Joseph P. O'Neill

From 1985 to 1991, O'Neill served as President of the National Retail Federation (NRF), one of the country's largest industry trade associations. He served as the retail industry's top legislative strategist and chief advisor on all international trade negotiations, leading numerous trade delegations to Europe during the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. Before joining the Retail Federation, O'Neill served on the staff of former U.S. Senator and Chairman of the Finance Committee, Lloyd Bentsen (D-TX) for twelve years, first in Austin, Texas, and later moving to Washington in 1980 as Chief of Staff. In the summer of 1988, he took a leave of absence from his post at the Retail Federation to serve as Bentsen's campaign manager and Chief of Staff for the Vice Presidential campaign. In November 1992, Secretary-designate Bentsen again tapped O'Neill to fulfill a similar role, asking him to head the Treasury Department’s transition team for the Clinton-Gore Administration. O'Neill received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from Harvard College in 1969 and his Masters in Public Affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School at The University of Texas at Austin in 1973.