William Bennett AKA William John Bennett Born: 31-Jul-1943 Birthplace: Brooklyn, NY
Gender: Male Religion: Roman Catholic Race or Ethnicity: White Sexual orientation: Straight Occupation: Government, Author Party Affiliation: Republican Nationality: United States Executive summary: Former Drug Czar and gambling man Bennett was President Ronald Reagan's chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities. He was appointed Drug Czar under George H.W. Bush, the first to hold this position. Bennett supports harshly penalizing small-possession drug offenders. During his 15 June 1989 appearance on Larry King Live, one caller outrageously suggested that he "behead the damn drug dealers." Bennett was hardly alarmed, and replied:
"I mean what the caller suggests is morally plausible. Legally, it's difficult. But somebody selling drugs to a kid? Morally, I don't have any problem with that at all."
He is partially responsible for making morality and personal responsibility a part of the national political debate. Many people find Bennett haughty and condescending, and the American media took great and evident pleasure in sanctimoniously condemning him after it was revealed that he enjoyed gambling: reports differ, but he lost $8 million within a period of either a year or ten years. Despite Bennett's huge gambling losses, his family has had no financial trouble. Bennett earns $50,000 per lecture engagement, and receives grants from the Saife and John M. Olin Foundations. He has been forced to give up gambling, though.
Incredibly, Bennett was once set up on a blind date with Janis Joplin.
Father: F. Robert Bennett Mother: Nancy Walsh Brother: Robert S. Bennett (attorney, b. 2-Aug-1939) Wife: Mary Elayne Glover (m. 29-May-1982, two sons) Son: John Son: Joseph
University: BA Philosophy, Williams College (1965) University: PhD Philosophy, University of Texas (1970) Law School: JD, Harvard Law School (1971) Professor: Boston University Professor: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Professor: North Carolina State University
Director of National Drug Control Policy (1989-91) US Secretary of Education (1985-88) National Endowment for the Humanities President (1981) American Council of Trustees and Alumni National Council Arlington Group Catholic Campaign for America Board Member Center for Security Policy Committee for a Free World Constituting America National Advisory Board Council for National Policy Empower America Director Family Research Council The Heritage Foundation Hudson Institute Fellow Jewish Policy Center Board of Fellows John Carroll Society Honorary Member John McCain 2008 Kappa Alpha Society Libby Legal Defense Trust Advisory Committee Parents Television Council Celebrity Advisory Board Project for the New American Century Claremont Institute Washington Fellow FreedomWorks Senior Fellow Eagle Scout Crisis Draft Deferment: Vietnam Roast: Tim Russert (1993) Wedding: Rush Limbaugh and Marta Fitzgerald (1994) Endorsement of LegalZoom (2007)
Risk Factors: Gambling, Obesity
Rotten Library Page: William Bennett
Author of books:
Counting by Race: Equality from the Founding Fathers to Bakke and Weber (1979, with Terry Eastland) Our Children and Our Country: Improving America's Schools and Affirming the Common Culture (1988) Culture Wars: Reports from the Front (1992) The De-Valuing of America: The Fight for Our Culture and Our Children (1992) The Book of Virtues (1993) The Index of Leading Cultural Indicators (1994) Moral Compass: Stories for a Life's Journey (1995) Our Sacred Honor: Words of Advice from the Founders in Stories, Letters, Poems, and Speeches (1997) The Death of Outrage: Bill Clinton and the Assault on American Ideals (1998) The Educated Child: A Parent's Guide (1999, with John T.E. Cribb and Chester E. Finn, Jr.) The Broken Hearth: Reversing the Moral Collapse of the American Family (2001) Why We Fight: Moral Clarity and the War on Terrorism (2003) America: The Last Best Hope (2006, two volumes) The American Patriot's Almanac (2009, with John T.E. Cribb) A Century Turns: New Hopes, New Fears (2009)
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