the Politics of a Mass Movement, 1987. Page 19.
  23. 1982 Year in Review: Alexander Haig Resigns-http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1982/Alexander-Haig-Resigns---Polish-Solidarity/12295509432066-5/
  24. Ajemian, Robert; George J. Church; Douglas Brew (July 5, 1982). "The Shakeup at State". Time magazine. Archived from the original on March 27, 2010. http://web.archive.org/web/20100327061052/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925497,00.html. Retrieved February 21, 2010. 
  25. Short History of the Department of State, United States Department of State, Office of the Historian. Retrieved February 20, 2010.
  26. Guardian obituary
  27. "World Business Review with Alexander Haig". Archived from the original on December 8, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20081208114426/http://21cbtv.com/. Retrieved December 17, 2008. 
  28. General Alexander M. Haig, Jr. joins Newsmax.com advisory board, "PR Newswire", June 21, 2001.
  29. "Business Wire AOL-TIme Warner announces its board of directors". Business Wire. January 12, 2001. Archived from the original on July 8, 2012. http://archive.is/muFI. Retrieved December 17, 2008. 
  30. "President George W. Bush poses for a photo Thursday, January 5, 2006, in the Oval Office with former Secretaries of State and Secretaries of Defense from both Republican and Democratic administrations, following a meeting on the strategy for victory in Iraq". The White House. January 5, 2006. http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2006/01/images/20060105_d-0300-1-515h.html. Retrieved December 17, 2008. 
  31. "Bush discusses Iraq with former officials". http://www.upi.com/SecurityTerrorism/view.php?StoryID=20060512-111719-8658r. 
  32. "Haig, top adviser to 3 presidents, hospitalized". February 19, 2010. Archived from the original on February 20, 2010. http://www.webcitation.org/5ngfu7qgH. Retrieved February 20, 2010. 
  33. "Alexander M. Haig, Jr". West Point Association of Graduates. http://usma1947.westpointaog.com/Haig_Obit.html. Retrieved August 9, 2011. 
  34. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/21/us/politics/21haig.html?pagewanted=all
  35. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/feb/20/haig-former-secretary-state-dies-85/?page=all
  36. Krebs, Albin (January 25, 1982). "NOTES ON PEOPLE; A Haig Inaugurated". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1982/01/25/nyregion/notes-on-people-a-haig-inaugurated.html. Retrieved February 25, 2010. 

Further reading[]

  • The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House, by Seymour Hersh, Summit Books, New York, 1983, ISBN 0-671-50688-9.
  • Caveat: Realism, Reagan and Foreign Affairs, by Alexander Haig, Macmillan Publishing Company, New York, 1984.
  • Silent Coup: The Removal of a President, by Len Colodny and Robert Gettlin, St. Martin's Press, New York, 1991.

External links[]

Military offices
Preceded by
Gen. Bruce Palmer, Jr.
Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army
January 1973 – May 1973
Succeeded by
Gen. Frederick C. Weyand
Preceded by
Gen. Andrew Goodpaster
Supreme Allied Commander Europe (NATO)
1974–1979
Succeeded by
Gen. Bernard W. Rogers
Political offices
Preceded by
H. R. Haldeman
White House Chief of Staff
Served under: Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford

1973–1974
Succeeded by
Donald Rumsfeld
Preceded by
Edmund S. Muskie
U.S. Secretary of State
Served under: Ronald Reagan

1981–1982
Succeeded by
George P. Shultz



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