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Ray Mabus

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Ray Mabus
75th United States Secretary of the Navy
Incumbent
Assumed office
June 18, 2009
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byDonald C. Winter
22nd United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
In office
July 5, 1994 – April 25, 1996
PresidentBill Clinton
Preceded byCharles W. Freeman, Jr.
Succeeded byWyche Fowler
60th Governor of Mississippi
In office
January 12, 1988 – January 14, 1992
LieutenantBrad Dye
Preceded byWilliam Allain
Succeeded byKirk Fordice
37th State Auditor of Mississippi
In office
1984–1988
Preceded byHamp King
Succeeded byPete Johnson
Personal details
Born (1948-10-11) October 11, 1948 (age 76)
Starkville, Mississippi
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseLynne Mabus
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Navy
Years of service1970–1972
RankLieutenant (junior grade)
UnitUSS Little Rock (CG-4)

Raymond Edwin "Ray" Mabus, Jr. (born October 11, 1948) is the 75th United States Secretary of the Navy. Mabus served as the 60th Governor of the U.S. state of Mississippi from 1988 to 1992 and as United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia from 1994 to 1996.

Early life

Mabus was born in Starkville and is a fourth-generation Mississippian; he grew up in Ackerman, the only child of the owner of the local hardware store. After attending public schools, he graduated summa cum laude from the University of Mississippi, where he was a member of Beta Theta Pi, with a B.A. in English and political science. He earned an M.A. in political science from Johns Hopkins University and a Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School. He also served two years in the Navy as a surface warfare officer from 1970 to 1972 aboard the cruiser USS Little Rock,[1] and worked as a law clerk in the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Political career

Mabus began his professional career working in Washington as legal counsel to the U.S. House Agriculture Committee. Following the election of Governor William Winter, he returned to Mississippi to work in the governor's office, where the youthful staff– which included Mabus, Dick Molpus, John Henegan and Andy Mullins– earned the nickname "Boys of Spring" from a rival state legislator.[2]

Secretary of the Navy

Mabus meeting with President Obama in the Oval Office, June 2010.

On March 27, 2009, Mabus was nominated by President Obama as Secretary of the Department of the Navy.[3] He was informally sworn in on May 19, 2009,[4] however it was not until an official ceremony at Washington Navy Yard on June 18, 2009 that Mabus was officially sworn in by the Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.[5][6][7][8]

In April 2010 a furor arose when it was reported that Mabus made the controversial proposal to name a United States Navy warship after the late Pennsylvania Democrat, John Murtha. Additional naming controversies occurred due to the naming of auxiliary ship after Cesar Chavez,[9] and a corvette/littoral combat ship after Gabrielle Giffords.[10]

Secretary Mabus has a presence on Facebook and frequently comments about his daily activities. This is the first case of a branch secretary maintaining a web presence.[citation needed] Mabus is the third consecutive SECNAV without formal military experience from any branch of the United States Armed Forces.

President Obama has asked him to develop a long-term Gulf Coast Restoration Plan as soon as possible. The plan will be designed by states, local communities, tribes, fishermen, businesses, conservationists and other Gulf residents".[11]

Mississippi State Auditor

In 1983, Mabus was elected state auditor and served from 1984 to 1988, during which time he participated in a large FBI sting operation which recovered millions in misspent or stolen public funds.[12] By the time it was finished, "Operation Pretense" ensnared 57 county supervisors in 25 counties, and all but two supervisors served time in prison.[13]

Governor of Mississippi

In 1987, he defeated Tupelo businessman Jack Reed in the gubernatorial election by 53% to 47%,[14] becoming the youngest governor in the nation at the time. Mabus, who ran on the slogan "Mississippi Will Never Be Last Again,"[15] was billed as "the face of the New South," much like his counterpart in Arkansas at the time, Bill Clinton. Mabus was featured in a 1988 New York Times Magazine cover story titled "The Yuppies of Mississippi; How They Took Over the Statehouse" which chronicled his challenges and successes.[16]

During his time as governor, he passed B.E.S.T. (Better Education for Success Tomorrow),[17] gave teachers the largest pay raise in the nation;[18] and was named one of Fortune Magazine’s ten "education governors".[19] Mississippi also had record growth in new jobs, investment, tourism and exports.[citation needed]

Because of the gubernatorial succession amendment ratified in 1987, Mabus was eligible to become the first governor to serve two successive terms in more than 100 years, and he ran for reelection in 1991. He was narrowly defeated in the general election by Republican Kirk Fordice.[20]

Ambassador to Saudi Arabia

Mabus was appointed by President Bill Clinton to be the United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia and served from 1994 to 1996. During his tenure, a 1994 border crisis involving Yemen was defused,[21] a 1994 crisis with Iraq was deterred,[22] presided over the embassy during the 1995 terrorist attack ,[23] child abduction cases were addressed,[24] and contracts worth more than $16 billion were signed between Saudi Arabian and American companies such as Boeing,[25] and AT&T.[26]

Mabus' residence and embassy office in Riyadh were decorated with items of interest from his home state including an Ackerman phone book on his office coffee table and the Mississippi flag next to the American flag.[citation needed]

Business ventures

In August 2007, he joined the board of Enersys, the world's largest manufacturer, marketer and distributor of industrial batteries.[27] From 2006-April 2007, he was Chairman and CEO of Foamex International and helped lead it out of bankruptcy.[citation needed] Less than nine months after his appointment, Foamex emerged from Chapter 11.[28][verification needed]

Awards, honors, community service

Mabus has been awarded the U.S. Department of Defense Distinguished Public Service Award, the U.S. Army’s Distinguished Civilian Service Award, the Martin Luther King Social Responsibility Award from the King Center in Atlanta, the National Wildlife Federation Conservation Achievement Award, the King Abdul Aziz Award from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the Mississippi Association of Educators’ Friend of Education Award.

He is active in many community activities, primarily focusing on education. Following Hurricane Katrina, he founded the Help and Hope Foundation, which works to meet the needs of children affected by the storm.

He is a former member of the RAND Center for Middle East Public Policy[29] and the Council on Foreign Relations, and is the Distinguished Lecturer on the Middle East at the University of Mississippi.

As a photographer, his photographs have raised tens of thousands of dollars for various Mississippi charities.

He has appeared on many television programs as an expert on the Middle East, including "60 Minutes" and "Nightline".

In 2009, Mabus made a cameo appearance on the US drama NCIS as an NCIS Agent named "Ray".[30]

Personal life

Mabus has two daughters, Elisabeth and Annie, with his first wife.

In 1998, Mabus secretly tape recorded conversations he had with his then-wife Julie and a mutual friend (a priest) in attempts to resolve marital difficulties. The conversations provided a basis for Mabus to obtain sole legal custody of the children from that marriage. Julie (now Hines) filed suit against the reverend, his church, and the diocese. The case was the focus of media attention for issues raised relating to privacy rights in the context of churches. Mabus's actions in the incident were legal and he was not named in the suit.[31]

References

  1. ^ USSLittleRock.org
  2. ^ The Clarion-Ledger, May 29, 2007
  3. ^ Navytimes.com
  4. ^ Staff reporter (2009-05-19). "Mabus Sworn in as New Navy Secretary". NNS. Retrieved 2009-05-20. Ray Mabus, former Mississippi governor and U.S. ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, was unofficially sworn in May 19 as the 75th secretary of the Navy (Archived by WebCite at webcitation.org)
  5. ^ Clarionledger.com
  6. ^ Navy.mil
  7. ^ Navytimes.com
  8. ^ Sunherald.com
  9. ^ Gary Robbins (18 May 2011). "Navy secretary names ship after Cesar Chavez". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved 7 March 2012. Mabus' remarks came amid controversy. On Tuesday, Hunter issued a statement saying, "Naming a ship after César Chávez goes right along with other recent decisions by the Navy that appear to be more about making a political statement than upholding the Navy's history and tradition." {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ Philip Ewing (15 February 2012). "Navy Plays it Safe With New DDG and LCS Names". Military.com. Retrieved 7 March 2012. Less than a week after drawing traditionalist ire for naming a Navy warship after former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus returned to standard convention Wednesday in a batch of new names for forthcoming warships.
  11. ^ Remarks by the President to the Nation on the BP Oil Spill, June 15, 2010
  12. ^ No Pretense to Honesty: County Government Corruption in Mississippi, Nicholls St. Univ. and Univ. of Miss., May 2003
  13. ^ The Clarion-Ledger, June 17, 2007
  14. ^ NYtimes.com
  15. ^ TIME Magazine, November 16, 1987
  16. ^ New York Times Magazine, February 28, 1988
  17. ^ AGENCY GROUP, 05. "Doe Announces More Key Administration Posts." FDCH Regulatory Intelligence Database (n.d.): Regional Business News. Web. 3 Nov. 2011.
  18. ^ PETER, APPLEBOME. "Mississippi Governor's Record at Issue." New York Times 16 Sept. 1991: 8. Newspaper Source Plus. Web. 3 Nov. 2011.
  19. ^ Fortune Magazine, May 28, 1990
  20. ^ TIME Magazine, November 18, 1991
  21. ^ Inventory of Conflict & Environment, Saudi-Yemen border dispute
  22. ^ Operation Vigilant Warrior
  23. ^ OPM-SANG background
  24. ^ State Dept. press briefing, August 6, 2002
  25. ^ Boeing aircraft sale to Saudi Arabia
  26. ^ TEP6 telecommunications project
  27. ^ PRNewswire/CNN, August 7, 2007
  28. ^ Foamex International website
  29. ^ RAND Center for Middle East Public Policy website
  30. ^ "Ray Mabus to guest star on 'NCIS'". United Press International. November 9, 2009. Retrieved March 17, 2012.
  31. ^ Rutenberg, Jim (March 28, 2009). "Navy Secretary Nominee Drew Notice Over Divorce". The New York Times. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
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Political offices
Preceded by State Auditor of Mississippi
1984–1988 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Governor of Mississippi
1988–1992 		Succeeded by
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
1994–1996 		Succeeded by
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