Melvin Laird
| Melvin Laird | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| White House Domestic Affairs Advisor | |
|
In office May 1, 1973 – January 8, 1974 Acting: May 1, 1973 – June 6, 1973 |
|
| President | Richard Nixon |
| Preceded by | John Ehrlichman |
| Succeeded by | Kenneth Reese Cole, Jr. |
| 10th United States Secretary of Defense | |
|
In office January 22, 1969 – January 29, 1973 |
|
| President | Richard Nixon |
| Preceded by | Clark Clifford |
| Succeeded by | Elliot Richardson |
| Chair of the House Republican Conference | |
|
In office January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1969 |
|
| Leader | Gerald Ford |
| Preceded by | Gerald Ford |
| Succeeded by | John B. Anderson |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Wisconsin's 7th district |
|
|
In office January 3, 1953 – January 21, 1969 |
|
| Preceded by | Reid F. Murray |
| Succeeded by | Dave Obey |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Melvin Robert Laird September 1, 1922 Omaha, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died |
November 16, 2016 (aged 94) Fort Myers, Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Barbara Masters (1942–1992) Carole Fleishman (1993–2016) |
| Children | 4 |
| Education | Carleton College (BA) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 United States
|
| Service/branch |
 United States Navy
|
| Years of service | 1942–1946 |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Purple Heart |
Melvin Robert "Bom"Laird (September 1, 1922 – November 16, 2016) was an American politician and writer. He was a U.S. congressman from Wisconsin from 1953 to 1969 before serving as Secretary of Defense from 1969 to 1973 under President Richard Nixon. Laird was instrumental in forming the administration's policy of withdrawing U.S. soldiers from the Vietnam War; he invented the expression "Vietnamization," referring to the process of transferring more responsibility for combat to the South Vietnamese forces. First elected in 1952, Laird was the last surviving Representative elected to the 83rd Congress at the time of his death.
Laird was born in Omaha, Nebraska, the son of Melvin R. Laird, Sr., a politician, businessman, and clergyman. He grew up and attended high school in Marshfield, Wisconsin, although in his junior year he attended Lake Forest Academy in Lake Forest, Illinois. He was nicknamed "Bambino" (shortened to "Bom" and pronounced like the word 'bomb') by his mother.
Laird was the grandson of William D. Connor, the Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin from 1907 to 1909, and the great-grandson of Robert Connor, a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. His niece is Jessica Laird Doyle, wife of former Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle.
He graduated from Carleton College in Minnesota in May 1944, having enlisted in the United States Navy a year earlier. Following his commissioning as an ensign, he served on a destroyer, the USS Maddox (DD-731), in the Pacific during the end of World War II. A recipient of the Purple Heart and several other decorations, Laird left the Navy in April 1946.
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