Togo D. West Jr.

Togo D. West, Jr.
3rd United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs
In office May 5, 1998 – July 10, 2000
Preceded by	Jesse Brown
Succeeded by	Anthony Principi
Personal details
Born	thumb (1942-06-21) June 21, 1942 Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Died	thumb Togo D. West, Jr.
Resting place	thumb Togo D. West, Jr.
Political party	Democratic
Parent	thumb Togo D. West, Jr.
Alma mater	Howard University
Awards	Legion of Merit Meritorious Service Medal
Military service
Branch/service	United States Army
Unit	Judge Advocate General's Corps

Togo Dennis West, Jr. (born June 21, 1942) is an attorney and public official who was the third person to occupy the post of United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs. He was nominated by President Bill Clinton on January 27, 1998, during Clinton's second term, and was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 5, 1998. He had previously served as United States Secretary of the Army under Clinton, from 1993 to 1997. He was the second African American to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

Personal life

West was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina; there, he became an Eagle Scout with Bronze Palms, and attended Atkins High School (where his parents were teachers), graduating as valedictorian in 1959. He subsequently entered Howard University, obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering in 1965, and a Juris Doctor in 1968, receiving cum laude honors and graduating first in his class. While a freshman at Howard University, he became a brother of Alpha Phi Omega. West is a member of the Kappa Psi chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated. While a student at the Howard University School of Law, West became the managing editor for the Howard Law Journal; he also met Gail Berry, who became his wife. The Wests later had two daughters.

A member of St. John's Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square, he served as a vestryman and Senior Warden.

He has been named a Distinguished Eagle Scout by the Boy Scouts of America and was awarded the Silver Buffalo Award for his national contributions to America’s youth. Currently, he is the President of the National Capital Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America.

Career

After completing law school and clerking for a federal judge, West entered the United States Army and served in the Judge Advocate General's Corps. From his military service, he earned the Legion of Merit and the Meritorious Service Medal. He subsequently practiced law at the firm of Covington & Burling before being appointed an associate deputy attorney general in the administration of President Gerald Ford. Then, West held several posts in the administration of Jimmy Carter: general counsel to the Navy (1977-1979), special assistant to the secretary and to the deputy secretary of defense (1979), and general counsel to the Department of Defense (1980-1981). As the Secretary of the Army, West weighed in on the Aberdeen scandal, prompting stricter enforcement and investigation into the Army's sexual harassment policies.

West returned to private practice in 1981 with the firm of Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler and later worked as senior vice president for government relations of the Northrop Corporation until he became a member of the Clinton administration.

Since leaving the government, West has practiced law and has served as president of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a Washington-based think tank focused on issues of concern to minorities. He is also a strong supporter of and past board member of the Mount Vernon preservation society.